18th Century

"Pure Ketchup: A History of America's National Condiment," by Andrew F. Smith (Smithsonian Institution Press, 242 pages, $16.95). Nobody is sure where it came from - 18th century France and ancient Greece and the Gulf of Tonkin are among the speculations. But everybody knows that for many Americans it improves the edibility of almost anything. I know people whose behavior makes it clear they believe French fried potatoes were invented as a condiment to augment ketchup, a main dish. This history of the stuff is scholarly but never stuffy, full of delights.

After 10 days of digging on shore and mucking around in the West River south of Annapolis, archaeologists say they have uncovered the remains of one of Maryland's earliest defense industries.The 42-acre Stephen Steward shipyard prospered from the 1750s until British forces sailed up in 1781 and torched the yard and the rebel warships it was building.The shipyard also was the target of a small army of amateur and professional archaeologists and divers, who wrapped up their work yesterday."An intact 18th century shipyard has not been recorded for the whole mid-Atlantic coast," said Bruce F. Thompson, assistant state underwater archaeologist, and the principal investigator at the site.

Rarely do more than half a dozen fine pieces of Colonial American silver appear at auction at one time. When the June Americana sales at Sotheby's and Christie's in New York together featured a dazzling display of nearly 50 pieces of late-17th and early-18th century silver, museums, dealers and a small group of wealthy collectors had an unusual opportunity to acquire shining examples, many fresh to the market. Although no records were made, prices generally were strong for works by some of the finest Colonial silversmiths.

New Windsor, a 19th-century summer resort town for city dwellers in Washington and Baltimore, has been added to the National Register of Historic Places.The town once was hailed for its sulfur spring, which was said to have medicinal qualities. Two 18th-century roads passed through the region: Monocacy Road connected the Monocacy River Valley to Baltimore, and Buffalo Road connected Annapolis with Buffalo, N.Y.In 1788, Isaac Richardson Atlee opened a small tavern at the intersection of the two roads and in 1797, the original 28 plots were created.

ITS BIRTH CERTIFICATE says it is 146 years old, but we know better. Although Howard County will celebrate its sesquicentennial in four years, and although it looks quite a bit younger around the edges, it is older than the official number. Its seeds were planted long before the incorporation year of 1851, when the 251-square-mile landlocked area ceased to become the Howard District of Anne Arundel County and assumed its own identity as Howard County.The county's 18th century roots become evident with just a glance at the old stone buildings on Ellicott City's Main Street that seem out of time and yet provide a perfect counterbalance to Howard's recent decades of development.

Charles Carroll, Barrister, and his wife, Margaret Tilghman, stare down from their portraits at the black-draped "coffin" in the parlor of Mount Clare like benign spirits contemplating their future. "He died in March of 1783," says Michael Connolly, assistant director of Mount Clare Museum House, the well-preserved home of the Carrolls. "So we used his death as sort of the basis of our interpretation of what was happening in the house at that time." Charles Carroll, Barrister was the cousin of Charles Carroll of Carrollton, who signed the Declaration of Independence.

The words "staid," "subtle," and "formal" are probably what come to mind when people think of American decorative arts of the 1700s. But there was a time, around the end of the 18th century, according to antiquarian Sumpter Priddy III, when everything from settees to symphonies got "wild, abstract and colorful."Instead of Sheraton, Williamsburg, Mozart, think of red paint, kaleidoscopes, Beethoven. For a time, the sober rationalism of the 18th century gave way to exuberant imagination. Quilts and plates showed up with bright geometric decoration.

When Michael and Lois Hodes began collecting five years ago, they had one main goal -- find something unique with character. Today, their 27-room house in Roland Park is stuffed to the brim with interesting and unusual furnishings and accessories. Walking through the rooms is like taking a tour of a mini-museum. In fact, Mrs. Hodes sometimes refers to herself as a curator.For starters, a seven-piece salon set of 18th century French furniture sits near the fireplace in the living room. The settee and six matching chairs are gilded and upholstered in the original tapestry.

Are you an analytical left-brainer, or a creative right-brainer? Choosing a work environment that reflects the way you think just might enhance your productivity and make you feel more comfortable. Here are some tips on home-office design from furniture maker Sauder Woodworking Co.For left brainers, who are typically analytical and logical, and who need clean work spaces with few distractions:* A single work space with ample storage and file space.* Closed drawers and filing cabinets to put away unneeded materials.

Yorktown, Va., observes its 300-year history next weekend with a three-day celebration from Friday to Sunday. The whole town will be involved, and visitors can enjoy free activities from the opening ceremony and youth concert on Friday night to the closing ceremony and the lighting of 300 candles on Sunday evening, and including parades, living history re-enactments, demonstrations, concerts, sports and other events. The festival will be held in the historic district, along the waterfront and on Main Street from the Colonial National Historical Park Visitor Center to the Yorktown Victory Center.