The diverse history of Maryland and our national heritage can be experienced at Oxon Cove Park. Through hands-on programs and other activities, you can experience farm life and how its changed over time. Explore how the park evolved from a planta...
The bathroom is across the gravel roadway about from the visitor center. It is a red wooden rectangular building, with a tin roof that shows signs of rust. The wood pattern is board and batten, which is wide vertical planks (boards), and then joined together by thin vertical strips (battens) to cover the seams. The entrance to the facility is facing the visitor center. The women's room is on the left with the men's on the right. There area between the two entrances is recessed and has a concrete patio and a water fountain attached to the wall.
The stable is 2 stories, and 3 bays, with a hay loft sheltered by a gable roof. The historic red brick barn has a metal tin roof with rust. The south side has a large sliding door that opens to the right, and to the left are two small narrow openings (windows). The second floor center is a double door hay loft with one window on each side. The doors and windows are dark red wood with white trim. The windows of the barn have no glass in them. The north side of the building has an entrance way as well on the ground level. There are a few "windows" on the first level on the east and south sides for ventilation for the animals when they are stabled.
The chicken coop is a red, rectangular, board and batten building, about 12 feet by 8 feet in size. The shed roof is tin metal and slopes away from the entrance door, making the front side taller than the back. The entrance door faces the visitor center it is has two doors, upper and lower. The chicken door is about 12 inches by 10 inches at the bottom of the wall that allows the chickens to enter and exit. A wood ramp leads up to the chicken door. A square window that opens on a hinge to the right is just off center of the building. The window opening is covered with chicken wire to keep wild birds and animals out of the coop. There are three additional windows of the same design, one on the left side and two on the back side. A wooden fence about 15 feet by 20 feet covered with wire fencing creates a yard for the chickens to be outside. The entire run area is covered by a nylon netting. The fence has a gate about 2 feet from the left corner for access to the yard and coop by the staff. The inside of the coop has a roost attached to the back wall as you walk into the building, the right wall is where the 8 nesting boxes are attached. The floor is concrete and covered with pine shavings.
The Dairy barn is the closest to the parking lot. It is a one and a half story red, wood barn, the planks are vertical in their placement. The roof is a gable style with metal sheeting. The rectangular barn is has opening on all four sides, three of the opening have sliding doors. The right side of the barn has an attached shorter roof and supports that creates an over hang and is closed on the ends and open across the front to allow the cows access to the shelter, the barn door on that side is usually kept closed. The left side of the barn is the door used to bring the cow in for milking, that door is also kept closed. The back side of the barn is the entrance way for the public during programs at other times it is locked. The silo is on that side of the barn. Behind the barn is a gravel road and a tree line. The other three sides of the barn are pasture areas for the cows. There is a wood and wire fence that surrounds the pasture area. Additional wood fencing inside the pasture fence allows the staff to close off certain areas to keep the cows from going to that space.
The diverse history of Maryland and our national heritage can be experienced at Oxon Cove Park. Explore how the park evolved from a plantation home during the War of 1812, to a hospital farm, to the park you can visit today. Through hands-on programs and other activities, you can experience farm life and the connections Americans have to the origins of their food.
A large red barn surrounded by a large field and fencing.
To the right of the main entrance and parking lot of Oxon Cove Park is a picnic area. The area runs along the entire right side of the parking lot to the treeline and the edge of a meadow. Picnic tables are strewn about along with trash cans and hot coal receptacles. At the back of the area is the trailhead for the Woodlot trail.
The windmill stands northeast of the Visitor Center. It is constructed of four metal stanchions with cross braces forming an "X" pattern. The base in on a concrete pad. It is about 5 feet at the base and tapers as it goes up. The pump is still in place inside the windmill. The wooden arm that made the pump work is attached to the pump but broken in several places. The top of the windmill has a fan that catches the wind making it spin around the top as the wind direction changes. The tail is curved at the top where it connects to the supports from the center post and forms a triangle. There is a small platform at the top, just below the bottom of the fan.
The small rectangular red wood building with a shingle shed roof that slopes toward the back. The boards are oriented vertically. There is a single door on the left side of the building that opens out to the left. Above the door are three vertical ventilation ports. To the right of the door and spaced evenly are three small windows measuring approximately 18 inches by 24 inches, and trimmed in white A stone step is in front of the door for easier access. Attached to on the left side of the building a rope is strung to the right side of the other building in the fence of the same design. A 50 foot by 30 foot wood and wire fence that serves as the yard for the goat and sheep. A feed trough is against the fence near the left corner. There is grass as well in the fenced area.
The hay barn is a large, two-story rectangular building. The wood-frame sill rests on brick piers along the north elevation, and on the ground, on the south elevation. It has vertical board-and-batten walls, a metal gable roof, and two sliding track doors. The sliding doors are tall and wide and are the north and south sides. The size of the doors allows for tractors and trucks to drive through for loading and unloading of hay or straw. The west side has a double door on the ground level with a small double door just under the roof with an "arm" attached at the top of the opening. Both of the doors are kept closed.
The building is located about 100 feet behind the chicken coop. It is a six-sided red wood building with white stripes. The style of construction is board and batten (wide vertical planks (boards), and then joined together by thin vertical strips (battens) to cover the seams) with a gray six-sided pyramidal roof. The building is on a brick foundation. There is one door and it is on the east side of the building, facing the chicken coop. Two window are on the structure and they are on sides toward the back of the building. The windows are trimmed in white and are rectangular. A white picket fence surrounds the building. The fenced area has tall and round ornamental boxwood bushes growing around the fence.
A rectangular red wooden one-story board and batten building. A tin gable roof. There are three hog entrances along the south wall which faces the gravel road. The entrances are at ground level and spaced evenly, they are about 3 feet square. Staff entrances are at the east and west ends. The hog house opens into a wood-framed, wire fence pen, about 40-feet square with feed troughs. The adjacent field also fenced off with a fence and a red metal swing gate separating the two pasture areas. This area has a pond near the back fence.
White farm house (1805) at Oxon Cove Park and Oxon Hill Farm is the oldest structure at the park. It was the Debutts family home and was known as Mount Welby.
The building is a two-story, brick house painted white with a shed roof, it slopes toward the north. There are porches on the north and south sides of the house, both porches are the full length of the walls. The south side porch is supported off the ground several feet, a white lattice covers the opening under the porch. A five step stair leads to the porch landing. There are six posts that support the roof of the porch, a white wood railing with vertical pickets surround the porch. The left side of the porch has remains of what used to be an accessible ramp. The wooden entrance door is in the center and above the door is a glass rectangular window. There are two floor to ceiling windows with black shutters in the open position, one of each side of the door. The north side of the building is the same style, full length porch, the height is closer to four or five feet above the ground. The trim on the windows and porches green in color. The east side of the house has two sets of identical windows on the first and second floors. A small rectangular window is near ground level. There are two chimneys the roof. The west side of the house has one tall window about five feet, on the first floor and two windows on the second floor. There is a small rectangular window near ground level. In the middle of the wall is a covered area with double doors that lead to the basement. There are two chimneys on the roof.
A half mile down the Oxon Cove trail there is a sign that says 'Oxon Cove' with an arrow pointing to the right. Follow the path as it curves towards the water. Oxon Cove is a small inlet of the Potomac River. Viewing the cove from the shoreline, its circling shore is lined with trees. To the south, a small bridge crosses the cove and the MGM skyscraper of National Harbor peeks out from the tree line. At the beginning of the trail, there is a small clearing with a picnic table. The trail follows the cove and a connecting stream a quarter of a mile before crossing a small bridge to a meadow. The trail is not a loop. You will need to return the same way you came.
When approaching the farm from the parking lot, there are three gates along a white fence. The gate furthest to the left will lead to the Oxon Cove trail. About 65 yards into this gravel road the trail splits. Take the right paved trail down the hill. After approximately a quarter of a mile, the trail will turn to the right and lead to Oxon Cove.
A small one story brick with a gray gable roof and is burrowed into the hillside northeast of the Mount Welby house. The entry is accessed by a few steps down to a white wooden door. On the right is a brick addition that starts just under the roof and ends at ground level, where there is a small opening. The building is about 5 feet tall at ground level. The orientation of the building is parallel to the gravel road.
Approximately 16 feet in diameter and 60 feet tall, the silo is attached to the dairy barn on the side by a gravel path. It is covered in brick-colored glazed square tiles and has a patinaed copper roof. A ladder of metal bars leads to a small window on the roof.
The Visitor Center at Oxon Hill Farm is the first stop you should make when visiting the park. Inside, you will find park brochures, Junior Ranger books, and a Park Ranger to answer all questions. The Visitor Center also houses the park bookstore where you can purchase souvenirs and gifts for the family.
