Centreville Town

Queen Annes County, Maryland

Centreville Town Hall is located at 101 Lawyer's Row, Centreville, MD 21617.
Phone: 410‑758‑1180.

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Photo: Captain's Houses, constructed circa 1880, these are among the earliest buildings surviving on the Centreville waterfront. Located on Corsica Street, Centreville. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. Photographed by user:Acroterian (own work), 2008, [cc‑3.0] via Wikimedia Commons, accessed August, 2021.

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Beginnings [1]

Centreville was established in 1782 when the Maryland General Assembly called for the removal of the county seat from Queenstown and construction of a new courthouse on a small parcel of land at or near the head of the Corsica River. This act laid the groundwork for the Town of Centreville. A few historic structures remain in Centreville that predate the Town itself. The County courthouse is the oldest acting and continuously used courthouse in the State of Maryland. Centreville is the county seat of Queen Anne's County and is the County's largest incorporated town with an estimated population of about 2,660 persons (2005). The Town is located at the head of navigation of the Corsica River, a tributary of the Chester River. Centreville is situated in the center of Queen Anne's County and is geographically positioned in the middle of Maryland's Eastern Shore.

Neighborhoods

Many of the older structures in the Town were constructed during the late 1800s and have "Victorian" style architecture with cornice and window types common to that period. The Town has evolved slowly over the years as a traditional small town with numerous public buildings, several public school facilities, a small central business district, quiet tree-lined residential neighborhoods, two Town parks, and limited commercial/industrial uses along the railroad spur and major roadways leading into Town. There are a wide variety of architectural styles throughout the Town, reflective of different periods when development occurred. Most of the incorporated Town is presently developed, though some active farmlands do still exist within Town limits. The Centreville Historic District was included in the National Register of Historic Places in 2004. In addition, the following structures are individually listed on the National Register, including brief descriptions based on information from the Maryland Historic Trust:

• Captain John H. Ozmon Store. [NR #85000277] This property on Corsica Street, which is a combination of a store and a dwelling, is significant for its architecture and its association with the prominent local merchant.
• Captain's Houses. [NR #80001830] The collection of four essentially identical houses on Corsica Street is part of the early architectural fabric of the Centreville Wharf.
• Centreville Armory. [NR# 85002666] Located on South Commerce Street, this site is significant for its association with the 20th century expansion of the National Guard system and as a social center for the community.
• Female Seminary. [NR# 03001266] This building, which now a residence, is a good example of 19th century Victorian architecture use in public buildings.
• Jackson Collins House. [NR #00001503] This late 19th century house is one of the finest examples of architecture of the Victorian period in Queen Anne's County.
• Keating House. [NR# 99001281] This early 19th century house, built in the Federal style, is significant for its architectural merit.

1. Town of Centreville, Community Plan, 2009, Queen Anne's County Department of Land Use, Growth Management and Environment, www,mdp.state.md.us, accessed April, 2011.