Save the Historic Woodbrook Cottage

in the County generally
• To foster civic pride in the beauty and noble accomplishments of the past
Additionally, it is stated that one of the purposes of the Landmarks List is “protection against unwarranted demolition.”

The Woodbrook Cottage, at 111 Woodbrook Lane, is the oldest home on Woodbrook Lane and was clearly part of the original Woodbrook Estate which has given the neighborhood and the street its name. The Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation, states that the building dates from 1893. According to recent architectural drawings, the new size of the lot is 0.60 acre. The original Woodbrook Estate was purchased in 1859 and extensively improved by the important 19th century Baltimore businessman William H. Cochran, another prominent businessman (and local social crusader) whose family held frequent social events at their home. His son, the influential modernist architect, Alexander Smith Cochran, grew up there. From a 1912 map of Baltimore County, we see that the Woodbrook Cottage is marked as a landmark in the area. In 1933, the Woodbrook Estate burned down and was replaced by a home at 25 (now 31) Woodbrook Lane. The only outbuilding from the estate that seems to have survived is the Woodbrook Cottage (we posit that it is the “smaller home occupied by Leo Gartell” that is mentioned in the 1933 article about the fire) unless the small 1920 home at 119 Woodbrook Lane was also part of the estate. The land for the estate remained in the Cochran family (now Brown) until the present when the majority of the land was sold by the grandson of Mr. Cochran, subdivided and essentially clear cut of many majestic trees. Four extremely large new homes were built, leaving only the Woodbrook Cottage and a few of its old trees remaining in the section that was sold. The land is now a far cry from its description in the 1912 book, Baltimore: Its History and Its People:

The colonial residence stands in the midst of fifty acres of rolling land planted with rare and stately trees which, in conjunction with the pretty brook by which the landscape is enlivened, explain the name of the estate…Eighty sheep are pastured on the broad stretch of the green lawn. As for the architectural features of the Woodbrook Cottage:

• It is a strong example of farmhouse style with board and batten siding, with a notable stone foundation
• It is the only Victorian era building on a prominent Baltimore County street with enormous numbers of walkers
• It remains in good condition and has been continuously occupied
• It is an excellent example of 19th century architecture in a section of Baltimore County that has mostly razed its Victorian past. The advent of many newly built properties in the past ten years, where there was once open space and trees, has already profoundly changed the character of the neighborhood. Owing to its placement only approximately 25 feet from Woodbrook Lane, the Woodbrook Cottage occupies a position in the neighborhood of unusual prominence. The neighborhood community has repeatedly shared with Mr. Brown its fondness for the old building and its importance in the community and had been led to believe by Mr. Brown’s agents that the Woodbrook Cottage would not be torn down. If the County is interested in safeguarding the heritage of the County, the Woodbrook Cottage, the last vestige of the estate that gave the community its name, should be landmarked. If the County is interested in stabilizing and improving property values, the Woodbrook Cottage, the only 19th century home on a prominent street, should be landmarked, instead of razed and replaced with a ninth McMansion. If the County wishes to foster civic pride in the beauty and noble accomplishments of the past, the Woodbrook Cottage, a charming and notable home expressing 19th century aesthetics in a place that no longer features those, should be landmarked. If the County is concerned about the education, pleasure, and welfare of County residents, the Woodbrook Cottage, a feature that gives enormous pleasure to the tens of thousands who walk annually along Woodbrook Lane to reach Robert E. Lee Park, should be landmarked. There is a system in place for protection against unwarranted demolition. We would argue that this demolition is utterly unwarranted. Those of us in the Woodbrook neighborhood are highly invested in seeing that the Woodbrook Cottage is preserved for future County Residents to enjoy for another 125 years.