Historic Taylor's Hall for sale in Baltimore County

One of the oldest homes in Baltimore County is at 10136 Falls Road and dates, in part, to the late 1600s. Known as Taylor's Hall, the original section is a two-story log structure. Land records show that subsequent stone expansions took place during the 1700s.

The manor sat in ruins until 1986, when Marty Azola, a historic preservationist, bought the worn relic of Maryland's Colonial past for $1, with the understanding that this official county landmark was to be moved rather than demolished to make way for a new housing development.

Azola dismantled the structure, numbering every piece of stone and log, and then reassembled it on a 1-acre lot in Brooklandville's Rockland Village, where it backs to a horse farm. The current owners worked with Azola and an architect to rehabilitate the property.

An addition containing a kitchen, family room and powder room was built on the new foundation and Azola reassembled what he moved, piece by piece, of the original log-and-stone house.

"It became a new house inside an old house shell," said listing agent Ted Stewart of Berkshire Hathaway Homesale Realty. "It's a classic telescoping style," he said, referring to an architectural design that has three sections, each larger than the one before it.

In the interior, new flooring seamlessly meets original 17th- and 18th-century boards. Five bedrooms, three bathrooms and a powder room are part of the 4,700-square foot living area. There are five wood-burning fireplaces with a gas fireplace in the family room, which opens to an updated kitchen. Built-in bookcases, crown molding and chair rails are some of the home's many architectural details.

The home is listed for $1.395 million.

"This is a piece of Baltimore County history," Stewart said. "It's an old house without all the old-house problems."