La Plata

Thomas Stone's Habre de Venture

La Plata is a city in Southern Maryland. It is the county seat of Charles County.

Get in

La Plata is located on US Route 301, a major East coast North-South highway. La Plata does not have an airport or a train service. The easiest way to get to La Plata is by car. Driving time to La Plata is about 1 hour from Washington, D.C., about 1.5 hours from Baltimore, and about one hour and forty-five minutes from Richmond (Virginia).

See

• 1 Thomas Stone National Historic Site (Habre de Venture), 6655, Rose Hill Rd, Port Tobacco, ☏ +1 301 392-1776. 9AM-5PM daily. This is the house of Thomas Stone, one of the 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence. The National Park Service operates a visitor center with information about the Revolutionary leader's life and the Declaration of Independence, and also offers guided tours of the country estate. Free.  

Port Tobacco

Just at the western edge of La Plata is Port Tobacco , Maryland's smallest town (15 people), dating back to 1727. Owing in no part to its extremely small size, the village is well preserved and home to much archaeological research. To get here, take MD-6 (Port Tobacco Rd) west from La Plata and then make a left on Chapel Point Rd. Turn right on small Commerce St for the village itself, while St. Thomas Manor is further south along the same road.

• Port Tobacco Courthouse (Port Tobacco Museum), Commerce St, Port Tobacco, ☏ +1 301 934-4313. The Courthouse is the centerpiece of the historic village, and upstairs they maintain a small museum with exhibits on local history and archaeological findings. Occasional tours in with costumed docents. 
• 2 St. Thomas Manor (St. Ignatius Church), 8855 Chapel Point Road, Port Tobacco Village, ☏ +1 301 934-8245. The oldest continuously occupied Jesuit residence in the world, the Manor and Church is a pretty place to visit, with a good bit of history to its name. The mission was founded in 1641 to administer to the Potapoco American Indians. It was here that John Carroll was invested in his robes as the first Catholic bishop in the country (he later also founded Georgetown University). Outbuildings include a small, mid-19th century wood-frame slaves' quarter.  

Do

• 1 Gilbert Run Park, 13140 Charles St, Charlotte Hall, ☏ +1 301 932-1083. April-Oct: sunrise-sunset, daily. March and Nov, weekends only. A good sized wooded county park with hiking and nature trails, playgrounds, and a 60 acre lake for fishing, pedal boating, rowboating, and canoeing. $5/vehicle, weekends and holidays (April 1-Sept 30). (updated Jan 2021)

Eat

• Marie's Family Restaurant, 6325 Crain Hwy, ☏ +1 301 932-6884. Breakfast-lunch daily. A country diner that is a favorite among locals for breakfast. $4-11. 
• Casey Jones Restaurant, E Charles St & Maple Ave, ☏ +1 301 932-6226. Arguably the nicest restaurant in town, with standouts on the menu like crab cakes, various sandwiches, and good pizza. The bar scene is also quite popular with the locals, with a good beer selection, and frequent live honky tonk bands. 

Sleep

• Best Western, 6900 Crain Hwy, ☏ +1 301 934-4900. A particularly nice franchise, with touches like free bottled waters in the room, cookies on arrival, lobby fireplace, etc. 24 hour gym, outdoor pool, business center. $85-120. 
• Part of Plenty B&B, 8664 Port Tobacco Rd, ☏ +1 301 934-0707. A charming country B&B outside the town towards Port Tobacco, with gardens, three rooms, a separate carriage house, an outdoor pool, and convivial owners. $79-115. 
• Patuxent Inn, 9400 Chesapeake St, ☏ +1 301 934-3465. A small, non-chain hotel, with WiFi, weekly rates available, boat outlets, and microwaves & fridges in all rooms. $70-100. 

Go next

Routes through La Plata

Richmond ← Hanover ←

S  N

→ Waldorf → Annapolis