Dawson Farm Park - Rockville's History in Your Own Backyard

Henry (Hal) Dawson, - son of Lawrence A. and Mary Kiger Dawson, left Rockville in 1885 for the Dakota territory, where he amassed a fortune as a cattleman. Hal returned to Rocky Glen with his wife Frances (Fannie) Williams Dawson and their four children in 1911.

Rather than enlarging the existing 1874 farmhouse, Fannie chose a site nearby with the openness and wide vistas that she was accustomed to in the west. The large stucco and timber house is a rare Rockville example of an early 1900s residence. Fannie designed the 20-roomhouse with Queen Anne and mission-style elements on the exterior and a craftsman interior.
The builder, Mr. Lance of Des Moines, Iowa, built the house almost completely by himself and lived with the Dawson family for the three years that it took to complete.

The interior of the house has a large, open stairwell, arched entranceways and big, open rooms. The library, or "indian room," held much of the Dawson's extensive collection of Native American artifacts, reminders of their life in the west and their friendship and respect for the Lakota and Navajo people.

Descendants of Hal and Fannie Dawson lived here until the property was sold in 1980.

A lane ran past the corn crib, pig pens and butchering area, into and around the granary, and down the hill to the



creek. The park path follows this original farm lane.

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Rocky Glen Farm / Dawson Farm: 1840-1980
Dawson Farm - 1840-1979
Rocky Glen Farm / Dawson Farmhouse: Built 1874
John C. Brown Memorial Bridge
Saint Mary's Catholic Church
Saint Mary's Church
Rockville Station
Montgomery County Jail
Preserving a Community Resource
Typhoid in Rockville

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