Brick buildings line brick paved streets that run from two colonial circles down to a working city dock.
What Annapolis Historic District looks like
Main Street runs downhill in a straight line from Church Circle to City Dock, paved in brick with brick sidewalks on both sides. Two and three storey brick buildings sit close to the sidewalk along its length, ground floor shops and restaurants under painted cornices and striped awnings, with offices or housing on the floors above.
holds the , a two storey brick building topped by a white wooden dome visible down several of the streets that radiate from it. The circle around the building is lined with brick rowhouses and civic buildings, their fronts a mix of plain brick and painted brick over the original masonry.
City Dock sits at the foot of Main Street, where the brick storefronts give way to open water and a line of docked sailboats. Ego Alley is the narrow turning basin between the slips. It runs past the and the Kunta Kinte-Alex Haley Memorial, both standing right at the water's edge.
stands on Church Circle in red brick with a tall clock tower, its iron fence following the curve of the circle. A few streets over on Pinkney Street, the is a small two storey clapboard building built around 1715, with a steep roofline set close to the street.
Shot in Annapolis Historic District
For Failure to Launch, the production dressed the storefront of Paws Pet Boutique on State Circle as the Rossignol Bookshop and filmed the scene in front of it and Harry Browne's next door. The Netflix series House of Cards filmed inside the Maryland State House itself, redressing the House of Delegates chamber to stand in for a U.S. Senate chamber.
House of Cards and Failure to Launch
State Circle carries both credits, the State House itself for House of Cards and a dressed storefront across the ring for Failure to Launch.
House of Cards
Maryland State House
Played a U.S. Senate chamber, Washington, D.C., present day
The Netflix series House of Cards filmed inside the Maryland State House, redressing the House of Delegates chamber to stand in for a U.S. Senate chamber floor. Former speakers' portraits came down and plaques were hidden behind faux marble. Blank panels covered the delegates' voting boards, and the building closed to the public for the two day shoot. Street View
Failure to Launch
Played the Rossignol Bookshop
Paws Pet Boutique on State Circle was dressed as the Rossignol Bookshop for Failure to Launch, its windows bricked up with paperbacks. The production filmed the scene in front of the boutique and Harry Browne's, the restaurant next door. Street View
What Annapolis Historic District can double for
Old Town Alexandria in Alexandria, Virginia
Old Town's King Street corridor runs the same way to a working waterfront, lined with two and three storey brick Georgian and Federal buildings close to the sidewalk. Cobblestone side streets near the river add to the colonial seaport match. Alexandria's streets carry more modern traffic and signage, so tighter frames hold the period better than a full street width shot. Try searching brick colonial seaport street now.
Charleston's French Quarter has the same scale of narrow brick and stucco merchant buildings a few blocks from the harbor, with ironwork gates close to the street. Charleston's piazzas and side porches look distinctly Lowcountry in a wide shot, so closer framing on a plain facade works best. Try searching narrow brick merchant street now.
New Castle Historic District in New Castle, Delaware
New Castle keeps a small grid of brick rowhouses around a green close to the Delaware River, a similar scale to the streets around Annapolis's circles. The town is smaller and flatter with no equivalent to State Circle's dome sightline, so a wide establishing shot gives away the difference. Try searching brick rowhouses green now.
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