Our Heritage
Past to Present
1800 – Olney House built and named after Olney, England
Discover the rich history of the Olney House, a legacy of community, resilience, and culinary tradition that lives on today at Salt & Vine.
The oldest photo we have, circa 1925.
1800 — 1925
The Foundation
The oldest photo we have the Olney House built by Whitson Canby c. 1800. Roger Brooke acquired the property for his daughter Sarah and her husband Dr. Charles Farquhar in 1822. They named the home after the town of Olney, England, the hometown of their favorite poet William Cowpers. When Charles became postmaster he changed the name of the town from Mechanicsville to Olney after his home. The Brooke-Farquhar family owned the home until 1925.
1837 — 1950
Naming a Town
In 1837 Charles and Sarah Brooke Farquhar took over Canby’s home and named it Olney, after poet William Cowper’s village in England. Eventually the house gave its name to the local post office and ultimately to the village itself.. Located at the intersection of the Brookeville-Washington Turnpike and the Olney-Sandy Spring Road, the Olney House is a rare survivor of the historic Olney community. The area was first known as Fair Hill, named for Richard Brooke’s house built near the crossroads in 1770. Pictured here approximately in 1950. With the original porch removed
Circa 1950. With the original porch removed.
1970
1992-2019
1970 — 2019
The Ricciuti Era & Wood-Fired Fame
Pictured here from the 1970’s to 2017 the Olney house was converted to a restaurant. In 1992 the James Ricciuti bought the property and operated Ricciuti’s Italian restaurant until the fall of 2019. Riccuti’s became famous for its wood fired pizza. That recipe is closely guarded family secret was passed down to the new owners of Salt & Vine.
2019 – Present
A New Chapter Begins
The historic Olney House was purchased by Thomas Zippelli in 2019 with a planned renovation and expansion scheduled to start in the spring of 2020. The partial demolition revealed a building that was in very rough shape and not structurally sound and needed to be gutted and rebuilt. The decision was made to undertake an expansion of the existing building and to bring back the original porch pictured below and add several new patios as well as adding dining space, new bar, new kitchen, basically new everything.
A special thanks to both the contractor, Mark Koski of GYC Construction in Westminster, Md and Jeff Penza from Penza Bailey Architects who worked patiently with the historical society and the county to bring the Olney House back to its original beauty.
