Clifton was built on a tract of 2500 acres of land patented as "White Wine & Claret" in 1702 by John Dorsey.

[1] The house was situated along Guilford road, one of the region's earliest "rolling roads" where tobacco would be transported from slave plantations by rolling hogshead containers to docks at Annapolis.

William Welling built the two and a half stories tall house with stone construction.

The property was surrounded by 238 acres of farm fields until it was purchased by the Rouse Company division, Howard Research and Development for subdivision.

A portion of the property was used for recreation vehicle parking for the Columbia development for several years.