A low retaining wall served to separate the inner garden from the service oriented area of the yard. The work that went on outside was kept at a distinct distance from the life inside the house. It is unclear whether the Tayloes had a high wall screening the service yard from view, though it was possible.
This stable yard was paved with brick while the rest of the yard would have been dusty, dirty, and sometimes muddy. All of the household supplies were delivered to the home by wagons. Food for the animals and the family was packaged in large casks and barrels. Also, orders of decorative objects such as chairs, tables, and lamps, and coal to burn for heating in the bedrooms, parlors, and kitchen would arrive in the rear stable yard.
