St. Mary's County Architectural Heritage Book Now Available

Documenting the unique architectural heritage of St. Mary’s County, “I’m Goin’ Down County, An Architectural Journey Through St. Mary’s County” is now available for purchase!

Coordinated as a project by the St. Mary’s County Department of Land Use and Growth Management and the Maryland Historic Trust, and written by former staff member Kirk E. Ranzetta, the 320-page hardcover book is an illustrated chronicle of the county’s historic buildings and the high-tech aircraft testing facilities located on the Naval Air Station Patuxent River.

“I’m Goin’ Down County” includes a historical narrative from the earliest periods to the present and weaves the churches, stores, residences, marine railways and boat-building shops, tobacco barns, camps, lighthouses and schools into a story of how countians shaped their community.

The volume includes over 400 photos complete with a detailed narrative of hundreds of historic properties located throughout the county. The books are available for $35 at the St. Mary’s County Department of Land Use and Growth Management Department or Bay Books located in the Wildwood Shopping Center. Copies are also available at each St. Mary’s County Library for reference. For additional information, contact Grace Mary Brady, Historic Preservation Planner, 301-475-4200, x1549 or gracie.brady@stmarysmd.com.

Exploring the Colonial Diet through Archaeology

Historic St. Mary’s City will host the annual Archaeology Month lecture on Friday, April 16 at 7 p.m. Henry Miller, Historic St. Mary's City’s director of research, will offer An Archaeological View of Food in Colonial Maryland.

Maryland’s colonists brought Old World eating habits with them. In 17th-century England, meat was commonly believed to be the most nourishing food and its high consumption was a sign of status and wealth. Some thought raw vegetables and fruit suspect but bread, beer and dairy products were staples. The common man in England found fewer and fewer opportunities to acquire meat, as forests disappeared and enclosure restricted access to commons. But according to George Alsop in 1666, Maryland offered both abundance and variety, and suggested newcomers could “Dwell here, live plentifully and be rich.” The chance for a better life that the New World offered must have been especially appealing to commoners.

But did Maryland live up to its promise? What did settlers eat in early Maryland and was it similar to England or different? Did the nature of their diet shift over the colonial period or remain much the same? While history provides valuable clues, many facts were never recorded about the foods they ate. Fortunately, archaeology can fill in these gaps and provide a far better understanding of how Chesapeake cuisine developed. In this illustrated lecture, Dr. Miller will describe what archaeology and history, especially the study of animal bones, reveals about changes to the human diet in the Chesapeake through the colonial era.

The Archaeology Month lecture will take place at 7 p.m. in the Historic St. Mary’s City Visitor Center auditorium. There is no charge for this event.
For more information about the museum and St. Mary’s City archaeology, visit http://www.stmaryscity.org/ or call 240-895-4990.

Photo of Dr. Henry Miller.  Credit: Historic St. Mary's City

Leonardtown Goes Green! 10th Anniversary Earth Day Celebration

The 10th Anniversary Earth Day Celebration, in historic downtown Leonardtown, will be held from 12:30 - 4:30 p.m. on Sunday April 18th, 2010, and will include nearly 100 exhibitors, vendors and performances. Admission to the event is free.

There will be two stages for entertainment - one stage on the square and one stage at the wharf along the new Leonardtown waterfront - featuring musical performances and dance demonstrations throughout the day.

Kayak and canoe rides will be offered by various local outfitters from the new floating dock on the waterfront as well as a native plant walk and a tiger bounce, face painting and a puppet show for the kids.

HillSide Electric cars and the Leonardtown Fire Department will provide shuttle service between the waterfront and the square.

Animal displays include the Cosca Regional Park's live birds of prey, the Alpacas from Nobella Farms and the greyhounds from the Greyt Expectations Rescue.

Environmental organizations will provide recycling, conservation and organic gardening information. Area non-profits and service organizations will be featured and local businesses and restaurants will be open many offering Earth Day specials.


For the complete listing of activities and map go to http://www.thelba.org/.

Earth Day on the Leonardtown Square is sponsored by the Leonardtown Business Association and the Commissioners of Leonardtown with funding in part by a grant from the St. Mary's County Arts Council.

Discover St. Mary’s County Destination and Relocation Guide and 2010 Calendar of Events Now Available

The Discover St. Mary’s County Destination and Relocation guide and the 2010 Calendar of Events are now available in both print and digital formats! The glossy magazine-style destination and relocation guide is published in partnership with the publishers of Maryland Life magazine. It features articles on the area as well as visitor information including listings for sites, attractions, and lodging and dining establishments. The guide also features information on relocating to St. Mary’s County.

"The destination and relocation guide serves as a great travel planner and business recruitment tool," notes St. Mary's County Tourism Manager Carolyn Laray. "We began our partnership with Maryland Life magazine in 2009 during the 375th birthday of Maryland and have again printed 75,000 copies of the magazine." The new publication includes a special feature on Leonardtown. The feature will also be included in the July/August 2010 issue of Maryland Life magazine.

The 2010 Calendar of Events features the major events taking place throughout St. Mary's County this year including the Crab Festival, River Concert Series, Riverside WineFest, and the St. Mary's County Oyster Festival.

The guide and calendar are free and are available at the St. Mary’s County Welcome Center in Charlotte Hall.  The guide is also available at participating businesses throughout the county, at the county libraries, throughout the Naval Air Station Patuxent River and at state and regional visitor information centers. The guide will be mailed to those requesting visitor or relocation information and will be distributed at venues throughout the mid-Atlantic region. Print copies can be requested by emailing visitus@stmarysmd.com or calling 301-475-4200, x 1404.

Digital versions of the guide and calendar may be viewed at the Tourism website at http://www.visitstmarysmd.com/.

A Blooming Good Time! The Second Annual Garden Fair at Sotterley

The Second Annual Garden Fair at Sotterley Plantation will take place the weekend of April 17th and 18th, 2010 from 10am – 4pm. This year’s event will include a wide array of things to do, offering something for everyone!

The entire site will be a flurry of activity: Presentations on everything from Orchid Growing to Oyster Ranching by University of Maryland Professors, Environmental Experts, and Master Gardeners in the historic Barn. Pick up a mallet and play croquet on the Croquet Lawn. Shop the booths abundant with beautiful hand-crafted wares by local Artisans. Fly a kite down on the field. Check out the Going Green! and eco-friendly exhibits. Take a tour through the magnificent Colonial Revival Gardens. Children are welcome to craft birdhouses, birdfeeders, and paper flowers. Enjoy lunch in the garden. Pick up some lovely additions for your garden at the Sotterley Garden Guild plant sale.

Admission is $7 for one day; $10 for a two day pass (Sotterley Members free the second day); Children under 12 FREE.

For more information, contact Sotterley Plantation at 301-373-2280 or visit http://www.sotterley.org/.

Photo by Sara Fisher.

Tickets Now Available for "The Importance of Being Earnest"

Tickets are now available for the Newtowne Players' performances of Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest, which will run from March 26 through April 11.  The play is the story of two young gentlemen living in Victorian England that have taken to bending the truth in order to put some excitement into their lives.  Jack Worthing has invented a brother, Earnest, whom he uses as an excuse to leave his dull country life behind for big city escapades in London. Algernon Montceriff has taken the same name, ‘Earnest’, when visiting Worthing’s ward at the country manor.  Things start to go awry when they both end up in the country and their deceptions are unraveled - threatening to spoil their romantic pursuits.

To reserve tickets now, contact the Three Notch Theater at 301-737-5447 or visit http://www.newtowneplayers.org/.

Celebrate Maryland on March 28

Celebrate Maryland where the state began! Historic St. Mary’s City (HSMC), a museum on the site of the Maryland’s first capital, will commemorate the 376th anniversary of the founding on Sunday, March 28.

Living history sites will be open free from 10:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. Begin your visit in Town Center, where visitors are invited to enjoy March winds, wide open spaces, and a very old sport – kite flying. Marco Polo is credited with recording accounts of kite construction and use after his visit to China in 1295, thus introducing his native Italy and eventually all Europe to this invention. Originally used for military purposes and for hoisting fireworks into the sky in Asia, kites took on the more recreational aspect that we know today. An illustration of Holland from 1618 shows children flying the diamond shape kite that is so familiar. Everyone can fly beginning at 10:00 a.m. B.Y.O.K. (Bring Your Own Kite)! Be sure to leave time to tour the Godiah Spray Tobacco Plantation, the Indian Hamlet, the Maryland Dove, and the St. John’s Site Museum and grab lunch. Bear Creek Bar-B-Q will be serving on site.

The Maryland Day ceremony will take place at 1 p.m. Keynote speaker Dr. Edward C. Papenfuse, Jr., Maryland Archivist and Commissioner of Land Patents, will share The Spirit of 1634, a look at lessons to be learned and the stories yet to be told of that first year of settlement, linking them to the living history, archaeology, and reconstruction for which St. Mary's City is world renowned.

Mike Marlay will receive HSMC’s highest honor, the Cross Bottony and all will enjoy music from the First Missionary Baptist Church Youth Choir. The program will close with the Ceremony of the Flags, a perennial crowd-pleaser, when children representing each Maryland jurisdiction present their county colors.

Following the program, after the Official ceremony is over the guests will be asked to gather at the Mackall Barn for the opening of the exhibit. A Ribbon Cutting and light refreshments (cookies and lemonade) will be served.

The St. Mary’s College of Maryland Orchestra and senior soloists will perform under the direction of Jeffrey Silberschlag, conductor. The concert will take place in St. Mary’s Hall at 3:30 p.m.

The celebration of Maryland Day began in 1903, when the State Board of Education decided to dedicate a day to the study of state history. They chose March 25, the day in 1634 when Maryland's first colonists came ashore at St. Clements’s Island to give thanks for a safe passage across the Atlantic Ocean. In 1916, the General Assembly made Maryland Day a legal holiday. At HSMC, events take place on the Sunday closest to March 25.

For more information about Maryland Day or the museum, visit http://www.stmaryscity.org/ or call 240-895-4990.

Digital and print photos are available.  Please contact Susan Wilkinson at 240-895-4967 or sgwilkinson@smcm.edu.