Mapping the Underground Railroad across Maryland
The sites of the Underground Railroad were designed to be hidden and secret, presenting a challenge in making sure the important stories of these places are told and preserved. The Maryland Office of Tourism Development is working with the Maryland State Archives, the Maryland Commission on African American History and Culture, along with other academic and local partners to make sure these places are documented and accepted to the National Park Service’s Network to Freedom program.
Partners: Maryland Office of Tourism Development
THE PROBLEM
Sites along the Underground Railroad were often selected because they were out-of-view. This necessity now presents a challenge in making sure the important stories of these places are told and preserved.
THE FIX
Preservation Maryland will work with the Maryland Office of Tourism Development, the Maryland State Archives, and the Maryland Commission on African American History and Culture, along with other academic and local partners to submit these sites to the National Park Service’s Network to Freedom.
Harriet Tubman historic marker in Dorchester County. Photo from Dorchester County Tourism.
Updates
OCTOBER 2020
Preservation Maryland received a $20,000 grant from the National Trust for Historic Preservation through the Bartus Trew Providence Grant program to bring a team of specialists from the National Center for Preservation Technology and Training, a program of the National Park Service, to the Eastern Shore of Maryland to conduct architectural scans of historic African American sites.
SEPTEMBER 2020
Given the illegal nature of its operations, sites of the Underground Railroad across the United State were often hidden and secret. That necessity now presents a challenge to preservationists dedicated to identifying, preserving, and interpreting these important histories where they happened. Preservation Maryland is convening a free webinar about researching Underground Railroad history on September 10, 2020. Speakers for this session include Dr. Kate Clifford Larson, author and historian, Heather Ersts, Outreach & Partnership Coordinator for the Maryland Department of Tourism Development, and Dennis A. Doster, Ph.D., Director of the M-NCPPC Black History Program.
AUGUST 2020
Few names have become as synonymous with grit, determination, and liberty as Harriet Tubman. A Moses for her people, Tubman has become an almost mythical character who represents the best of the American spirit in the face of incredible suffering and inhumanity. Yet, for many years, she lacked a rigorous and scholarly biography. Today’s guest, Dr. Kate Clifford Larson, addressed that historical inequity and helped bring Harriet’s real story to a new generation. On this week’s PreserveCast, we’re heading back to the brackish marshes of Maryland’s Eastern Shore to talk Tubman, slavery, and freedom.
RESOURCES
Orchard Street Church History
Greater Baltimore Urban League
Orchard Street Church
Explore Baltimore
1975
Orchard Street United Methodist Church
Maryland Historical Trust Easement
NEWS
03/19/2019
Baltimore lawmakers request $25M in state bond money for city projects
Baltimore Business Journal
10/30/2015
Greater Baltimore Urban League to open new entrepreneurial center to aid small businesses
The Baltimore Sun
02/28/1993
Orchard Street Church tells a powerful story Black congregants focus of museum
The Baltimore Sun
Can we count on you?
Preservation Maryland isn’t just preserving the past – we’re investing in our future. In just the past year we’ve invested heavily in our work and refused to accept the mounting challenges as a reason to retreat or hold our position. You are making it all possible.