| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Chaptico — Chaptico |
| | Established in 1683 as one of the four ports of entry in St. Mary's County. Shipping continued until early in the twentieth century. Christ Church, built in 1736, has been used continuously since. On July 30, 1814, British forces looted the town, causing much damage. — Map (db m17425) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Chaptico — Chaptico — A History of Rebellion |
| | Tiny Chaptico was home to many daring men, beginning with John Coode who led Maryland's 1689 Protestant Rebellion. During the Civil War, Chaptico's blockade runners carried medicin and other supplies at night across the Potomac River past Union gunships to Confederate Virginia. A Chaptico merchant who supplied them, Charles Clement Spalding, was confined at the Old Capitol Prison in Washington, D.C.
Other residents joined the Confederate Army. George Hayden, mortally wounded in the Battle . . . — Map (db m17426) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Charlotte Hall — Cadet Pierre A. Mourthé |
| | In Memoriam. Cadet Pierre A. Mourthé, Class of 1919, Born September 6th 1897 at Pau, France, who met his death by accidental drowning August 24th, 1917. — Map (db m941) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Charlotte Hall — Charlotte Hall School |
| | An outgrowth of the “Free Schools” established in Maryland in 1723, founded in 1774 “to provide for the liberal and pious education of the youth of this province, the better to it them for the discharge of their duties.” Continuously open since 1796. — Map (db m928) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Charlotte Hall — Coole Springs of Saint Marie’s — Charlotte Hall, Maryland |
| | Waters of exceptional purity and reputed healing quality led to the establishment near here of one of the earliest hospitals in the North American Colonies, authorized by the General Assembly, October 20, 1698. — Map (db m929) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Charlotte Hall — Maryland Begins Here |
| | St. Mary’s County Welcome Center. Dedicated to all citizens and visitors of St. Mary’s County, Maryland.
In 1634, a group of courageous voyagers left England and all that was familiar and set out for the New World in search of religious tolerance and opportunities for a better life. They landed on an island in the Potomac River with a prayer of thanks for their safe journey. St. Clement’s Island is a landmark in the history of Maryland. It was here the adventurers took possession of . . . — Map (db m944) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Charlotte Hall — Rear Admiral Raphael Semmes C.S.N. |
| | (1807–1877) Born Charles County. Attended Charlotte Hall Mil. Academy. US Navy – Mexican War. Practiced Law. Commissioned in CSN 1861. Captained CSS Sumter. Later commanded CSS Alabama. Most successful raider with 82 naval victories. 1865 promoted Admiral and commanded James River Squadron. Returned to law practice in Alabama after hostilities. — Map (db m942) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Coltons Point — "...one of the pleasantest summer resorts on the Potomac" |
| | Tourism thrived on the island after Dr. Joseph McWilliams built a steamboat wharf in 1868. Dr. McWilliams enlarged his home to make room for a growing number of summer visitors from Baltimore and Washington. he also added cottages, a dining hall, and a bathhouse.
With the success of his resort, Dr. McWilliams subdivided the island into 34 sections of about seven lots each in 1883. A new brick hotel and more cottages soon followed. He did not, however, sell enough plots to make his . . . — Map (db m24198) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Coltons Point — "With a laudable and pious zeal..." — "for the propagation of the Christian faith" |
| | A Catholic Mass, the first in English America, was celebrated here on March 25, 1634. It was a time of beginnings; the first day of the year on the old Julian Calendar and the Feast of the Annunciation.
Catholic leaders were determine to practice their religion as the planted their new Maryland Colony. They had left an England that was persecuting Catholics and a Europe racked by bloody religious wars.
Lord Baltimore, Cecil Calvert, instructed Catholic settlers to "treate the . . . — Map (db m24191) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Coltons Point — A Target for Big Guns |
| | In 1918, the United States War Department established the Dahlgren Proving Grounds in King George County, Virginia. Military leaders who had observed the death and destruction of World War I wanted more accurate and effective large guns for future wars. The island, 15 miles down river, became a landing area for giant artillery shells that could be recovered for study.
"In the proper development of this [Dahlgren] proving ground it has been found necessary in order to provide an adequate . . . — Map (db m24199) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Coltons Point — Blackistone Island Lighthouse — Keepers of the Light |
| | 1851 Isaac Wood
1853 George Goddard
1859 Jerome L. McWilliams
1868 Dr. Joseph L. McWilliams
1875 Mrs. Josephine McWilliams Freeman
1912 William M. Freeman, Jr.
1913 Leonard H. Staubly
1917 Francis E. Butterfield, Jr.
1918 William Simpson
1919 William Yeatman
1920-1932 Leonard H. Staubly
The Blackistone Island (St. Clement's Island) lighthouse was located near there and began service on November 13, 1851. The lighthouse was constructed by John Donohoo of Havre de Grace . . . — Map (db m24187) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Coltons Point — Maryland Began Here! |
| | Two ships, the 400-ton Ark and the 50-ton Dove landed almost 150 English settlers here in March of 1634. After a stormy passage from England, the 28-year-old Governor Leonard Calvert, brother of Lord Baltimore, looked for a safe place to plant his colony. They found a haven on this island, with "infinite swarms Herons," while the governor searched for a permanent place for settlement.
The Piscataway Nation, frightened by the Ark, a "Canoe as big as an island," built . . . — Map (db m24194) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Coltons Point — Mother of Light Shrine |
| | East Face
Maryland was dedicated to Mary, the Mother of God, during the first Mass held on St. Clement's Island. John Carroll, the first Catholic Bishop of the United States declared our young nation to be under Mary's protection in 1792. National devotion to Mary was further recognized at the Sixth Provincial Council of Baltimore in 1846. U. S. Bishops petitioned the Holy See to name Mary as the patroness of our land. Pope Pius IX granted their request when he named Mary, under her title . . . — Map (db m9496) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Coltons Point — Potomac River Dory Boat |
| | The Potomac River dory boat originated around the 1880s and was built almost exclusively within this area of St. Mary's County, Maryland. How the name dory boat came to be is unknown, but its unique design features a V-bottom, planked lengthwise instead of the usual cross-planking. It is believed this style derived from an earlier flat-bottomed Potomac River craft called the "black Nancy," so named because of its black hull preserved with tar from local pine trees. After the Civil War, the . . . — Map (db m22148) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Coltons Point — Saint Clement’s Island — (One-half mile offshore) |
| | Site of the first landing of Governor Leonard Calvert and the Maryland colonists, March 25, 1634. Here, on the same day, Father Andrew White, S. J. celebrated the first Catholic mass in the British-American colonies.
The Island became a part of St. Clements Manor, granted Dr. Thomas Gerard, November 3, 1639 and was later owned by the Blackistone family for over 200 years during which it was known as Blackistone Island. — Map (db m9152) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Coltons Point — St. Clement's Island |
| | To this island in March 1634, Governor Leonard Calvert and the first Maryland colonists came in the vessels Ark and Dove. Here they took possession of the Province of Maryland, erected a cross of Maryland wood and celebrated the Holy Sacrifice. Here they first brought to the new world those principles of religious liberty which have been the chief glory of this state. — Map (db m24197) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Coltons Point — St. Clement's Island Lighthouse — "None of the Lighthouses ... are Safe" |
| | On May 19, 1864 Confederates raided St. Clement's Island to destroy the 1851 lighthouse. Capt. John Goldsmith, a county residence who had once owned the island, led the attack, having joined the Confederate army in Virginia. In a thirty-foot sailboat, Swann, Goldsmith slipped past a United States gunboat anchored nearby and landed on the island intending to blow up the lighthouse. Keeper Jerome McWilliams, a former neighbor, knew Goldsmith and persuaded him that it would be dangerous to . . . — Map (db m9181) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Coltons Point — St. Clements Manor |
| | 1639
11,400 acres
In St. Clements Hundred, St. Mary’s County laid out with court leet and baron, and patented to Dr. Thomas Gerard, ESQ. and bequeathed to his oldest son Capt. Justinian Gerard — Map (db m9183) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Coltons Point — The Shrinking Island |
| | Glaciers, storms, tides and winds are constantly creating and destroying islands and shorelines throughout the Chesapeake Bay region. According to Maryland settler and Jesuit missionary Father Andrew White, St. Clement's Island was 400 acres in 1634. Today, the island, measured with Global Positioning System (GPS), has been reduced by erosion to 62 acres.
During the 1920s, the Federal Government used layers of large stones, called riprap, to control erosion near the Blackistone Island . . . — Map (db m24196) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Coltons Point — Welcome to St. Clement's Island |
| | This small island, one of hundreds in the Chesapeake Bay watershed, has a history as old as Maryland.
St. Clement's was the first landfall of the Maryland settlers in 1634. A Potomac River landmark for almost four centuries, it has been a thriving farm, a popular summer resort and a target for big guns. The island was also once a regular stop for Chesapeake steamboats running from Washington, D.C., Baltimore and Norfolk.
The Maryland settlers named this island after St. Clement, the . . . — Map (db m24200) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Coltons Point — Welcome to St. Clement's Island |
| | This small island, one of hundreds in the Chesapeake Bay watershed, has a history as old as Maryland.
St. Clement's was the first landfall of the Maryland settlers in 1634. A Potomac River landmark for almost four centuries, it has been a thriving farm, a popular summer resort and a target for big guns. The island was also once a regular stop for Chesapeake steamboats running from Washington, D.C., Baltimore and Norfolk.
The Maryland settlers named this island after St. Clement, the . . . — Map (db m24201) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Compton — Manor of Little Brittaine |
| | Later known as "Newtowne Manor" in New Towne Hundred, St. Mary's Co. Patented in 1640 to William Bretton, Gent. early clerk of the general assembly, member of second general assembly, magistrate of St. Mary's Co. — Map (db m9041) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Compton — The Wished For Country |
| | After braving a four month voyage from England, the Maryland colonists first landed on St. Clements Island. It was here that Governor Leonard Calvert took possession "...for Saviour and Sovereigh..." on March 25, 1634. The seeds of Religious Toleration and Separation of Church and State that were first planted on St. Clements Island are now protected by the United States Constitution. It is the brave adventurers that this tribute is dedicated.
Thomas Allen • John Altham, S.J. • Anne . . . — Map (db m9182) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Great Mills — Cecil's Mill Historic District |
| | The original water-powered textile mill. "Clifton factory," built in 1812,was rebuilt as a flour mill in 1900 by John Thomas Cecil. Historic district also includes Cecil's Country Store and post office built in 1906. — Map (db m16792) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Leonardtown — Leonardtown — Established in 1660 |
| | Named Seymour Town in honor of Governor John Seymour and designated St. Mary’s county seat by the General Assembly in 1708. Name changed to Leonardtown by the General Assembly in 1728 in honor of Leonard Calvert, first colonial governor of Maryland. — Map (db m953) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Leonardtown — Leonardtown — Spies, Intriguers and Blockade Runners |
| | When the white citizens of St.
Mary’s County voted here in the
1860 presidential election, John
Breckenridge, the secessionist candidate who carried Maryland, got
920 votes. Abraham Lincoln received 9 percent of the popular Maryland vote; the only man known to have voted for him here was waylaid on his way home. On April 23, 1861, in a public meeting here,
citizens declared allegiance to the
South and resolved to raise $10,000 for weapons and ammunition.
The old port town teemed with . . . — Map (db m955) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Leonardtown — The Mural Story |
| | The mural scene depicts various time periods in Leonardtown’s history.
In general, the left side of the painting presents an older time period,
around the turn of the century. As you move to the right, the chronology
advances to a point in the mid 1950s. However, the time frame drops
back to the 1860s where you see the sepia-toned vignette in which
Congressman Benjamin Gwinn Harris is being arrested on April 26, 1865,
on the porch of the Fenwick Hotel, for his opposition to the Civil . . . — Map (db m957) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Leonardtown — This Cannon |
| | This cannon was brought to Maryland in 1634 on The Ark. Used in defense of St. Mary’s City and as a St. Inigoes Manor boundary marker. Presented to St. Mary’s County Historical Society by The Society of Jesus.
(original inscription on a worn brass plate) This cannon was presented to the Saint Mary’s County Historical Society by the Maryland Province, Society of Jesus. It was used in the early defenses of Saint Mary’s City and for many years served as a boundary marker of Saint Inigoes Manor. — Map (db m956) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Leonardtown — War Comes to Breton Bay — Tudor Hall — Grand Home of Maryland Patriots |
| | In 1812, our young Nation went to war against what was then the mightiest sea power on earth - Great Britain. It has been suggested that what Americans call the War of 1812 was instead the "American Theater" of the very first wrold war when France and the United States challenged British supremacy on the high seas and worldwide.
One of the first military actions taken by the British was to blockade the Chesapeake Bay. From huge war ships, British raiding parties came ashore by barges to . . . — Map (db m17428) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Lexington Park — Saint Nicholas Church |
| | 1637 Jesuit Mission of Father Andrew White was located a mile from here on Patuxent River, on land given by Mattapanient Indian Chief Macquacomen. The first St. Nicholas Church was built at this site in 1796 by Jesuit Father James Walton. Present building erected 1916, became Navy chapel when Patuxent Naval Air Station was established in 1942. — Map (db m999) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Mechanicsville — "Three Notch Road" |
| | A law of 1704 provides that "three notches of equal distance marked on the trees indicated"
A ROAD LEADING TO A FERRY
"two notches with another notch a distance above the other two"
A ROAD LEADING TO A COURTHOUSE
"a slip cut down the face of a tree near the ground"
A ROAD TO A CHURCH — Map (db m8931) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Piney Point — Bay Lights |
| | Protecting ships from treacherous waters has been a necessity since ancient times when bonfires and strategically placed cottage lanterns warned seamen of dangers in fog and darkness. Lighthouses of the Chesapeake and Potomac River waterways are variations of three basic styles: detached conical towers, dwellings with lantern-like cupolas built on shore line and screw-pile lighthouses secured to the floors of the waterways replacing some of the early lightships. The Piney Point Lighthouse is a . . . — Map (db m9011) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Piney Point — British Landing Prevented — July 17, 1776 |
| | Capt. Rezin Beall (later Brig. Gen. in "Flying Camp") was wounded here in repulse of British efforts to cross to mainland from St. George's Island. Fighting continued until July 29, Lord Dunmore, commanding 72 marauding British vessels on Potomac River, was also wounded here. Offshore, five British ships were disabled. — Map (db m18720) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Piney Point — Lighthouse Keeper's Quarters |
| | Most free standing light houses were accompanied by "keeper's quarters," which housed the light keepers and their families. The Piney Point Lighthouse and keeper's quarters were built in 1836 by John Donahoo of Havre de Grace.
The original brick structure measured 30 ft. by 20 ft. and was built as a one-storey dwelling with a central fireplace and a ground level basement. There have been numerous renovations and preservation efforts over the years.
The house served as a residence for . . . — Map (db m8978) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Piney Point — Map of Lower Potomac River and Chesapeake Bay |
| | Piney Point Lighthouse, Museum and Historic Park, a Chesapeake Bay Gateway, is one of your entry points to enjoy and learn about the places and stories of the Chesapeake and its watershed.
The 64,000 square-mile watershed is a complete ecosystem. Home to over 15 million people, it has supported human occupation for 13,000 years. The Chesapeake's natural abundance has fed multitudes, fueled rich economies and nurtured diverse cultures. Explore this and other places in the Gateways Network to . . . — Map (db m9019) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Piney Point — Natural Highways |
| | The Chesapeake Bay and its many tributaries have served as natural highways since the beginning of civilization. With the gradual development of villages and settlements along the shorelines, the waterways became the primary means of transportation and commerce for this region of the country. Vessels ranging from simple dugout canoes to shallops, steamboats and international tankers have traversed these waterways for centuries.
Beginning in the 1800's, Piney Point became a steamboat . . . — Map (db m9014) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Piney Point — Osprey — Pandion haliaetus |
| | Visit Piney Point between March and October and you might see osprey at home on pilings used to moor oil barges. These graceful birds of prey return every year around St. Patricks Day from their winter homes in Brazil, Colombia or Venezuela.
The Chesapeake Bay estuary supports the largest breeding osprey population in the country. The lower reaches of the Potomac and other tidal waters are their main fishing grounds. Nicknamed the "Fish Hawk," these birds circle 50 to 100 feet above the . . . — Map (db m9016) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Piney Point — Piney Point Lighthouse |
| | On Christmas Eve 1835, the Federal Government purchased 2.5 acres of land from William and Charlotte Suter for $300. A year later the first lighthouse constructed entirely on the shoreline of the Potomac River went into service at Piney Point.
Initially Piney Point had a fixed white light of 10 lamps and 10 reflectors, visible for 11 miles. In June 1855 a fifth order Fresnel lens was added, changing the light color from white to yellow and increasing visibility for mariners. The lighthouse . . . — Map (db m9007) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Piney Point — Piney Point Lighthouse — The Potomac Flotilla |
| | In 1861, the U. S. created the Potomac Flotilla (gunboats and other armed vessels) to patrol the river and intercept Confederate blockade runners. Nevertheless, St. Mary's County residents frequently ferried supplies and men across to Virginia. A Unionist steamboat captain noted the difficulties the Federal navy faced:
"I was coming up the river on Wednesday last: a flag was raised on Piney Point Lighthouse and I went in. Mrs. Marshall, the keeper of the light, wished me to report that five . . . — Map (db m9013) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Piney Point — Potomac River Military Testing |
| | Almost from the beginning of the new nation, the United States established military facilities along the Potomac River - to test guns and munitions before placing them into service, to train troops and to defend the Nation's Capital.
Piney Point became the testing range for torpedoes manufactured in Alexandria, Virginia, during World War II. The Naval Torpedo Test Center and Range was commissioned following the war and the base is now the Paul Hall Center for Maritime Training and Education, . . . — Map (db m8974) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Scotland — A Bustling Civil War Community |
| | By the end of the Civil War in 1865, the military bases at Point Lookout had grown into a small city. Besides the hospitals and prison camp, you could find dockyards, saw mills and warehouses - even a railroad, a post office and newspaper.
Point Lookout was also the Southern terminus for the Potomac River Flotilla, a U. S. Navy unit. Flotilla vessels brought supplies up Chesapeake Bay to Point Lookout, where they were transferred to river steamers. These steamers traveled the Potomac, . . . — Map (db m8934) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Scotland — Defense Strategies |
| | Imagine defending this isolated peninsula during the Civil War. There were threats from within (from thousands of prisoners) and from without (by Confederate soldiers trying to free their comrades or gain territory). What's more, a pro-Southern population surrounding the Point.
To meet this challenge, Union strategists devised a complex defense plan. They built three forts, a series of rifle pits and a gun battery, positioning them to catch enemies in a murderous crossfire. These defenses, . . . — Map (db m8936) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Scotland — Fort Lincoln |
| | Standing before you is Fort Lincoln, the main Union fortification on the peninsula. As a key defense stronghold, Fort Lincoln, also known as Fort #2, was cleverly designed to resist attack.
To defend against artillery fire or direct infantry assaults, the Fort had 60-yard square earthen walls. Loose dirt on the outside slowed attackers, while hardened interiors resisted cannon fire. At the rear, an L-shaped passage protected the gates from cannon fire or a battering ram. A dry moat further . . . — Map (db m8967) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Scotland — John Wilkes Booth — Escape of an Assassin |
| | War on the Chesapeake Bay
Divided loyalties and ironies tore at Marylanders’ hearts throughout the Civil War: enslaved African-Americans and free United States Colored Troops; spies and smugglers; civilians imprisoned without trial to protect freedom; neighbors and families at odds in Maryland and faraway battlefields. From the Eastern Shore to the suburbs of Washington, eastern Maryland endured those strains of civil war in ways difficult to imagine today.
Those strains continued . . . — Map (db m1000) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Scotland — Let There Be Light |
| | For 136 years, the Point lookout Lighthouse
helped generations of Chesapeake Bay
mariners avoid shoals, navigate through dense
fog, and find the Potomac River’s mouth. The
beam shone until 1966, when an automated light off Point Lookout assumed the job of the original wood-and-masonry lighthouse.
Trailblazing Women.
Lighthouse keeping was one of the first
non-clerical government jobs available to
American women. In 1830, when Point
Lookout’s first keeper James Davis died after . . . — Map (db m1004) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Scotland — Point Lookout Confederate Cemetery |
| | Erected by the United States to mark the burial place of Confederate Soldiers and Sailors who died at Point Lookout, Md., while prisoners of war and were there buried to the number of 3384, but whose remains were subsequently removed, either to their respective homes, or to this cemetery where the individual graves cannot now be identified. — Map (db m927) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Scotland — Point Lookout Confederate Cemetery |
| | Erected by the State of Maryland in memory of the Confederate Soldiers who died Prisoners of War at Point Lookout, from March 1st, 1864, to June 30th, 1865.
(north face) “At the call of Patriotism and duty they encountered the perils of the field, endured the trials of a Prison, and were faithful, even until death.”
(east face) Virginia 640 • North Carolina 962 • South Carolina 248 • Georgia 249 • Alabama 75 • Tennessee 63 • Louisiana 38 • Mississippi 42 • . . . — Map (db m943) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Scotland — Point Lookout Prisoner-Of-War Camp — (1863–1865) |
| | After the Battle of Gettysburg, the Union established a prisoner-of-war depot near here. Confederate soldiers and Maryland civilians were imprisoned and guarded by 400 Union troops. With only tents for protection, 3,384 prisoners died. — Map (db m998) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Scotland — Point Lookout State Park — Hammond General Hospital |
| | Hammond General Hospital, opened
at Point Lookout, Maryland, in
August 1862, was named for Surgeon General William A. Hammond. The massive structure, built
to accommodate 1,400 amen, was set on piles about two to three feet
above ground and covered nearly
all the area between the Potomac
River and the Chesapeake Bay. It was well over 500 feet in diameter and had 16 wings, each 175 by
25 feet, radiating out from an open central area like the spokes of a
giant wheel. One wing . . . — Map (db m1001) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), Scotland — Shipwreck! |
| | Centuries of storms, fogs, shoals, collisions, combat, poor judgement and bad luck have plagued local mariners. Gazing across Point Lookout's waters, we can only wonder how many of their wrecks litter the bottom of the Chesapeake Bay and the Potomac River.
Don't Light The Boiler
November 11, 1864: The Union gunboat U. S. S. Tulip was heading up the Potomac River to Washington D. C. for repairs. To make better time and avoid Confederate batteries on the Virginia shore, the . . . — Map (db m8935) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), St. Inigoes — The Manor of Cornwaleys’ Cross |
| | 2000 acres granted Sept. 8th, 1639 to Thomas Cornwaleys who came to Maryland with “The Ark and The Dove.” He and Jerome Hawley were appointed “His Lordship’s Commissioners for the government of said Province” 1633 with Leonard Calvert as Governor. — Map (db m977) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), St. Mary’s City — After the Disastrous Fire |
| | Pro Deo. Pro Patria. This tablet erected in honor of Hon. Albert C. Ritchie, Governor of Maryland, members of the General Assembly 1924 and other public spirited citizens in recognition of their co-operation in restoring this historic institution after the disastrous fire, January 5, 1924. — Map (db m973) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), St. Mary’s City — Commemorating Maryland’s Pride and Glory — “Freedom of Conscience” |
| | In the early 1880s, Marylanders began to commemorate the “lost city” of St. Mary’s as a place of special significance. The 300th anniversary of Maryland’s founding in 1934 brought renewed attention and enthusiasm. The State House replica was built, a huge celebration drawing over 100,000 people was held, and this statue was commissioned. It honors religious toleration, a right secured to all citizens of Maryland by “An Act Concerning Religion,” passed by the General . . . — Map (db m959) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), St. Mary’s City — Entrance to First State House of Maryland |
| | In memory of Nicholas Young of St. Mary’s Co. Maryland, elected to the House of Burgesses Nov 30, 1665.
Boxwood dedicated June 13, 1932, and tablet placed through Maj. William Thomas Chapter, D.A.R. by Delia Harris Maddox, Ann Delia Power Yellman, decendants. — Map (db m1006) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), St. Mary’s City — Here Lyeth The Body |
| | Here lyeth the body of Lionel Copley of Wadworth, County York, England, born 1648, died Sept. 27, 1693. And of Anne Boteler, his wife, of Watton, Woodhull, County Herts, England, died March 5, 1692.
He was sometime Lieutenant Governour of Kingston Upon Hull, 1689–1690, Lieutenant General, Governour in Chief, and Chief Admiral of Maryland in America 1691–1693. His short tenure of life in this Province was marked by singular fidelity in troublous times to his God, his King, and . . . — Map (db m1005) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), St. Mary’s City — In 1648 Margaret Brent Asks for “Vote...And Voyce” |
| | Margaret Brent (ca. 1601–1671), a Catholic gentlewoman, lived in Maryland from 1638 to 1650. In June 1647 the dying governor, Leonard Calvert, made her executrix of his estate with power to pay the soldiers he had hired to put down a Protestant rebellion. Margaret Brent’s skill in carrying out this mission preserved Lord Baltimore’s authority and his policy of religious toleration. During this crisis she unsuccessfully requested two votes in the Assembly, one for herself and one as Lord . . . — Map (db m950) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), St. Mary’s City — John Llewellyn |
| | First register of the Colonial Land Office, Clerk of the Assembly 1682, Chief Clerk to the Secretary of the Province 1692, member of the committee signing protest against the removal of the Capital from St. Mary’s City to Annapolis 1694. His home was among the first erected at St. Mary’s City. — Map (db m962) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), St. Mary’s City — Laura Maryland Carpenter Blinn — Mistress Margaret Brent |
| | The National Society, Daughters of Founders and Patriots of America placed this tablet in honor of our National President 1952–1955 Laura Maryland Carpenter Blinn, born in St. Mary’s County and whose ancestors landed here with the Lord Baltimore Colony 1634.
Also to the memory of Mistress Margaret Brent, c.1601–1671, known as the “Portia of America” being the only woman lawyer in the colonies. — Map (db m951) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), St. Mary’s City — Leonard Calvert — 1610–1647 |
| | Lord of St. Michael’s, Trinity, and St. Gabriel’s Manors with Court Leet and Court Baron. First governor of Maryland 1634–1647. — Map (db m960) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), St. Mary’s City — Leonard Calvert |
| | (west face) To the memory of Leonard Calvert, First Governor of Maryland this monument is erected by the State of Maryland.
(north face) Leonard Calvert, second son of George Calvert, first Baron of Baltimore and Anne, his wife, led the first colonists to Maryland November 22, 1633–March 3, 1634. Founded St. Mary’s March 27, 1634. Died June 9, 1647.
(south face) By his wisdom, justice, and fidelity he fostered the infancy of the Colony, guided it through . . . — Map (db m968) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), St. Mary’s City — Mathias de Sousa |
| | Mathias de Sousa was the first black Marylander. Of African and Portuguese descent, he was one of nine indentured servants brought to Maryland by Jesuit missionaries and was on The Ark when Lord Baltimore’s expedition arrived in the St. Mary’s River in 1634. His indenture finished by 1638 and he became a mariner and fur trader. In 1641 he commanded a trading voyage north to the Susquehannock Indians and, in 1642, sailed as master of a ketch belonging to the Provincial Secretary John . . . — Map (db m5626) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), St. Mary’s City — Mattapany Street |
| | The first road built by the colonists in Maryland. It led from “St. Marys” to “Mattapany” on the Patuxent River. Referred to in 1639 as the “Mattapany Path.” — Map (db m976) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), St. Mary’s City — Saint Mary’s Female Seminary |
| | Established by act of Assembly, 1839. A monument to the birth of the State, 1634. “Where the mothers of future generations may receive their education at a place so well calculated to inspire affection and attachment for their native state.” Erected on the site of Saint Mary’s City, the first capital of Maryland. Governor William Grayson, 1839. Governor Emmerson G. Harrington, 1917. — Map (db m972) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), St. Mary’s City — St. Mary’s City — Capital of Maryland, 1634–1694 |
| | Here, for the first time in America, men and women of differing faiths lived in peace and goodwill, practicing freedom of conscience, according to Lord Baltimore’s “Instructions to Colonists,” 1633. “Freemen Assembled,” of various beliefs, changed practice into law by approving “An Act Concerning Religion,” 1649. — Map (db m961) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), St. Mary’s City — St. Mary’s Female Seminary |
| | The State’s 200th anniversary memorial established by Act of the Legislature of 1839 as a living monument to mark the birthplace of the State and of religious liberty. — Map (db m958) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), St. Mary’s City — The First State House of Maryland |
| | On this site was erected in 1676 the first State House of Maryland. Previous to this date the Assembly met in various places subsequent to the Planting of the Province at St. Mary’s City, March 27, 1634. The twelve stone markers forming a cross outline the original building.
This marker was placed by Major William Thomas Chapter, D.A.R., St. Mary’s City, October 2, 1926. Mrs. John G. H. Lilburn, Regent. — Map (db m967) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), St. Mary’s City — The Landing of The Ark and The Dove |
| | (No inscription save the title. This marker tells its story pictorially.) — Map (db m909) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), St. Mary’s City — Thomas Allen Senior |
| | In memory of Thomas Allen Senior, a passenger of the Ark and Dove expedition, member of Assembly of Maryland 1648, Justice of the Peace of Isle of Kent, found shot on the sands of Point Lookout, St. Mary’s County Maryland August 11, 1648. Placed by his descendant in the eleventh generation, Marguerite duPont de Villiers Boden, 1972. — Map (db m949) |
| Maryland (St. Mary's County), St. Mary’s City — Trinity Church, St. Mary’s Parish |
| | Built 1642 on Smith’s Creek, Saint Mary’s County. Removed to lot near present rectory, Saint Mary’s City.
In 1695 the Capital was removed from Saint Mary’s City to Annapolis and the State House came to be a place of Church of England worship.
In 1720 the General Assembly vested the State House and its grounds in the Rector and Vestry of William and Mary Parish, and it became the chapel of the parish until 1829, when it was razed and the bricks used to build the present church, nearby, . . . — Map (db m910) |
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