One of the many extraordinary exhibits in the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture is Mae’s Millinery Shop. Lifted nearly complete from its original home in Philadelphia, it is now recognized as a historical treasure. Mae’s daughter, Donna Limerick, a longtime resident of Montgomery County, will join Montgomery History’s former Collections Manager, […]
For International Music day on October 1, We’re sharing this presentation from the 2021 Montgomery County History conference with Jake Blount. This presentation goes in-depth in describing the fiddle and banjo traditions of the Montgomery County area throughout history, with special focus on the music of Will Adams, a Black fiddler from Kensington, Maryland. Topics […]
In honor of Indigenous Peoples Day, we’re featuring this rewind from the 2021 Montgomery County History Conference. In 1607, most of the Algonquian-speaking peoples of the Potomac River Valley not only were involved in their own alliances and squabbles, they also were linked with other peoples through a complex web of trade, alliances, and conflict […]
For National Archives Month, we’re highlighting this talk with Rachel Frazier, Searchroom Coordinator at the Maryland State Archives, as we explore the spookier side of archives. Get into the Halloween spirit with strange records and spooky stories from the stacks of the Maryland State Archives, covering Montgomery County and beyond. Rewind available October 16-22.
Register HereCanavest (located on Heater’s Island) was the last permanent village of the Piscataway Indians in Maryland. Various aspects of the site—which was occupied from 1699 to at least 1712—are vividly described in a series of colonial documents from Maryland, Virginia, and Pennsylvania. These archival records are paired with analysis of archeological remains to provide […]
With Susan Soderberg and Eileen McGuckianOn November 1, 1864, Maryland became the first state below the Mason-Dixon Line to free slaves within its boundaries by popular vote. On the 156th anniversary of Emancipation in the Old Line State, two chroniclers of Montgomery County history will describe local experiences with slavery, war, emancipation, and its aftermath.Rewind […]
Join Montgomery History on November 4, 2023 for the 18th edition of the ever-popular Montgomery County History Conference. We’re again partnering with Montgomery College and will be holding it in-person, for the first time since 2020, on their Rockville campus. As always, the conference will offer myriad opportunities to engage with local history, including a […]