Western Maryland Western Maryland is a great place for outdoor adventures. You can climb Maryland's highest mountain, swim in numerous lakes, hike the Appalachian Trail, brave white-water rapids or enjoy all kinds of winter sports from skiing to ice fishing. The three counties of Western Maryland, where fall foliage arrives first and winter usually stays the longest, were Maryland's last frontier. One of the most important events in Western Maryland in the early 1800s was[...]
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The National Park Service created the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom to commemorate the places and people who shaped the journey to freedom. Network to Freedom sites are documented places where the enslaved escaped from bondage, the routes they took, places where they stayed or found assistance, and sometimes places where their freedom was tried and tested. Network to Freedom programs provide authentic information about the Underground Railroad and people who escaped. Network to[...]
The early hotspots for colonial horse sports, including racing and foxchasing, were in Southern Maryland, Annapolis and the Eastern Shore areas of the state. But this began to change in the 1700s as settlers migrated north and west and the commercial scene shifted to Baltimore City. The first major Baltimore County horse farm was established in what is now Towson at Hampton Mansion, where Charles Carnan Ridgeley bred and raised Thoroughbreds in the late 1700s[...]
1608 – Captain John Smith explores the Chesapeake Bay 1631 – English trading post established on Kent Island 1632 – Maryland Charter granted to Cecilius Calvert by King Charles I 1633 – Ark and Dove sail from the Isle of Wight, England 1634 – Ark and Dove arrive at St. Clements Island; St. Mary's City founded 1649 – "An Act Concerning Religion" passed; Puritans founded Providence (now Annapolis) 1664 – Slavery allowed by law in[...]