skip
general nav links
About ACHP
ACHP News
National
Historic Preservation Program
Working with Section 106
Federal, State, & Tribal Programs
Training & Education Publications Search | |
skip
specific nav links Home News
Seven Maryland Preserve
America Communities Designated, Recognized at ACHP Business Meeting
Seven
Maryland Preserve America Communities Designated, Recognized at ACHP Business
MeetingFor more information, contact Bruce
Milhans at (202) 606-8513 or bmilhans@achp.gov
May 18, 2005, Annapolis, MDAnnapolis, Oakland, St. Mary's County, and
Worcester County received certificates of designation as Preserve America
Communities today at the spring business meeting of the Advisory Council on Historic
Preservation (ACHP). The certificates, signed by Mrs. Laura Bush, Honorary
Chair of the Preserve America initiative, were presented on her behalf
by John L. Nau, III, Chairman of the ACHP.
Representatives
of Maryland's newly designated Preserve America Communities. From left
to right: Oakland Mayor Asa McCain; St. Mary's Board of County Commissioners President
Thomas McKay; St. Mary's County Dept. of Land Use and Growth Management Historic
Preservation Planner Teri Wilson; Annapolis Mayor Ellen Moyar; Oakland
Main Street Manager Cherie Ross; Annapolis Planning and Zoning Dept. Historic
Preservation Chief Donna Hole; Snow Hill Historic District Commission Chair Susanne
Knudsen; and Worcester County Commission President John Bloxom. (photo: Severn
Graphics)
| Three previously
designated Preserve America communitiesCumberland, Dorchester County,
and Snow Hillalso were recognized during the ceremony for being among the
first in the Nation to be named. The session was held in the Calvert Room at the
Maryland State House. "There are significant economic, educational,
and cultural benefits that historic preservation, through efforts such as heritage
tourism, bring to a community," Nau said. "Sustainable preservation
is not a cost for maintaining the past, it is an investment in building the future.
These communities are leaders in this trend and have created a powerful positive
example for others." The Preserve America initiative is a White
House effort to encourage and support community efforts for the preservation and
enjoyment of America's priceless cultural and natural heritage. The goals of the
initiative include a greater shared knowledge about the Nation's past; strengthened
regional identities and local pride; increased local participation in preserving
the country's cultural and natural heritage assets; and support for the economic
vitality of communities. The following are some of the communities' heritage
attributes that resulted in their Preserve America Community designation: - AnnapolisOne
of the earliest planned cities in the United States, it was surveyed in 1695 following
a baroque plan of circles and radiating streets. Its core contains the largest
surviving concentration of Georgian architectural structures in the Nation. The
Maryland State House is the oldest State capitol still serving its original purpose.
A National Historic Landmark, it was from here that the call for the Constitutional
Convention went out in 1786.
- OaklandThe county seat of Garrett
County is located at the western edge of Maryland and was founded in 1849. Rich
natural resources and a rail transportation system led to a prosperous beginning
for the city, and the railroad later created resorts and marketed the area as
a tourist destination. Oakland is an active participant in the contemporary multi-state
Appalachian Forest Heritage Area tourism initiative.
- St. Mary's CountyThe
first English settlement in Maryland, St. Mary's City, was founded in 1634 and
today is interpreted through accurately reconstructed buildings, stabilized archeological
sites, and living history demonstrations. The county flourished on a slave economy
in which tobacco farming played a key role before the Civil War. Today visitors
are drawn by the State-designated Southern Maryland Heritage Area and offerings
including the Patuxent River Naval Air Museum.
- Worcester CountyEstablished
in 1742 on the Atlantic Coast, today's Beach to Bay Indian Trail, a National Recreation
Trail, reminds contemporary visitors and residents that this was a homeland with
a rich human history before Europeans and Africans arrived. Inland, the Pocomoke
River provided deep water access and ports for early settlers. The first hotel
in Ocean City opened in 1875, and the allure of the Eastern Shore draws millions
of vacationers each year.
Three other Maryland communities that earlier
became Preserve America Communities were also represented and recognized
for their efforts at the ceremony at the Maryland State House. They are: - CumberlandThe
"Gateway to the West" as the eastern terminus of the National Road,
which was the Federal Government's first foray into major road construction, the
city was founded in 1787 near the site of George Washington's Fort Cumberland.
It was the western terminus of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, as well as a major
railroad center. Today Cumberland thrives on its well-preserved past memorialized
in projects such as the Canal Place Preservation District.
- Snow HillThe
city owes its origins to its location on the Pocomoke River, which made it an
important port for this rich agricultural region. The town suffered a catastrophic
fire in 1893 but nonetheless retains a wealth of historic buildings. Along with
its lovely location on the river, these structures are a key resource for the
city's revitalization plan that gives the city's historic remnants and heritage
a fundamental position in its economic development strategy.
- Dorchester
CountyOne of the first eight Preserve America Communities in
the Nation, the county's heritage of watermen, farmers, and refugees from oppression
is richly interpreted by many local sites, interpretive efforts, and seven historically
oriented museums. The county was the home of famed Underground Railroad conductor
Harriet Tubman, who spirited enslaved persons north to freedom before emancipation.
As of May 18, 2005, there were 247 designated Preserve America
Communities located in 37 States nationwide. Communities designated through the
program receive national recognition for their efforts. Benefits include use of
the Preserve America logo, listing in a Government Web-based directory
to showcase preservation and heritage tourism efforts, and eligibility for proposed
Preserve America grants that are currently being considered by Congress.
The first eight communities nationwide, which included Dorchester County, were
designated January 15, 2004. The next quarterly deadline for applications to become
a Preserve America Community is June 1, 2005. For more information on the
communities, application forms, and procedures, visit www.preserveamerica.gov/communities.html.
About
the ACHP The ACHP, an independent Federal agency, promotes the preservation,
enhancement, and productive use of the Nation's historic resources and advises
the President and Congress on national historic preservation policy. It also provides
a forum for influencing Federal activities, programs, and policies that impact
historic properties. In addition, the ACHP has a key role in carrying out the
Administration's Preserve America program.
Learn
more about the ACHP Posted May 25, 2005 Return to Top |