Montgomery Parks will host a weekend of inspiring educational activities for all ages.
SILVER SPRING, MD— One hundred and fifty years ago, enslaved people living in Maryland were freed by a new state constitution on November 1, 1864.
Each November, Montgomery Parks celebrates freedom from enslavement in Maryland with a weekend of educational activities and events at various African American historic sites in our parks. This year the celebration will include:
- Hikes on the Underground Railroad Trail
- Living history demonstrations and reenactments
- Archaeology site excavations
- Tours of a former slave plantation and 19th century log cabins*
- Live music, crafts, games and food
*American Sign Language (ASL) interpreters will be available at Oakley Cabin and Josiah Henson Park
A Special Emancipation Day Event* will be held at Oakley Cabin African American Museum & Park in Olney on Saturday, November 1 from noon to 4 p.m. Activities will include a reading of the Maryland Emancipation Amendment, with a keynote address by Dr. Deborah Newman Ham of Morgan State University, living history demonstrations, musical performances by local artists and a host of other activities for the whole family.
Montgomery Parks joins other historic sites throughout the county to celebrate this special occasion. All events are open to the public. Park hosted events are FREE with the exception of a special night hike on the Underground Railroad Experience Trail, on Friday, October 31 which costs $5 per person. A schedule of weekend events is outlined below. More details are available at HistoryintheParks.org. The weekend events conclude Montgomery Parks’ season for offering historic and cultural tours, which resume in April of 2015.
WEEKEND EVENTS SCHEDULE
Friday, October 31, 2014
“Voices of the Underground Railroad: Special Night Hike on the Underground Railroad Experience Trail”
7:00 p.m. – 9:30 p.m.
Woodlawn Manor Cultural Park
16501 Norwood Rd., Sandy Spring, MD 20860
Admission: $5.00
Sign up at: ParkPass.org (Course #298099)
Bring your flashlight and journey back in time to the 1800s on this two-mile night hike, where you’ll meet persons of the past (portrayed by re-enactors), including brave fugitives, a Maryland governor, a freedman and minister among others. NOTE: Appropriate for adults and children ages 10 and up. Trail is not ADA-accessible.
Saturday, November 1, 2014
Underground Railroad Experience Trail Guided Hikes
Hikes begin 9:00 a.m., 9:30 a.m. and 10:00 a.m.
Woodlawn Manor Cultural Park
16501 Norwood Road, Sandy Spring, MD 20860
Free
“Conductors” lead one-way, 90-minute interpretive hikes of the two-mile natural surface trail from Woodlawn Manor to the historic Sandy Spring Friends Meetinghouse. Shuttle buses will transport hikers back to the Woodlawn Manor.
Oakley Cabin African American Museum & Park*
12:00 noon – 4:00 p.m.
3610 Brookeville Road, Olney, MD 20832
Free
In celebration of the 150th anniversary of Maryland’s Emancipation, Oakley Cabin will host an afternoon of live music, living history demonstrations, tours of the historic 19th century log cabin, games, crafts, and more for everyone to enjoy! Food will be available for purchase.
Emancipation Day Program | 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm*
- Keynote address by Dr. Debra Newman Ham, Professor of History & Geography, Morgan State University
- Presentation by the reenactors of the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment, B Company, Washington, DC
- Hearth cooking demonstrations by living history demonstrator, Anita Henderson and culinary historian, Michael Twitty
- Performances by blues musicians presented by Music on the Rise
- Storytelling performances by members of the Griots’ Circle of Maryland
Parking is only available at Longwood Recreation Center, 19300 Georgia Avenue with shuttle service to / from Oakley Cabin through the afternoon.
The Harper 1870s Homestead at Brookside Nature Center Tours & Demonstrations
12:00 noon – 4:00 p.m.
1400 Glenallen Avenue, Wheaton, MD 20902
Free
Visit the Harper 1870s Homestead to learn how families lived off the land. Learn about the roles apples and other crops played in preparing for the coming winter. Enjoy demonstrations and hands on activities including: apple cider pressing, corn grinding, preparing crops for storage, cooking with corn, honey gathering, mattress stuffing, seed mosaics, period games, crafts, and more! (Purchase tickets on-site for cider tastings, crafts, and other activities)
Sandy Spring Slave Museum and African Art Gallery Open House
12:00 noon – 4:00 p.m.
18524 Brooke Road, Sandy Spring, MD 20860
Free
In celebration of Maryland’s Emancipation Day, the museum will present a new 60-minute documentary featuring five of Montgomery County’s church communities: Community Cornerstones: Historic African American Communities in Montgomery County, Maryland. The documentary will be shown in special screenings throughout the afternoon beginning at 12:00 noon. Food will be available for purchase.
For more information visit: http://www.sandyspringslavemuseum.org/
Sandy Spring Museum Open House
10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
17901 Bentley Road, Sandy Spring, MD 20860
Admission charged
Join producer/director/dramaturge Harriet Lynn, of the Heritage Theatre Artists’ Consortium, and six dynamic area residents who will share their personal stories and insights on these subjects on the 150th anniversary of the Maryland Emancipation. The performance begins at 2:00 p.m. and will also contain music, songs, poetry and intriguing tales from past to present.
For more information: http://www.sandyspringmuseum.org/
Button Farm Living History Center Tours & Demonstrations
12:00 noon – 4:00 p.m.
16820 Black Rock Road, Germantown, MD 20874
Free
Journey to the Historic Button Farm and Living History Center to learn about plantation life in Maryland. Visitors engage in a hands-on experience of plantation life. The site, located inside Seneca Creek State Park, features a Civil War-era barn, historic outbuildings, livestock pens, museum garden, and slave cemetery. For more information: http://buttonfarm.org/
Beall-Dawson Historical Park | Open House
12:00 noon – 4:00 p.m.
103 West Montgomery Avenue, Rockville, MD 20850
Free
Maryland Emancipation Day at the Beall-Dawson House and Stonestreet Museum of 19th Century Medicine will feature music by the Washington Revels Jubilee Voices and President Lincoln reading the Emancipation Proclamation. Picnic on the beautiful front lawn in front of the Beall-Dawson House and visit with Ann Maria Weems (an enslaved Rockville girl who escaped to freedom via the Underground Railroad). Local residents will share stories of their forbearers who were enslaved in Montgomery County. Food will be available to purchase. For more information: http://www.montgomeryhistory.org/
Sunday, November 2, 2014
Josiah Henson Park Open House*
12 noon – 4:00 p.m.
11420 Old Georgetown Road, North Bethesda 20852
Free
Enjoy guided tours and join Park archaeologists at the archaeology dig on site. The “Emancipation Day Program,” held 3:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m., features an historical reenactment of a 1860s-era debate between Gov. Thomas Hicks and Maryland legislator Severn Teakle Wallis, in “The Question of Maryland’s Secession.” Wrapping up the program will be a special presentation of the performances by the Washington Revels Jubilee Voices. Guided tours begin on the half hour starting at 12:00 p.m. Last guided tour begins at 2:00 pm (tours last about 60 mins.). The Time Team America PBS episode, “The Search for Josiah Henson” will be shown in its entirety throughout the afternoon. Showings begin at 12:00 noon, 1:00 pm, 2:00 pm and 3:00 pm.
Parking is ONLY available at the Kennedy Shriver Aquatic Center/Wall Local Park, 5900 Executive Boulevard, North Bethesda.
The Harper 1870s Homestead at Brookside Nature Center Tours & Demonstrations
12:00 noon – 4:00 p.m.
1400 Glenallen Avenue, Wheaton, MD 20902
Free
Visit the Harper 1870s Homestead to learn how families lived off the land. Learn about the roles apples and other crops played in preparing for the coming winter. Enjoy demonstrations and hands on activities including: apple cider pressing, corn grinding, preparing crops for storage, cooking with corn, honey gathering, mattress stuffing, seed mosaics, period games, crafts, and more! (Purchase tickets on-site for cider tastings, crafts, and other activities)
Sandy Spring Museum Open House
12:00 noon – 5:00 p.m.
17901 Bentley Road, Sandy Spring, MD 20860
Admission charged
The Museum chronicles the history of the families that lived and grew here on farms and in trades, creating one of the oldest sustained communities of African American landowners in the nation.
For more information visit: http://www.sandyspringmuseum.org/
For more information about Montgomery Parks Emancipation Day programming and to stay informed of upcoming events, volunteer opportunities and training dates, visit HistoryInTheParks.org.
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