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Preserve. Protect. Connect. If you’re familiar with Historic Annapolis and follow the work we do, you’ve seen that tagline on our website, brochures, museum signage, and email signatures. It’s the distilled essence of HA’s mission statement: to Preserve and Protect the historic places, objects, and stories of Maryland’s capital city, and provide engaging experiences that Connect people to the area’s diverse heritage.
People naturally preserve and protect what is important and meaningful to them, and it’s through personal experiences that we connect with one another in our historic community, discovering together what we treasure about Annapolis. All of us here at HA are committed to maintaining the quality of life that we enjoy by fostering connections to one another, to our collective memories, and to the social and physical fabric of our community.
May is National Preservation Month, and I’m excited about the many connection opportunities that HA provides for residents and visitors alike. Here are a few preservation-focused highlights coming up:
- Meet HA’s new Vice President of Preservation, Rachel Robinson via Zoom on Tuesday, May 9 as she presents a special virtual lecture, An Introduction to Annapolis Architecture. Rachel will provide tips on how to identify architectural eras and styles that will help you “read” our city’s historic streetscapes like a preservation pro.
- On Sunday, May 14, we’ll celebrate National Preservation Month at Hands-On History Day at the Museum of Historic Annapolis. Bring your family and drop by 99 Main Street where we’ll offer fun preservation activities (included with admission – and kids 9 and under are free!) Explore the museum, create your own decorative architecture pattern, then smash some oyster shells for brick mortar while Rachel Robinson updates you on our ongoing restoration of the James Brice House.
Next week, there’s also one more session of Mr. Paca’s Garden Storytime, a special Decorative Arts Tour led by our curator, Robin Gower, and the beloved Mother’s Day weekend tradition, our William Paca Garden Plant Sale. Later this month, you can also take a Botanical Watercolor Workshop led by artist Cynthia Shumaker, compose poetry with the Poet Laureate of Annapolis, and sit back and enjoy two Virtual Lectures from your own living room about the War of 1812 and the Chesapeake region’s role in that conflict, presented by two award-winning historians.
There are so many things going on at Historic Annapolis this May, and you can find all the details on our Calendar of Events. I hope to connect with you as we celebrate National Preservation Month!
