Fast Facts on Maryland: http://www.ipl.org/div/kidspace/stateknow/md1.html
History
Native Americans
Native American tribes had been living in villages in our area for several hundred years.
There were many foods here that Native Americans ate that Europeans didn’t have in
Europe. The Native Americans taught the European settlers how to grow and cook food
like corn, squash and pumpkins. They also helped the European settlers by teaching them
new ways to clear land, gather oysters, hunt, fish and even sail on the Chesapeake Bay.
Look up many Native American tribes by tribe name here:
http://www.nativeculturelinks.com/nations.html
Exploration and Settlement
Captain John Smith was from England. He first settled in Jamestown, Virginia, and then
began to explore the Chesapeake Bay. Once he explored it, he thought it would be a
good place to build more villages. The Calvert family later began to settle in the area.
Calvert County in Maryland is named after George Calvert who brought his family to
settle in Maryland after leaving England.
Here is some more information on George Calvert:
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/03192a.htm
The American Revolution and becoming a state:
There were no big battles in the American Revolution fought in Maryland, but the
Colony of Maryland did help the Revolution by sending soldiers, weapons and ships to
help the American army fight the British. In 1783, the war ended. The Americans had
won their freedom from England. Now the settlers who had come to America and settled
were free to set up their own government and worship how they liked. The Treaty of
Paris was signed in Annapolis, Maryland to officially end the Revolutionary War.
Learn more about Annapolis here:
http://www.visit-annapolis.org/index.aspx
Fort McHenry and the War of 1812:
The peace didn’t last long. Just 35 years later, the United States declared war on
England. England was already fighting with France over trade and Americans were
worried that the war would come to America too. America wanted to be sure that it’s
sailors were safe and that we would be able to trade with other European countries to get
the things we needed. Fort McHenry was a star-shaped fort that was surrounded by water
on 3 sides. The British attacked the fort in 1814 on September 13 & 14. Ships had to go
past Fort McHenry to get to Baltimore, Maryland. Soldiers at Fort McHenry kept the
British from getting through even though the British fired bombs at the fort for 25 hours
non-stop! In the end, the British gave up and sailed out into the Chesapeake Bay. The
Americans had protected their land, and their right to trade.
To read more about Fort Mc Henry, try these sites:
www.bcpl.net/~etowner/
or
www.nps.gov/fomc/archeology/overview.html
This is only the beginning! To read more about Maryland’s History, go to:
http://www.mdarchives.state.md.us/msa/homepage/html/homepage.html
http://www.americcaslibrary.gov/cgi-bin/page.cgi/es/md/crab_1
You can also try this site:
http://www.bcplonline.org/kidspage/kidspage.html
Famous Marylanders
Harriet Tubman was a slave who was born on the Eastern Shore of Maryland around
1820. In 1849, she escaped and went north. But she didn’t stay where she was safe. She
came back to Maryland many times to help other slaves become free. Between 1850 and
1860, she helped free more than 300 slaves. Harriet Tubman was one of the
“conductors” on the Underground Railroad. The Underground Railroad was not actually
a railroad at all, but a series of safe places to hide and trails to walk that took slaves to the
north where they were considered free people and would not have to work for others in
harsh conditions. Harriet Tubman died around 1913.
To read more about Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad, try these
links.
http://pathways.thinkport.org/flash_home.cfm
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/features/99/railroad/
Many famous people that we read about today were from Maryland. People such as
Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglass, Babe Ruth, Cal Ripkin Jr. and Edgar Allen Poe
were all from Maryland. There were other famous Marylanders such as Benjamin
Banneker, Thurgood Marshall, and Roger B. Taney.
You can find information on these famous Marylanders by clicking the links below:
Frederick Douglass was an abolitionist. He lived from 1817 to 1895. He was born a slave
and his last name as a child was Bailey, not Douglass. He became a household servant
when he was nine years old. He learned to read, which was rare for slaves at the time.
Slaves were not supposed to be taught how to read, but Frederick Douglass was taught by
Sophia Auld until her husband made her stop. Frederick kept learning even though
Sophia couldn’t teach him anymore. He read all the time when he was sent out on
errands. He escaped to the north and worked for the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery
Society. After he escaped he changed his name from Bailey to Douglass to make it hard
for slave catchers to find him. He was very good at giving speeches. His great speeches
about ending slavery made him famous. Later, he moved to Rochester, NY and started
and edited a Newspaper called The North Star. He also worked with Abraham Lincoln to
end slavery.
Read about Frederick Douglass here:
http://www.history.rochester.edu/class/douglass/home.html
Read some of Frederick Douglass’ papers here:
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/doughtml/
Read actual slave stories from other slaves here:
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/aapchtml/
Symbols:
The Flag:
The Maryland Flag displays the coats of arms of two English families. The black and
gold design represents the Calvert family, the founders of Maryland. George Calvert’s
mother’s maiden name was Crossland, and the red and white cross represents her side of
the family. Do you know the right way to fly the Maryland flag? It can be tricky!
Always be sure to fly it with the black and gold design in the top left corner. If you see a
Maryland flag flying with the red and white cross at the top left, it’s being flown the
wrong way!
Learn more about George Calvert here:
http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/states/ma01.tml
Maryland has a nickname! It is called “The Old Line State”. Our state got this nickname
during the Revolutionary Wary, but nobody knows exactly how we got the nickname.
Some people say that during the war, 400 soldiers from Maryland kept 10,000 British
soldiers out, “holding a line of defense”. The story also says that George Washington,
our first president who was a general at the time of the war, was proud of the soldiers at
“the old line” for helping keep the British out.
Here’s a link that gives some more information on this story.
http://www.aomol.net/html/oldline.html
The slogan “The Old Line State” is also on our state quarter. The quarter was put into
circulation to buy items in 2000. It shows the dome of the statehouse in Annapolis on it
as well. The Annapolis statehouse is the oldest in the United States that is still actually
used by the legislature. The dome is made of wood and built without nails!
Maryland’s state flower is the Black-Eyed Susan. In 1896, the flower was chosen by a
group of women who were meeting at the Maryland Agricultural College. They chose
the Black-Eyed Susan because the flowers grow all over Maryland and the black centers
and yellow petals match the Maryland flag. In 1918, it was voted as the official “Floral
Emblem” of Maryland by the General Assembly. Black-Eyed Susans bloom at the end of
Summer and many times you can see them growing along the sides of country roads.
Here’s some more information about our state flower:
http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/wildseed/20/20.2.html
The state bird is the Baltimore Oriole. The male bird has black and gold feathers that
match the Calvert family colors (the inspiration for Maryland’s flag). There is a story
that Cecil Calvert saw a flock of Orioles and noticed the colors matched the family
colors.
Learn more about the Baltimore Oriole here:
http://www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/BirdGuide/Baltimore_Oriole.html
The state cat is the Calico. In 2001, the Maryland legislature voted to adopt the cat as the
state cat. The idea came from students at Westernport Elementary School in Allegany
County. The students went through a process to have it approved. Once again, the colors
of this type of cat were the inspiration. The students noticed that the calico cat’s colors of
red, black and white are all on our state flag. A calico cat can be any breed, but must
have the colors to be called a calico.
We have a state dog! It is the Chesapeake Bay Retriever. In 1964 Maryland officially
declared an official state dog. This breed of dog was developed in the United States. It
has large webbed feet and its coat repels water!
Learn more here: http://www.akc.org/breeds/chesapeake_bay_retriever/
Our state crustacean is the Blue Crab. It was officially named our crustacean in 1989, but
was unofficially considered to be our state’s crustacean for many years before then. In
Maryland, catching and processing crabs helps earn millions of dollars for our state every
year. The crabs are bluish-green, but turn bright red when they are cooked. Maryland is
famous for its steamed crabs and it’s crab cakes. YUM!
Learn more about blue crabs: http://www.mdsg.umd.edu/issues/chesapeake/blue_crabs/
Do you know our state reptile? It is the Diamondback Terrapin. It gets its name from the
diamond shaped rings on its shell. Native Americans taught the European Settlers who
came here how to roast and eat the Terrapin. This type of turtle is often found in the
water around Maryland. The University of Maryland made the terrapin its team mascot
in 1933, and in 1994, the General Assembly of Maryland made the Diamondback
Terrapin our official state reptile. If you watch University of Maryland sports, you might
hear their slogan: “Fear the Turtle!!”
Find more information on Diamondback Terrapins:
http://www.aqua.org/animals_diamondbackterrapin.html
Jousting is our state sport. It is a competitive sport where people ride horses and try to
spear rings with a long tipped lance. The competitors must also be riding their horses as
fast as possible when they spear the rings. Originally it was a game that Knights played
to practice their skills. It became our sport in 1962.
Want to know more about jousing? Here is a link to the National Jousting Association:
http://www.nationaljousting.com/
There are lots of things to do in Maryland!
Visit the Chesapeake Bay!
You can ride in a sailboat, collect seashells on the beach, swim or fish. The Chesapeake
Bay waters go right up the middle of the state of Maryland. The Bay is part of the
Atlantic Ocean, and most of Maryland’s rivers flow right into the water in the bay,
including the Potomac river.
http://www.chesapeakebay.net/aboutbay.aspx?menuitem=13953
Have you ever seen the Wild Horses of Assateauge? Go to Assateague Island and you’ll
see them roaming freely on the island. They are smaller than most horses but they are
wild, unlike the horses we normally see on farms.
Check out some more information on these horses here:
http://www.outdoorplaces.com/Destination/USNP/mdassisi/
Or here:
http://www.beach-net.com/chincoteague/assateag.html
Or here:
http://www.atbeach.com/mdstpark/
Check out the Piscataway Indian Museum! It is located in Waldorf, Maryland. You’ll
get to see how the Piscataway Indians lived by hunting with bows and arrows, sleeping in
longhouses and using deer and fox skins as blankets for their beds.
http://www.piscatawayindians.org/museum.html
Saint Mary’s City was Maryland’s capital city before Annapolis. When you visit the city,
you’ll be able to see what life was like for Marylanders in the 1600s.
http://www.stmaryscity.org/
Remember Fort McHenry, the fort that didn’t let all those bombs stop it from protecting
our soldiers? You can visit Fort McHenry in Baltimore and see for yourself what it looks
like. When you get there, imagine having to keep the city of Baltimore safe from that
spot! Because the fort was attacked on the 13th and 14th of September in 1814, people
celebrate the flag on the second weekend of every September with parades, ceremonies
and fireworks.
http://www.nps.gov/archive/fomc/home.htm
After you see the fort, check out the Baltimore National Aquarium in Baltimore’s inner
harbor. There are all sorts of sea creatures and a dolphin show too. But don’t stop there!
Check out the Maryland Science Center right there in the harbor too! It has a
planetarium, a laser theater, and all kinds of things to learn and do.
http://www.aqua.org/