OLNEY, MD—The Montgomery County Department of Parks, part of the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission, and its partners will host a variety of FREE activities to honor Maryland Emancipation Day. Maryland Emancipation Day commemorates the historic November 1, 1864 Maryland constitution that freed enslaved persons living in the state. Activities for Montgomery Parks Maryland Emancipation Day Celebrations include guided hikes that allow visitors to experience the Underground Railroad; a special program at the historic Oakley Cabin; and tours of the Josiah Henson Historic Site.
Friday, November 5, 2010
- “The Night Sky and the Underground Railroad” with Tony Cohen, 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm, Underground Railroad Experience Trail at Woodlawn Manor Cultural Park, 16501 Norwood Road, Sandy Spring. Historian Tony Cohen gets Montgomery Parks’ Maryland Emancipation Day Celebrations started with this special night hike of the Underground Railroad Experience Trail. Pre-registration is required at www.ParkPASS.org (Course No. 122849). Interpretative materials are appropriate for children ages 10 and up; no dogs (except therapy animals) are allowed on the hike; dress for the weather; and bring a flashlight. Parking is available at Woodlawn Manor. Admission is $5 per person. For more on Tony Cohen and the Underground Railroad experience in Montgomery County, visit www.Menare.org.
Saturday, November 6, 2010
- FREE Guided Hikes, 9:00 am to 12:00 noon, Underground Railroad Experience Trail at Woodlawn Manor Cultural Park, 16501 Norwood Road, Sandy Spring. Trained volunteer "conductors" will lead one-way, interpretive hikes of this 2 mile natural surface trail from Woodlawn Manor to the Sandy Spring Friends Meeting House. At the end of each hike, shuttle buses will transport hikers from Sandy Spring Friends Meeting House back to the Woodlawn Manor parking lot. Hikes begin at 9:00 am, 9:30 am and 10:00 am and last 90 minutes.
- Open House at the Sandy Spring Slave Museum & African Art Gallery, 11:00 am to 3:00 pm, 18524 Brooke Road, Sandy Spring. The museum and art gallery will be open to visitors FREE of charge for Emancipation Day. Lunch will be available for purchase by Ribs on the Run. For more information contact museum staff at [email protected].
- Tours & Demonstrations, 12:00 noon to 4:00 pm, Button Farm Living History Center, 16820 Black Rock Road, Germantown. Journey to the Historic Button Farm and Living History Center to learn about plantation life in Maryland. Located inside Seneca Creek State Park, visitors engage in a hands-on experience of plantation life. The site features a Civil War-era barn, historic outbuildings, livestock pens, museum garden, and slave cemetery. For more information, contact 301-916-7090 or visit www.Menare.org. This event is sponsored by the Menare Foundation, Inc.
- Maryland Emancipation Day Celebration, 12:00 noon to 4:00 pm, Oakley Cabin, 3610 Brookeville Road, Olney. FREE Maryland Emancipation Day activities will include guided cabin tours; living history demonstrations; refreshments; music by The Treatment; and an archaeology dig. The special Emancipation Day program at Oakley Cabin will begin at 1:00 pm and feature “Underground Railroad, Not a Subway” puppet show by Schroeder Cherry, music by the Sherman High School Chamber Choir and a keynote address by author and historian C. R. Gibbs. Parking is only available at Longwood Recreation Center, 19300 Georgia Avenue with shuttle service to Oakley Cabin.
Sunday, November 7, 2010
- FREE Tours, 12:00 noon to 4:00 pm, Josiah Henson Historic Site, 11420 Old Georgetown Road, N. Bethesda. Take a FREE guided tour of the Josiah Henson site. Visit the plantation where Josiah Henson was enslaved and hear his life story. Parking is only available at the Montgomery County Aquatic Center/Wall Local Park, 5900 Executive Boulevard, N. Bethesda.
- Tours & Demonstrations, 12:00 noon to 4:00 pm, Button Farm Living History Center, 16820 Black Rock Road, Germantown. Journey to the Historic Button Farm and Living History Center to learn about plantation life in Maryland. Located inside Seneca Creek State Park, visitors engage in a hands-on experience of plantation life. The site features a Civil War-era barn, historic outbuildings, livestock pens, museum garden, and slave cemetery. For more information, contact 301-916-7090 or visit www.Menare.org. This event is sponsored by the Menare Foundation, Inc.
- African American Walking Tour of Rockville, 1:30 pm to 5:00 pm, Town Square Pavilion, 21 Maryland Avenue, Rockville. Enjoy a guided walking tour of Rockville’s African American heritage sites. From pre-Civil War enslavement to the Civil Rights movement of the sixties, the struggle of Rockville’s African Americans is marked by strength, ingenuity and acts of great courage. Following the tour, a reception and conversation: "Emancipation, African Americans and the Civil War," at the Rockville Memorial Library, in the 1st Floor Meeting Room, begins at 3:30 pm. This event is sponsored by the City of Rockville Historic District Commission, Montgomery County Office of Human Rights, Lincoln Park Historical Foundation, Inc., and Self Storage Plus, Rockville.
For more information on the Montgomery Parks Maryland Emancipation Day Celebrations visit www.HistoryInTheParks.org or call 301-650-4373.
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Contact:
Kelli Holsendolph
Media Relations Manager
Montgomery County Department of Parks
301-650-2866
