As the summer of 2013 fades away, this fine autumn-like Saturday presented the perfect opportunity to delve into the past that is all around us in our communities across Cecil County. Since I was in North East and the weather was perfect, I took a brief detour to Colonial Charlestown to roam some old streets while studying buildings constructed long ago. It is a fine place to contemplate our natural and built environments and the history that is all around us here as the attractive 150-acre historic district is well preserved.
The Charlestown Town Hall and Post Office was constructed in 1878. The building served as an elementary school site until June 14, 1961, according to the town web-site.the “St. John’s Methodist Episcopal Church” was constructed in 1856.The 107 House was restored by Colonial Charlestown, Inc.
With the arrival of October it is time for the return of the Historical Society of Cecil County’s popular winter 2013-14 speakers series. This year the county’s heritage-keepers open with “Elkton in the 1960s,” a talk by Milford Sprecher.
Delivered for the first time, it captures the spirit of those years locally, providing views and perspective of someone who came of age in the county seat during that pivotal time, a period of change in the nation and in Cecil County. The opening of I-95, integration, urban renewal, and tragedy all affected Elkton as it affected the nation.
On this enjoyable track back through time to a special place, Elkton and Cecil County, the speaker will share enduring memories that were acquired long ago. The talk is richly illustrated with dozens of local photographs from the 1960s, many of them rarely viewed.
Milford Sprecher was born in Elkton and educated in the local schools. He graduated from Western Maryland College and received his Master’s degree from Johns Hopkins University. He currently lives in Takoma Park, Maryland and looks back fondly on his formative years in Elkton.
The free event takes place on Saturday, Oct 5th at 2 p.m. the Society’s library at 135 E. Main Street in Elkton. Look for additional topics on the first Saturday of each month during the cooler weather months.
An Elkton Fire Department carnival about 1960. Source: Robinson Collection, Historical Society of Cecil County.
Now that the 1960s are history and not just nostalgia the Historical Society of Cecil County is opening an exhibit this fall that studies and celebrates the happenings of that era locally. It was a time that brought many transformations to this corner of northeastern Maryland and our curator, Lisa Dolor, and a talented group of volunteers are capturing those intriguing times in gallery displays.
The museum staff has been busy pouring over some 40,000 local photographs, hundreds of objects from the decade, and the history books for a couple of months, planning the attractive interpretive panels. While this group of volunteers works on the creative, visual aspect for our special 1960s series, others are putting together lectures and articles focusing on the county during those ten years, a time when everything changed.
Look for a detailed update shortly.
Curator Lisa Dolor is designing another exhibit for the Society. The autumn opening examines Cecil County in the 1960s and it appears she has a little help on this Sept. afternoon. Elvis has stopped by to check out plans for the interpretation of the 1960s in Cecil County.
If a Cecil County resident needed to call for emergency help back in the 1950s they had better have a telephone book handy or have taped the number to the phone. The process of reaching the correct call-taker during a fire or medical incident to request assistance was complicated. People had eleven different potential strings of numbers that might have to be dialed, depending on which of the county’s volunteer fire companies was responsible for the area.
Cecilton published three different numbers, depending on the time of day in 1951. At 8 p.m. another set was designated and if it happened that no one answered the directory said you could dial the operator.
It just wasn’t as easy as dialing those three easy to remember digits and having calls answered by professional public safety communications officers standing ready, around the clock, to efficiently aid callers in an emergency, while promptly getting aid to residents.
Cecil County phone books give instructions on how to report an emergency.
The business magazine, Nation’s Business, has been digitized by Hagley and is text searchable. This is an article from Oct. 1945, titled “How the War Ran Over Elkton.” Source: Hagley Digital Archives.
The Hagley Digital Archives provides online access to selected materials from the Hagley Museum and Library’s collection of images, documents, and publications. Although the organization concentrates on business, technology and Society, several of the record groups help researchers studying Cecil County’s past
The Zebley-Hoffecker collection is one example. The pictorial department added this records group of nearly 1,500 pictures in August 2012. The images were snapped between 1918 and 1944 by Wilmington Native Frank R. Zebley. Traveling all over the region, “Zebley photographed an enormous mix of subjects and places, including street scenes, rural views, parades, parks, public buildings, churches, beaches, rivers and bridges, automobile accidents, hotels, and estates, plus notable events . . .” according to a library press release. “This collection has long been a wonderful and well-used resource for local history researchers living in the Wilmington area, and we hope that many more folks will find and use the photographs now that they are available online,” Hagley adds. The finding aid and search engine takes you to images from the C & D Canal, Fair Hill, Bethel Church, Conowingo, and more.
There are other important virtual collection of text and images, which contain materials which should help researchers. Those include the DuPont Magazine and company correspondence. Some of the others are Nation’s Business, Dallin Aerial Survey Company products, and the Beers Atlas of Delaware. Here is the link for you to browse and search the Hagley Digital Archives.
“Newton-Mitchell Co. Quality Ice Cream. Elkton, MD.” by “The Royal Studio. Commercial Photographers. Wilmington, Delaware.” 1915-1930. Source Hagley Digital Archives.
Mark your calendars for September 14 & 15 ~ Mount Harmon is hosting a Revolutionary War Re-enactment & Colonial Festival featuring nearly 500 re-enactors, and an array of colonial craft vendors, and living history activities for the whole family to enjoy.
Each day will feature the colonial marketplace ~ full of authentic colonial crafts, as well as military skirmishes, tactical demonstrations and drills, colonial food vendors, and of course a full fledged Revolutionary War Encampment of both British and “Rebels” (the good guys, continental and militia groups) will be at hand. The public will be able to: tour the encampments, shop at the colonial market faire, enjoy children’s activities, hearth cooking demonstrations, manor house tours, nature walks, and much more.
Oct. 5, 2013 — “Elkton in the 1960s” by Milford Sprecher
Nov. 2, 2013 — Annual Meeting, Rev. Brown & Libby Prison Minstrels at the Cherry Hill United Methodist Church. Note: Because this is the annual meeting date, the Society will not be hosting a first Saturday talk.
Dec. 7, 2013 — The Philadelphia Campaign in the Revolution War: A Cartographer’s perspective Using Historical and Temporal GIS Mapping to animate the story; by Sean Moir
Jan 4, 2014 – Reconstructing 100 Ruins: How standard research resources and dumb luck are revealing the lost histories of abandoned properties within Fair Hill Natural Resources Management Area Emily Kilby
Feb. 1, 2014 — Early Black Methodism On Delmarva by Syl Woolford
March 1, 2014 — Old House Research
April 5, 2014 — Prohibition in Cecil County with the bootleggers ball to follow at the North St. Hotel. Program host Beth Boulden-Moore
As the Historical Society of Cecil County prepares to examine the 1960s in a new exhibit and series of programs, we are taking a look at some of the important local events, especially those that weren’t as well documented.
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When President John F. Kennedy visited here on November 14, 1963, to dedicate the Northeastern Expressway (I-95), he traveled over familiar territory.
A few years earlier, Senator Kennedy made three stops in Cecil County during an intensive multi-day handshaking and speechmaking tour of Maryland. Working on nailing down the Democratic presidential nomination on that swing, the candidate spent Friday night in Havre de Grace with Senator Millard F. Tydings.
At an early hour on Saturday morning, May 14, 1960, officials from the “Kennedy for President Campaign” in Cecil County, chaired by Leonard Lockhart, met the candidate at Perryville, preparing to escort him to Elkton. But first, he greeted an early morning crowd of over 100 people at the Whistle Stop in Perryville.
A 15-car motorcade led by state troopers whisked the senator to Elkton for a 9 a.m. rally. There a band played and flags flapped in the breeze as the political rally got underway in the courthouse parking lot, where a crowd of over 250 supporters welcomed the candidate.
Before leaving Cecil, he went to the Elkton Senior High School to speak on “Youth and Their Needs.” The Senator left town at 10:30 that Saturday morning en route by automobile to Centreville, Easton, Cambridge and Salisbury. When he returned as president in 1963 to dedicate the Interstate, a crowd of over 5,000 were on hand at the Mason-Dixon Line.
The Dorothy Robinson Collection of Kodachrome color slides at the Historical Society contains hundreds of local images from the 1950s and 1960s. Mrs. Robinson’s photographs document the Senator’s visit to Elkton.
Waiting for the arrival of Senator John F. Kennedy on his presidential campaign tour through Cecil County. Visit the Society to check out additional photographs of this visit.
Now that the 1960s are history and not just nostalgia the Historical Society of Cecil County is opening an exhibit this fall that celebrates and studies the many happenings of that era locally.
While the curators dig through some 40,000 local photographs, work with artifacts and mount the exhibit we have selected a few images to share with you in this short video clip. Look for an announcement about the opening shortly.
Also on the Cecil History Channel on YouTube look for more of these types of social media products as we start enlarging the number of platforms we use to actively engage our audience. This one is done on Animoto, a web 2.0 service for creating video slideshows and we are discussing plans to do much more with streaming video. Stay tuned.
Syl Woolford’s talk on “Black Methodism” is scheduled for February.
Since summer is coming to an end, it is time for the Historical Society of Cecil County to announce the schedule for its popular winter speakers’ series for the 2013-14 season. We always start a little early — right in the middle of autumn — and stretch the programs through the cold winter months. During this period the Society hosts a series of lively, engaging speakers on fresh topics that have popular appeal, introduce new research or provide practical how-to instruction. The free programs take place on the first Saturday of each month at 2:00 p.m. at the Cecil County History and Genealogy Library at 135 E. Main Street, Elkton, MD.
Now that the 1960s are history and not just nostalgia the Society is opening an exhibit this fall that celebrates and studies the happenings of that era locally so the monthly lectures kick-off with a program delving into that period. On October 5th Milford Sprecher examines “Elkton in the 1960s.” This first-time lecture captures the spirit of those years locally and provides the perspective of someone who came of age during that pivotal time.
There will also be practical, how-to research subjects. Emily Kilby’s “Reconstructing 100 Ruins,” delves into exploring the past that is nearby and all around us in Fair Hill and we will have a workshop on researching the history of your old house.
Sean Moir applies modern methods to an old topic, “The Philadelphia Campaign in the Revolutionary War.” He approaches the session from the cartographer’s perspective and uses historical temporal GIS mapping to animate the story and the route through Cecil County.
Next year, historian and lecturer Syl Woolford talks about “Early Black Methodism.” Syl has spent a great deal of time making scholarly discoveries about African-American history on the Delmarva Peninsula. His investigations and popular lectures have included the United States Colored Troops, the Dover Eight, the Iron Hill Community Genealogy Project, and many more subjects.
Once a hint of spring arrives again in Cecil, it will be time to wrap up the series, but we are planning a particularly exciting theme to end a great run. The last event takes place in April as the Society brings you “Pass the Rum: the Rise and Fall of Temperance and Prohibition in Cecil County.” Following the fun-filled discussion guests are invited to attend the First Annual Bootlegger’s Ball. You will have to stay tuned for details as our Bootlegger’s Ball sponsor, Beth Boulden-Moore, lines things up for our guests.
Be sure to watch for detailed announcements each month as these exciting presentations roll around and stay up-to-date with the latest news on the Society’s History blog at www.cecilhistory.org/blog. There you will find up-to-the-minute information, including weather cancellations.
The volunteers at Cecil County’s History and Genealogy Library are excited about the engaging free humanities programs of county-wide interest that we have lined up for our popular series. Be sure to hold the first Saturday of each month on your calendar for these new events.
Winter Speaker’s Series
2:00 p.m. – First Saturday of Each Month
Oct. 5, 2013 — “Elkton in the 1960s” by Milford Sprecher
Nov. 2, 2013 — Annual Meeting, Rev. Brown & Libby Prison Minstrels at the Cherry Hill United Methodist Church. Note: Because this is the annual meeting date, the Society will not be hosting a first Saturday talk.
Dec. 7, 2013 — The Philadelphia Campaign in the Revolution War: A Cartographer’s perspective Using Historical and Temporal GIS Mapping to animate the story; by Sean Moir
Jan 4, 2014 — Reconstructing 100 Ruins: How standard research resources and dumb luck are revealing the lost histories of abandoned properties within Fair Hill Natural Resources Management Area Emily Kilby
Feb. 1, 2014 — Early Black Methodism On Delmarva by Syl Woolford
March 1, 2014 — Old House Research
April 5, 2014 — Prohibition in Cecil County with the bootleggers ball to follow at the North St. Hotel. Program host Beth Boulden-Moore
