Lots of people remember the day America turned 200 years old, July 4, 1976. There were all sorts of special parades, concerts, fireworks, and programs in communities across the nation. It was a big deal in Cecil, too, with plenty of Bicentennial celebrations on the long holiday weekend for the once-in-a-lifetime occurrence.
Working that July 4th, Elkton Police Officers carefully chronicled the passing of Independence Day in the department’s official blotter. Officers Strickland, Smith, Blake, Pease, and George kept a careful watch on the county seat, during a 24-hour tour, coming and going off 8-hour shifts as people enjoyed the festivities.
Considering how big the celebrations and parties were, it was a remarkably quiet holiday in Elkton. There were a few fireworks calls and a couple of burglar alarms, but only one or two cases of disorder to mar the festive occasion.
Given the slow day, someone had time to do a little doodling on this public record, the Elkton Police Blotter. The pages, all except this one, lacked color and sketches. But an officer, getting into the spirit of ’76, wrote “Happy Birthday America,” and decorated the page with colorful artwork and lettering.
So just as our little colonial doodler in an early age, sketched on a Cecil County tax schedule, someone did the same in 1976 on this public record.
A few decades ago these volumes were added to the collection of the Historical Society of Cecil County and are available there.