Dr. James L. Johnson’s service to the citizens of Cecil County is not well documented, so I’ve added this post as my first attempt to publish information about the respected healthcare professional. Please share your memories about the Doctor, and I’ll work to gather more information about his service to the profession and the community….
Old Jail Managed to Outlive Its Usefulness in Just 128 Years
When the contractors finished his work in 1871, the sheriff’s home and jail was hailed as a state-of-the-art monument to law and order, a credit to the county. Considering that it replaced “a so-called jail” where notorious types were “chained to the floor,” it probably wasn’t hard to make that claim. That first prison in…
Last Sailor at Bainbridge Says Goodbye to Friends at the Winchester Bar
On the evening of June 30, 1976, a gloomy group of regulars gathered at the Winchester Hotel in Port Deposit to say goodbye to Chief Petty Officer Stephen Kowalski, the last staff member assigned to the Bainbridge Naval Training Center. “Chief Ski” had come to the base in January 1974 to serve as a first lieutenant…
George Washington Carver Jr. League Baseball Team
For the young athletes on the George Washington Carver Junior League Baseball Team 1960 was a great year. Here they pause, trophy in hand, to have the team photo taken. From the left: Andrew Duren (deceased); Larry Jones, Charles Boardley (deceased), Leon Banks (deceased) Maurice Byrd (deceased), Alexander Stewart, Alfred Harris and Taswell Byrd (deceased);…
Another New Local Title Focuses on Football at Bainbridge Naval Training Center during World War II
A new title, “Football! Navy! War!” How Militiary “Lend-Lease”players saved the College Game and Helped Win World War II is out. While highlighting the Navy’s role in preserving the game and football’s impact on national morale and the war effort during the 1940s, it has a significant local angle. One of the star players, “Choo…
Cecil County Village of Sylmar Examined in New Title, Edge Effects
A new title, Edge Effects: The Border-Name Place, by Dr. Robert D. Temple focuses on border towns. The author provides a fascinating and entertaining look at more than eighty north American border towns in Edge Effects. With an adventurer’s heart and a historian’s keen eye, Temple explores life on the edge and how these places…
Officer’s 1910 Sacrifice Being Remembered by Philadelphia PD; Searching for Relatives of the Rowlandsville Man
Chief Inspector James Tiano of the Philadelphia Police Department and his staff are trying to locate the relatives of Officer George Barnett, who was shot and killed in the line of duty on Nov. 28, 1910. A plaque-dedication honoring his sacrifice is set for July 22 at 42nd and Pine streets, West Philadelphia, where he…
Chautauqua 2009 Coming to Cecil County July 10, 11 & 12
Chautauqua 2009 – “Rights & Reformers” – July 10, 2009 When:4 pm – 6 pm Where: Perryville Outlet Center, Heather Lane, Perryville, MD Description: Performers bring important historical personalities and their accomplishments to life, in live, free, summer presentations. This year’s theme is “Rights and Reformers”. On Friday the 10th, listen to Woody Guthrie celebrate…
Cecil Observer — Elkton jet crash of 1963 in the news again due to missing plane
From Cecil Observer — While the search continues for an AirFrance jetliner carrying more than 200 people that disappeared over the Atlantic this week, the possible role of lightning in that tragedy recalls a similar air disaster in the skies over Cecil County. On a December night in 1963, the sky lit up when a…
On Memorial Day 1947, Eastern Airlines Flight 605 Crashed Near Port Deposit
Sixty-two years ago on a gorgeous Memorial Day, a DC-4 with 53 people on board suddenly plunged from the sky into thick woods outside Port Deposit, MD. With about an hour of daylight remaining, Eastern Airlines Flight 605 departed La Guardia on time for its scheduled trip to Miami. As the southbound craft neared the…