This morning Chesapeake Publishing unveiled its newest publication, “Weekend Whig.” This feature-rich section is loaded with local stories about the people and history of the county. As they focus these pages on local copy, the publisher noted that they’re tapping into the interest in Cecil County’s roots and the wealth of information and photographs about the past. I was pleased to have a chance to work with the paper’s editors as they developed the prototype. For the roll-out, the publisher held a ribbon cutting and reception at the Elkton office today. With the paper starting a new chapter in its 141-year history, it was great to be able to attended the reception and hear about more plans for the section as I work to help the Whig with coverage related to the area’s heritage.
Category: Published Articles
Taping a Public Television Segment on Covered Bridges
This week Maryland Public Television aired an Outdoors Maryland feature on covered bridges in the region. For the program called “Spanning Time,” I talked about the history of some of these old structures, examining how spans evolved over time.
The Year of Living Dangerously: Maryland Life Publishes Piece About Previously Unseen Civil War-Era Diary
The June issue of Maryland Life has a piece I did about an old, previously unknown diary penned during the Civil War. As the troubled year of 1864 passed slowly by the manager of the C & D canal faithfully recorded his fears, hopes, and worries on those browning pages. Day-by-day, the canalkeeper confided many things in that little book including concerns about President Lincoln, the 1864 election, his attitude toward the federal government, and fears for the safety of the canal (it was an important route). Old diaries are fascinating, especially one that addresses important periods in the nation’s history and has never been seen before. It was a window to the past, seeing those thoughts written so long ago, in a far different, troubled era at the top of the Eastern Shore.
19th Century Firefighting Article Published in Maryland Life
I had an article on firefighting in the early 19th century published in the June edition of Maryland Life Magazine. The piece examines how a rural Eastern Shore Town, Elkton used two old hand pumpers to fight blazes until those veterans of many a struggle with flames were retired after a steam engine arrived. The first pumper was acquired in the 1820s from Philadelphia, and the second one came to Elkton about 1859 when Baltimore was going to steam engines. It was an interesting article to research, and along the way, I found several interesting photos showing those old pumpers.
