Programs and Events
On First Fridays, 4:00-6:00 pm at the Geddes-Piper House. History Happy Hours are free and open to the public; a donation from non-members is appreciated.
February 3: Mapping an Historic District: New Tools for Historical Research and Preservation in Chestertown: Washington College's Center for Environment & Society and its Geographic Information Systems Lab have teamed up with the Town of Chestertown to provide a new GIS for the local historic district. John Seidel of the Center for the Environment will explain how the system provides historic map overlays and other information on the town's development. While oriented toward preservation and managing the town's historic structures, the project also is providing a wealth of data that may interest historians and family researchers. Find out where the project is headed and how it may be available to the public.
March 2: from the Library of Thomas Jefferson: Gerard Cataldo of the Chestertown Old Book Co and author of The Passion for Books: A Guide to Book Collecting, published in 2010. In 2011 Gerry was asked to appraise a 19th century seven-volume set of leather bound books containing Aeschylus’ Tragedies, purported to have belonged to Thomas Jefferson. Through research into the Jefferson libraries, Gerry validated that presumption. His discussion will focus on Jefferson’s book collecting habits and the Aeschylus set in particular, as well as the rare book world in general.
April 6: Augustine Hermann was one of Maryland’s leading citizens, exploring and mapping the colony for Lord Baltimore. Later held captive by the Dutch in Manhattan, he made a daring escape and went on to become the largest property owner on the Delmarva Peninsula. His estate at Old Bohemia on the Bohemia River was named for his homeland Mary Anna Taylor offers the history of this illustrious 17th century Bohemian explorer, merchant and cartographer who played an influential role in Maryland’s economic, political and cultural life.
May 4: Chesapeake Heritage: Don Parks, whose father grew up on one of the isolated offshore Chesapeake islands, has captured the uniqueness of the islanders’ lifestyle with a power point presentation that includes old photos and original written sources. The presentation will also touch on the development of Crisfield as the "Seafood Capital of the World" as it was called a century ago.