Finding clues from the past that give us a glimpse into the places and lives of Marylanders who came before us
Passing through the 300 block of North Market Street in downtown Frederick one spring day a while back, I finally noticed it. I had driven down this street countless times, always admiring the character and architecture found there. I’d even been to the Old Towne Tavern across the street many times in my 20s, but... Continue Reading →
West Washington Street in downtown Hagerstown is a treasure trove of ghost signs. Down the road from Eyerly’s Department Store is the painted ghost sign of the long-shuttered Updegraff’s Clothiers, Hatters and Furnishers. The unassuming, fading sign has been prominently displayed at the top of a four-story building for decades. “It is apparently the oldest... Continue Reading →
Though time and weather has faded it, the painted advertisement on the side of the building on East Fourth Street in Frederick is mostly still legible, identifying the former establishment: Lewis M. Kintz Groceries & Provisions. Underneath is a bit more difficult to read and has been marred by graffiti, but appears to be an... Continue Reading →
High on a brick building overlooking West Washington Street is the faded sign for Eyerly’s Department Store, once a downtown Hagerstown institution. Charles Eyerly and his father started a dry goods firm in the late 1880s, according to a Morning Herald front page article detailing Charles’ passing in 1947. In 1900, George Eyerly turned over... Continue Reading →
On a blustery Sunday afternoon in late November, I rushed to meet two dear friends for lunch in downtown Frederick. Not a big fan of parallel parking, I pulled into the Carroll Creek parking garage and nearly reached the top before I found an open space. Then I saw it: a ghost sign for the... Continue Reading →
Pedestrians walking around South Market Street in downtown Frederick have likely noticed the painted advertisement for P.L. Hargett & Co. and “Delicious! Refreshing! Drink Coca-Cola” on the building near Carroll Creek Park. For nearly 100 years, P.L. Hargett & Co. was a downtown fixture. In 1877, five brothers — Peter, Douglass, John, Samuel and Schaeffer... Continue Reading →
The former Saltz Furniture Store building in Crisfield (Somerset County) not only had the distinction of featuring architectural details unique to the area, but the distinction of narrowly escaping ruin in 1928. The faded paint can still easily be read on the side of the building, once identifying the establishment to shoppers. According to the... Continue Reading →
Many of the drivers along a well-traveled roadway in Damascus (Montgomery County) don’t realize the significance behind the rusted Damascus Electric Company sign situated atop a building at the intersection of Md. 27 and Md. 108. According to an article in The Gazette, the Damascus Light and Power Company was opened in 1924 by J. Leslie Woodfield;... Continue Reading →
In New Windsor, a small town tucked away in the western part of Carroll County, a large building takes up a good chunk of one of its quiet blocks. Outside, a white sign with “The Boxwood” in black lettering hangs in contrast to the building’s pale greenish-gray exterior, though the antiques shop that was once... Continue Reading →
Running the length of the red brick building on Railroad Avenue in downtown Westminster (Carroll County), whitish tan lettering declares the site’s former purpose: The Sherwood Distillery Co. Distiller of Sherwood Straight Rye Whiskey Above the faded words sits a drawing of a barrel on its side with the words “Sherwood Whiskey” on the top,... Continue Reading →
Bygone Maryland 