Finding clues from the past that give us a glimpse into the places and lives of Marylanders who came before us
On Valentine’s Day, 1901, The Baltimore Sun reported a crime involving the theft of a silk dress — Mrs. Baker’s dress, to be precise. The day before, the alleged perpetrator was found in Mrs. Henrietta Trippe’s boarding house at 529 North Charles Street. He was described as “[a] strange man, rather poorly dressed and with... Continue Reading →
Are you stocked up on milk, bread and toilet paper? As we all anxiously await to see what tomorrow’s snowstorm brings us, I thought it would be fun to look back on two other March snowstorms. In 1942, a weekend storm hit the area. “The freak storm traced a dizzy pattern across the entire state,”... Continue Reading →
The bright sun and mild temperatures offered us a glimpse of spring this past weekend, just as Marylanders observing Washington’s birthday 139 years ago experienced “unseasonably warm” weather. The weather that day, February 22, 1878, was described as “unpropitious for holiday enjoyments,” as the “oppressive” temperature reached a high of 63 degrees with showers, “...... Continue Reading →
A variety of opportunities could be found by women perusing the Baltimore Sun’s Help Wanted ads in September 1912. From feather making to factory work to traveling the world, some of these positions had height requirements, age requirements, even religious requirements: LADY TRAVELING COMPANION, over 25, for foreign countries, by invalid gentleman; some nursing experience... Continue Reading →
In January 1916, Easton Jail inmate Amos Camper was taken to the Emergency Hospital for an operation. A few days later, Camper decided it was time to make a break for it. But how? The sheriff had taken Camper’s clothes back to the jail. Camper wasn’t going to let a lack of clothes stop him... 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 →
Obituaries have always been a way for family and friends to share their remembrances of those who have passed away. Below are excerpts that I found interesting, pulled from the memorials of three Maryland ladies, each in a different stage in her life: Celia A. Ricards, age 23 (1865) “Celia was a sweet girl, having... Continue Reading →
It’s fascinating to see how many of the Christmas preparations of more than a century ago still apply today. From busy shopping to hanging the mistletoe, an 1890 Maryland Christmas seems very familiar. Just a few days before Christmas of that year, The Baltimore Sun painted a busy shopping scene: “[M]en, women and children stayed on... Continue Reading →
As automobiles became more commonplace, so did opinions on this new method of transportation. See some opinions of the auto shared in Maryland papers in 1914: During parish reports during a statewide meeting of the Protestant Episcopal Church, pastors shared varying viewpoints of the emerging mode of transportation. “The automobile was cited as a reason... Continue Reading →
In November 1965, a Frederick County newspaper received a call from a tipster reporting that he fought off a frightening creature in his backyard — the dwayyo. In The News article “Mysterious ‘Dwayyo’ On Loose In County” (complete with the subhed “Don’t Mess with It”), a man named John Becker reported fending off a 6-foot-tall,... Continue Reading →
Bygone Maryland 