St. Mary’s City, MD, – For decades, a homely corrugated fiberglass A-frame sheltered one of Maryland’s most important historic sites, St. John’s Freehold. Today, the temporary shelter is gone and contractors are finishing a major new exhibit that better reflects the great soul of the site. When the St. John’s Site Museum at Historic St. Mary’s City opens in mid-September 2008, visitors will discover Maryland’s remarkable legacy of liberty as they explore the archaeology and history of the site.
St. John’s Freehold was a fine plantation carved out of the wilderness by the first provincial secretary of the colony, John Lewger. The two-room farmhouse they built in 1638, four years after the founding of Maryland, was a version of a mid-level English farmer’s home. Nonetheless, its brick fireplaces, plastered walls, plank floors, glass windows, and masonry cellar marked it as a gentleman’s home on the Maryland frontier. As the residence of Mr. Secretary and one of the largest enclosed spaces in early Maryland, the provincial court, assembly, and council often met there before government buildings were constructed. Landmark events unfolded within its walls and pivotal characters found a stage, or shelter, under its roof.
St. John’s continued to play an important role in the history of Maryland even after it was vacated by the provincial secretary. Dutch merchant Simon Overzee, a notoriously disagreeable man, lived here with his family in the middle of the century. In one tragic incident, an African slave named Antonio died as the result of punishment received from Overzee. The case went to court and other servants in the household testified but Overzee’s peers acquitted him. Technically, he had not broken the law. In 1659, Overzee housed the ambassador from New Amsterdam, Mr. Augustine Herrman, who went on to create the one of the first detailed maps of the Chesapeake Bay.
During the 1660s, St. John’s was the official governor’s residence for Charles Calvert, who became the third Lord Baltimore, and the place where Calvert negotiated a peace accord with Susquehannock war chiefs. After Charles Calvert moved out, innkeepers leased the house. Visitors to the capital found lodging at St. John’s, and it was a gathering place for the Governor’s Council as well as Governor Calvert and his guests.
In the early 1680’s, St. John’s again served the state—as Maryland’s probate office. Then, as specialized buildings were constructed elsewhere to house government functions, St. John’s was restored to its original use as a farmhouse. In 1695, when capital was relocated to Annapolis, the city—and St. John’s—reason for being vanished, along with the visitors and most of the population.
Because the land of St. John’s Freehold was relatively undisturbed over the centuries that followed, it is one of the best-preserved 17th-century archaeological sites in Maryland. Since the building that once stood on the land was occupied longer than most houses of its time, a wealth of information can be gleaned from its remains. Changes in Maryland society and the economy are echoed in the uses of the house and in its architecture and these, in turn, are evident in the archaeological record. Artifacts tell tales about those who lived in the house. Animal bones describe the diet, and book clasps speak to the literacy. A blue glass earring demonstrates a fashion of the times. Imported white clay pipe pieces by the main entrance and locally produced terra cotta pipe pieces by the back door tell much about haves and have-nots.
St. John’s stood sentinel over St. Mary’s City through its tenure as capital. The glory years of the house paralleled those of the city and signs of its rise and fall are planted in the soil.
The new museum evokes the form of a house that would be familiar to its 17th-century inhabitants. Smaller attached structures represent a quarter and a kitchen. A modern exhibit gallery overlooks the original 1,400 square foot foundation excavated in the 1970s.
Inside, exhibits will dramatize events that shaped Maryland and our nation’s first freedoms. Audio and video installations will introduce individuals and colonial lifeways. The preserved foundation of the original structure and original artwork will illustrate the evolution of the house and the tobacco plantation that surrounded it. Some of the remarkable artifacts that have been found at the site will be on exhibit. Visitors examining the contents of a trash pit will gain a unique perspective on life in another time. State-of-the-art displays will help visitors understand the ways scholars use archaeology, historical documents, and oral traditions to decipher the past.
The St. John’s Site Museum is climate-controlled and will give HSMC the opportunity to offer visitors programming year-round. After the grand opening on September 14, 2008, the site will be open Tuesday through Sunday in the spring and fall and Wednesday through Sunday in the summer and winter. Please check the museum web site (www.stmaryscity.org) for details. There is no charge to visit the St. John’s Site Museum. St. John’s is a capital project of the State of Maryland, with enthusiastic support from the Governor and the General Assembly. Construction management is a shared responsibility of Historic St. Mary’s City, St. Mary’s College of Maryland, and the Maryland Department of General Services.
When the St. John’s Site Museum opens, the walls of the old foundation will talk, and the fascinating role St. John’s played in the drama of Maryland’s legacy of liberty will, at last, be revealed.

Grow vegetables, flowers, and herbs while exploring the natural world of the garden.   For more information, call (410) 887-2503.

Location: Cromwell Valley Park, 2002 Cromwell Bridge Rd., Baltimore. 
Date & time: SATURDAYS through Oct. 28th; 9:30-10:30am for ages 5-8; 10:45-11:45am for ages 9-13.

A Day of Fun to Fight Childhood Cancer
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Wilde Lake High School – 5460 Trumpeter Road, Columbia, Maryland 21044
10:00 A.M. – 5:00 P.M.

Dr. Sydney L. Cousin, Superintendent of Howard County Public Schools, is Honorary Chairman of this Benefit.

Mix 106.5 will broadcast live from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

Free admission

Special guests: “Elmo” and “Zoe” from Sesame Street, will appear on stage for a meet and greet from 12:00 – 1:00 pm., and pose for photos by our professional photographer from 1:00 – 3:00 p.m. *no other cameras allowed.

Other celebrities, entertainment (stage & roving), and food court.
Activities for children of all ages and exhibits throughout the day.
Haircuts and manicures for children and their parents.

Launching of a new children’s book, “The Paper Bag Christmas”, by author Kevin Milne, with author signing.

For more information, contact Diane Perry -- (410) 486-4744 or www.childrenscancerfoundation.org

Family Fun. Sundays 2 p.m. Special activities, including workshops, sketching activities and tours.

More information:  http://www.artbma.org/families/sundays.html 410.396.6321