Franklin Delano Roosevelt was a born collector. America’s 32nd president spent a lifetime collecting everything from stamps and coins to Hudson River art and rare books and manuscripts. One of FDR’s greatest passions was his enormous naval and maritime collection. Begun during his youth and patiently developed over decades, this rich collection—considered one of nation’s finest—reflects the President’s deep, lifelong love of the sea. An expert sailor, Roosevelt was America’s greatest seafaring president. Whether piloting a sailboat along the New England coast, racing his ice yacht on the Hudson River,...

The history of Thomas Point Shoal Lighthouse (TPSL) including the rise of the port of Baltimore, the early lighthouses on the peninsula, and the construction of the screwpile on the shoal. A look at noteworthy TPSL keepers and an overview of the current state of the lighthouse. Presenter: David Gendell | Author, Sailor, and Co-founder of SpinSheet and PropTalk Magazines David Gendell is a lifelong Annapolis sailor. He is the co-founder of SpinSheet Magazine and PropTalk Magazine. In 2004, he was the emcee of the transfer ceremony that shifted ownership...

Two hundred fifty years ago, Annapolis had been Maryland's capital for 75 of the province's 136 years. No one knew it yet, but the countdown was already on to the end of the colonial era, the start of the Revolutionary War, and the rise of an independent American nation. Glenn E. Campbell, Senior Historian of Historic Annapolis, tells the story of Annapolis in 1770, a year when, as William Eddis wrote, "a spirit of discontent and opposition universally predominant in the colonies." Registration required. Cost: $15 per household for General Admission; $10...

Hosts: Presented by The Maryland State Archives in collaboration with The Enoch Pratt Free Library and The Maryland Four Centuries Project Speaker: Timothy D. Baker, State Archivist and Commissioner of Land Patents Location: Online Event, View Stream Information Registration: Encouraged, but not required. Register Here

History of waterfowl in the Bay from the time of Captain John Smith to the present-day as they compete with humans for optimum habitat. Discuss Chesapeake Bay studies of the Canvasback, King of the Bay, and latest tracking studies of Seaducks using satellite telemetry. Explore how species such as mute swans, Canada geese, and snow geese, are destroying habitat for other waterfowl species. Presenter: Dr. Matthew C. Perry | Scientist Emeritus, Patuxent Wildlife Research Center Dr. Perry’s love of birds was a constant throughout his life and resulted in a...

Join us for a lunchtime conversation on the importance of preserving the signage and other memorabilia created during the largest social justice movement of our time. We will explore methods for preservations and provide attendees with some ideas on successfully archiving these pieces of history.

Planting an Empire is the only modern, comprehensive history of the Chesapeake colonies, but writing it wasn’t a simple task. While two colonies shared a geographic region, they differed in a number of fundamental ways, yet together they formed a prosperous and politically important region in British North America. Trying to balance two dissimilar narratives proved to be a challenge. A cautionary tale for would-be authors! Registration required. Cost: $15 per household for General Admission; $10 per household for HA Members and Volunteers

Examine Maryland’s rich heritage of wooden shipbuilding over the course of more than three centuries developed with regionally specific designs, materials, and techniques. Review the regional aspects of this once-vital industry and shed light on the significance of the construction of the Maryland Dove, the vessel that accompanied the first Maryland colonists to the new world in 1634. Presenter: Pete Lesher | Chief Curator at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum Pete Lesher is chief curator at Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum, where he has served on staff since 1991 and now...

Online Lecture by Joyce M. White, food historian through Zoom. Join Joyce White as she travels through time from the earliest days of settlement of Maryland in the seventeenth century up through the nineteenth-century in a discussion covering the more popular spirited drinks early Marylanders enjoyed. This talk focuses on drinks such as cider, perry, beer, Sampson, whiskey, brandy, punch, toddy, shrub, and bounce, among other curious historic spirited drinks. Registration is required.