The  
  Tudor Hall Times

                  June 2023

                           The Monthly Newsletter of the St. Mary's County Historical Society                                     

∞ Please Support Your Historical Society through Your Contributions and Involvement ∞

Historically Speaking

HISTORICALLY SPEAKING kicks off for 2023 with Kenneth Lasson, Emeritus Professor of Law at the University of Baltimore School of Law, speaking on Free Exercise in the Free State: Maryland's Role in Religious  Liberty and the First Amendment. The date is July 19.

Professor Lasson earned his Bachelor and Master Degrees from The Johns Hopkins University and his J.D. from the University of Maryland School of Law and is the author of numerous books and articles.

The event is free to Members and the public and will take place at the Inn at Leonardtown. Reservations are advised.

You can learn more about Prof. Lasson and reserve your place by clicking this button:   RESERVE    

HISTORICALLY SPEAKING is a joint project of the St. Mary's County Historical Society and the Center for the Study of Democracy of St. Mary's College of Maryland.

Our Archives are Going Online!

We are in the process of enabling public search of our Archives. It will take a few weeks for all our catalogued entries to display.  Additionally, our Archivist, Elizabeth Matthews, is constantly adding new items to the catalog. But, for now, you can sample what's there knowing that there's more to come.

The Chronicles Turns Seventy

It was in June of 1953 that Volume 1, Issue 1 of the Chronicles of St. Mary's was published. Charles and

LaVerne Fenwick, along with a publications committee which included Eloise Pickrell, Thomas Stokel, Lettie Dent, and J. Allan Coad set in motion what became and remains a highly valued benefit of membership in the Historical Society.

That first issue reported on the  Court House Fire of 1831, because, Mr. Fenwick stated in his opening commentary, "much of our recorded history was lost in that fire". Now, seventy years, 548 issues, and 7,665 pages later, its current editor, Jason Babcock and its Editorial Committee continue to make the Chronicles of St. Mary's a superb window in the history and people of this remarkable County.

Can You Help Us Bring the Chronicles to Life!

Chronicles Editor, Jason Babcock, and Executive Director, Peter LaPorte, are looking for a way to bring the Chronicles to life.

In mind is a monthly series of ten to fifteen minute videos on selected topics available on the Historical Society website. The videos will provide not only narration of events in the County's history but include photos, maps, and artifacts that give added insight and meaning. 

But to make this happen, we need a capable videographer/editor to work with us. If you have videography skills - or know someone who does - please tell us! Send an email to director@stmaryshistory.org or chronicles@stmaryshistory.org. 

Archivists & Librarians

During his remarks at our recent Annual Meeting and Spring Dinner, Archivist and Librarian, Kent Randell, briefly described the difference between these two roles.  (Mr. Randell's remarks and slides from the Spring Dinner are now available at our website.)

In broad terms, a Librarian helps patrons find information and conduct research, while an Archivist is in charge of processing, appraising, and cataloging important documents, records, and artifacts. 

We are blessed at the Historical Society with highly capable volunteer Research Associates who help members and the public with their genealogical and historical research and inquiries.

Recently, Ms. Elizabeth Matthews joined us as Archivist, continuing and enlarging the work previously done by Carol Moody. As you can see from the announcement above that our Archives are going online, she's been hard at work. There will be even more about her important work in these pages over the coming weeks.