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Historic Marietta at Glenn Dale, Maryland
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- Post Office Box 14 ‑ Riverdale, Maryland 20737 ‑301/464‑0590
| Historic Marietta at Glenn Dale, Maryland
Headquarters of the Prince George's County Historical Society Vol. XVII, No. 5 May 1989 EARLY MEETING ‑ MAY 6TH We will meet early in the month, this month, on Saturday, May 6th, 2 P.M., at Marietta. Our speaker will be Phylis Salak, an authorized appraiser of antiques and an experienced antique dealer. Joyce McDonald tells us that our speaker specializes in antique toys and dolls. Ms. Salak travels extensively doing appraisals, attending doll shows and other exhibits. She has twenty years of experience to bring to her subject. Her topic will be "Antique Toys." She will show specimens of delightful old toys and is willing to answer questions following her talk. If you would like to bring a (small) toy to the meeting for her to identify, she will be glad to look at it and tell you about its dates and history. SAINT GEORGE'S DAY DINNER The Saint George's Day dinner on April 23 at the Marlboro Hunt Club served as our meeting for the month. It was a “sold out" event and a great success. President Bud Dutton presided, greeting the 150 Society members gathered in the pleasant room. Windows on three sides of the dining area looked out over green Maryland trees and fields. The yellow and white color scheme was a cheerful one made up of crisp linen and flowers. A "typical Maryland dinner" was served, a musical group entertained the membership, awards were made, and a Prince Georgian inducted into the Prince George's County Hall of Fame. Awards were presented to: The Committee for the Restoration of Surratt House, on the 25th anniversary of the restoration project, for achievement.
The award was given in recognition of the work of the dedicated group of men responsible for the rescue and restoration of the Mary Surratt house. Francis McLellan, contractor, for the excellent restoration and preservations work done on a historic building, located in Upper Marlboro, known at one time as the "St. Mary's Beneficial Hall." It is now owned and occupied by the law firm of Clagett, Haskell and Zimmerman. Sandra Cross, south county historian and author, for her writing and for valuable work in Prince George's County in many historic preservation projects. Robert Ware Straus for his work with, and as one of the organizers of, the Accokeek Foundation. Mr. Straus is currently President of the Foundation. He is also the author of a book on the long fight to develop Piscataway National Park, and was a principal player in this successful effort. Jane Egan, an author, a teacher in Prince George's County, who has done a great deal over the years to acquaint teachers and students with the history of the county and state. Friends of the Belair Estate, for the dedication and efforts of a group who "make it work" at the historic Belair mansion. The Friends have labored virtually alone over the years to raise matching funds for the restoration of the Belair Estate. The City of Hyattsville Centennial (1986), for work involved in the celebration of Hyattsville's 100th anniversary and for the publication of a book on the history of the city. Warren and Julie Rhoads, for their many, many hours of dedicated volunteer work for the Prince George's Historical Society. This husband and wife team, over the years have given assistance to virtually every Society event, to restoration projects, to organizing and conducting tours and to furthering Society goals. Hall of Fame Inductee. Judge Ralph W. Powers, Chairman of the Prince George's County Hall of Fame and his directors, announced the 1989 inductee to the Hall of Fame to be General Leonard Covington. The General's portrait was unveiled in a ceremony at the St. George's Day Dinner. The portrait will join those of persons honored other years, in the foyer of the County Court House. One of the Hall of Fame directors, Shirley Baltz, gave a biographical presentation, background of the inductee. General Leonard Covington (1768‑1813) was born in the Acqasco area of Prince George's County. He was a member of the 9th U.S. Congress, serving 1805‑1807 and served also in the Maryland General Assembly. He joined the Army in 1792 and served for some time on the western frontier in Mississippi, Louisiana and other territories. Several towns and counties have been named after General Covington. There is a Covington's Farm by the Patuxent River. He participated in the Canadian Campaign of the War of 1812 and was mortally wounded in the Battle of Chrysler's Field, in 1813. Two days after the battle, he died at French Mills, N.Y. and was buried at Sacket's Harbor, New York. President Dutton closed the dinner meeting with thanks to the willing hands that planned the events, carried it out and made the memorable day possible. MARLBORO DAY‑ is at hand, on May 13th. Darnall's Chance will be open all day. Festivities are planned. JUNE MEETING of the Prince George's Historical Society will feature Harris Andrews, as speaker. He is an Editor of the Time-Life series on the Civil War, an expert on the uniforms and history of the Civil War. His topic will be "Prince George's County's Connections with the Army of Northern Virginia." REMINDER ‑‑‑ NO MEETINGS of the Society during July and August. As usual, the Society will suspend meetings during these hot, vacation months, and resume meetings in September. MOTHER'S DAY ALERT. Just a reminder that the Marietta Gift Shop is well stocked with gifts. Mother's Day is May 14th. CHILDREN'S GAMES DAY was held as scheduled and was well attended. As Mrs. Sara Moseley predicted, we could imagine ourselves living in the 1800s for an afternoon. Games, crafts and music were enjoyed by the children and adults attending. CORRECTION: In our April News and Notes announcement of Games Day, your editor mentioned the name of Justice Gabriel Duvall and in that announcement spelled his name "DuVall" for which we apologize and herewith publish a correction. Our informant, member Guy C. Barron noted that actually that DuVal High School uses an incorrect spelling. This would make an interesting item for News and Notes. An article on the name and its spellings will be welcome. DOCENTS NEEDED. Docents are needed for the lively and varied tasks associated with Marietta and with the Gift Shop. If you like to meet new people and talk about County history, get in touch with Joyce McDonald to volunteer some time 779‑5825. HOPKINS ATLAS OF PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY is now available, President Dutton advises. The Atlas, first published in 1878, has been republished by the Prince George's Historical Society. This valuable book is available to members at $3.00 each (for the first copy), and at Marietta on sale to the public at $5.00 each. MEMBERS TESTIFY. President Bud Dutton recently testified to the County Council of Prince George's County, as to the budget need for funds for a part‑time facility manager for Marietta. Warren Rhoads, former President of the Society, testified to the Council, speaking for the need of the Society for assistance in the recruitment of members. A new brochure is to be available soon. New members are seen as needed to keep the Society strong, vigorous and to expand our work. THANK YOU TO Sarah Moseley, for the new design and graphic art work in our new News and Notes letterhead. And thank you also to Don Skarda for reminding me of her excellent work. MEMBER MENTIONED at the Maryland Educational Media Organization. On Friday, April 14th, Vera Foster Rollo was recognized, along with other Maryland authors. She was mentioned for her work in writing textbooks on Maryland history, government, geography and biography. The occasion was MEMO's Author, Illustrator Luncheon at Timonium, Maryland. SPRING TOUR MEMORABLE. The rain came down the day before the tour was scheduled. Then April 8th, the skies were clear. As tour leader Warren "Dusty" Rhoads said on the ride home, he had personally arranged this excellent weather. The seats of the large bus were nearly filled. The first stop was Tudor Place (1801) set in spacious gardens in Georgetown, D. C. The bus practically filled the narrow streets there, but the driver did an excellent job. After luncheon at "Blackies" we saw Octagon House (1801) another of the first houses in Washington, and then the Sewall-Belmont House (1799). Once back at the Park and Planning Building in Riverdale and safe in our cars, rain showers arrived. WHY "UPPER" ? By Paul T. Lanham Newcomers to Prince George's County quickly and painfully become aware of the name of our county seat, Upper Marlboro, as the complexities of modern living (such as deeds, mortgages, real‑estate taxes, etc.) rear their ugly heads. Some even become aware of that town's great age, dating back to 1706 under the name of Marlborough in honor of the Duke of Marlborough of Blenheim. However, many residents, old as well as new, are unaware of the reason for the descriptive adjective "upper" needed to be applied for accurate identification about 1925. The answer is that, a scant twenty‑four miles downstream on the Calvert County shore of the Patuxent River is the quaint little town of Lower Marlboro. It claims by virtue of its Indian village predecessor to be the second oldest town of Maryland. There the old Custom House, as well as several other surviving houses built by early colonists before 1700, still stands. The town itself was forced to add the adjective "Lower" to its honored name after the establishment of our 1721 county seat, to preserve its identity. This may have been galling to the "Lower" citizens, since the terrain of all Prince George's County to the Pennsylvania line claimed by the Patuxent River had, until 1696, been a part of old Calvert County. The seventeenth‑century houses of today's Lower Marlboro are painstakingly preserved. Adding to the town's air of antiquity are numerous other very old houses moved to this spot by the late Perry B. van Vleck. These include the Ridgely House of 1784 and the Fred Wilson House of 1704, both moved from Upper Marlboro, as well as other picturesque buildings relocated here from the Tidewater area by Mr. van Vleck. The town's original docks, warehouses, a mill, a tannery and at least two taverns, however, have disappeared as river commerce declined. References: Out of the Past by R. Lee van Horn, 1976. A History of Calvert County by Charles Francis Stein, 1976. Upper Marlboro, 250th Anniversary by James Shreve, 1971. Prince George's Heritage by Louise Joyner Hienton, 1972. STUDY CLUB OF LANHAM celebrated its 75th anniversary Wednesday, April 19th, with a luncheon at the new Day's Inn, Lanham. President Gloria Raimond welcomed members and friends to the event. The club was begun in 1914 by the wife of the Methodist minister, Mrs. George (Georgia) Rice. A few women gathered to read and study together at the parsonage. Since that date the Study Club of Lanham has participated in a great many community projects. One was the annual decoration of the Lanham Christmas tree from 1930 until in the early 1960s the tree succumbed to the inroads (pun?) of the Capital Beltway. Other Club activities included helping to bring an elementary school to Lanham, buying wheel chairs for hospitals and libraries, beginning the first lending library in the area. The speaker at the luncheon, Mrs. Vera Foster Rollo, took members "Down Memory Lane at Lanham," with reminders of the days when women wore baggy hats, long skirts and long hair before World War I, then after the war the skirts rose and the long hair was bobbed mercilessly. She mentioned that, when the Club was founded, that Army aviators were flying strange contraptions at nearby College Park Airport. "It's a pleasure," she noted, "To talk about something older than I am!" She reminded the Club members of the influences of the (now) Pennsy Railroad on the town, of the origin of the town name, and that the site now located by the Days Inn had been the old Lanham carriage house location, and that only recently the Lanham mansion had been razed. She found members who remembered when the (now Route 450) road had been a dirt track. She mentioned Mrs. Hilda Wiser, valiant Pennsy crossing guard from 1925 until 1968. These and other Lanham memories were exchanged for a most enjoyable event hosted by President Raimond, and officers Alice Martin, Luzelle Schwartz, Joan Jordan, Dorothy Cogsweell, Kathryn Tauber and Shirley Jasper (Anniversary Chairman and ViceChairman). COUNTY DEVELOPMENT BULLETIN. Work is in progress at the PortAmerica project by the Potomac. This 463‑acre development of townhouses, condominiums, commercial space, hotels, marinas, and a museum, has an estimated cost of $1 billion. Construction began in 1983, is 1/70 complete and completion is estimated in the year 2010. Bowie New Town Center, near the Belair Levitt development, is under construction with completion planned for about 1991. CALENDAR April 23 ‑ May 7 52d Annual Maryland House and Garden Pilgrimage. Call (301) 821‑6933. May 6 ‑ May meeting of the Prince George's Historical Society at Marietta, 2 PM. June 10 ‑ June meeting of the Prince George's Historical Society.
Mr. & Mrs. John H. Mack Christopher Magee Steel Rosanne & Levin Broughton Joanne & Lawrence Judkins Patricia M. Bryan Francis X. McLella John Lacombe Dept. of Parks & Recreation, Md‑NCPPC Office of Community & Ethnic Affairs, Prince George's County
PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY P.O. Box #14, Riverdale, MD 20737 President: Bud Dutton Editor: Vera F. Rollo 
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