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HistoricAnnapolis
Jun 17, 20212 min read
Coming Soon: A Theater Near You
Several months ago, I wrote about actress Nancy Hallam (“In Praise of Artistic Genius,” September 10, 2020) and the rundown playhouse (“A...



HistoricAnnapolis
Dec 24, 20202 min read
Rising Joys
Christmas Eve 2020 is a fitting day to look back to a Christmas poem published in the Maryland Gazette 250 years ago. The verses penned...



HistoricAnnapolis
Dec 10, 20203 min read
Liberty is what we are all contending for...
Two months had passed since a group of Baltimore merchants called for a meeting in Annapolis to consider whether Maryland should continue...



HistoricAnnapolis
Nov 26, 20202 min read
A Predictable Pattern
Maryland’s last proprietary governor, Robert Eden, was nothing if not predictable. Early in his administration, he established a pattern...


HistoricAnnapolis
Nov 5, 20203 min read
Unanimous Resolutions
Following her husband Samuel’s death in August 1770, Anne Middleton assumed control of the family’s Annapolis tavern and ferrying...


HistoricAnnapolis
Oct 15, 20203 min read
Cracks in the Wall
By the autumn of 1770, serious cracks were appearing in the American colonies’ united front against unpopular British policies. More than...


HistoricAnnapolis
Oct 8, 20202 min read
A Dramatic Scheme
Last month, I wrote about actress Nancy Hallam, who caught the eye of an Annapolis gentleman (most likely Rev. Jonathan Boucher, rector...


HistoricAnnapolis
Sep 24, 20202 min read
What's The Story?
It is for a gentleman to whom I have done (as the Saying is) Ninety-nine good Turns..." I sometimes come across a notice in the Maryland...


HistoricAnnapolis
Sep 18, 20204 min read
Agreeable to the Association
In September 1770, more than a year into a partial economic shutdown, many Annapolitans were weary but still committed to seeing it...


HistoricAnnapolis
Sep 10, 20204 min read
In Praise of Artistic Genius
The anonymous gentleman was smitten. He had just attended the American Company’s performance of Shakespeare’s Cymbeline, King of Britain,...


HistoricAnnapolis
Sep 3, 20204 min read
Melted Majesty
These days, most news stories about public statues consider them as objects of destructive rather than constructive acts, but 250 years...


HistoricAnnapolis
Aug 21, 20204 min read
Warm Zeal in the Cause of Liberty
For the past few weeks, I’ve been looking at the dispute between Annapolis merchants Williams and Company and the local Committee of...


HistoricAnnapolis
Aug 13, 20204 min read
First Notorious Offenders
In today’s technologically advanced and politically divided world, virtual skirmishes, battles, and full-blown wars play out in real time...


HistoricAnnapolis
Aug 6, 20203 min read
Take the Beam Out of Thine Own Eye
When the local Committee of Inspection published a harsh report against Williams and Company in the July 26, 1770 Maryland Gazette, the...


HistoricAnnapolis
Jul 30, 20202 min read
Such Despicable Characters
My June 11th blog introduced merchant Thomas Williams and his partners as new players to watch in the real-life drama of Annapolis 250...


HistoricAnnapolis
Jul 16, 20203 min read
Sky-Rockets in Flight
My Fourth of July was a bit out of the ordinary this year. I’m usually at the William Paca House and Garden shortly after 6 am on...


HistoricAnnapolis
Jul 9, 20202 min read
The Road Not Taken
No one knew it at the time, but on July 5, 1770, America was one day less than six years away from declaring independence. Looking back...


HistoricAnnapolis
Jun 25, 20202 min read
“Liberty and Loyalty…stand or fall together”
Earlier this month, I wrote about the June 1770 arrival in Annapolis of a ship from Rhode Island, where some residents had reportedly...


HistoricAnnapolis
Jun 11, 20202 min read
The merchant doth protest too much, methinks
In last week’s episode of “Annapolis 250 Years Ago,” a ship had just arrived from Rhode Island, where it was reported “that the...


HistoricAnnapolis
Jun 4, 20202 min read
What'd We Miss?
As Thomas Jefferson sings at one point in the musical Hamilton, “Can we get back to politics?” When we last looked at the British...

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