As we end the calendar year, our stakeholders know: this means that the MHAA Grant Cycle is about to begin! See below.

The due date for the Intent to Apply form for the FY2024 grants will be January 31, 2023. It's time to prepare! Do you have a project in mind? Please call Carol Benson, Chesapeake Crossroads's Executive Director, to discuss your project, or send an e-mail to heritage_area@aacounty.org to make an appointment for a meeting (zoom or in-person). Also, please plan to use our template for priority projects for our "Appendix C" document for our Five-Year Plan -- and include this project in the list! We will be briefing all stakeholders on filling this out; send it back to the e-mail listed above, so we can include your priorities among our own! Questions? Please call Dr. Benson at 410-627-6018. Thanks!

Mark your calendars: the Maryland Heritage Areas Authority (MHAA) FY 2024 grant round for capital and non-capital projects will launch TOMORROW, Wednesday, December 21. Over $5 million in grant funding will be available for heritage tourism and education projects across Maryland’s 13 heritage areas.  

Grant guidelines, sample applications, due dates, and the link to begin an Intent to Apply form (due January 31, 2023) will be available on the Maryland Heritage Areas Program's grants page.

To learn more about this grant opportunity, please join MHAA staff for virtual and in-person information sessions and Q&A sessions (listed below) throughout the coming months.

Virtual Webinar (to be recorded)  

Wednesday, December 21 from 10 AM to 12 PM 

Streamed live on MHAA’s YouTube channel:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tMcC84ixKDw   

In-Person Information Session  

Monday, January 9 from 1 to 2 PM 

Maryland Historical Trust (MHT) Headquarters: 100 Community Place Crownsville, Maryland 21032

Register here: http://bit.ly/MHAA_Jan9 

Virtual Q&A Sessions 

Thursday, January 19 from 5 to 6 PM   

Via Google Meet: https://meet.google.com/sni-xgzm-gyv 

Or dial: ‪(US) +1 240-734-0342‬ PIN: ‪401 749 765‬# 

Monday, January 23 from 3 to 4 PM  

Via Google Meet: https://meet.google.com/yjd-eren-bxg  

Or dial: ‪(US) +1 574-621-3704‬ PIN: ‪103 590 765‬# 

Tuesday, January 31 from 10 to 11 AM  

Via Google Meet: https://meet.google.com/wns-asiw-ukm 

Or dial: ‪(US) +1 929-299-3166‬ PIN: ‪257 026 949‬#

Friday, February 10 from 12 to 1 PM  

Via Google Meet: https://meet.google.com/juv-apwx-jpz 

Or dial: ‪(US) +1 862-259-5973‬ PIN: ‪521 719 217‬#

Are you looking forward to Maryland Day Weekend 2023?

It is shaping up to be another great collaborative event, featuring numerous partners across the heritage area offering activities for ONE DOLLAR OR FREE that are all family-friendly! The dates for 2023 are March 31-April 1. (We choose these dates so as not to compete with the popular Annapolis Film Festival.) Thanks to the Chesapeake Children’s Museum for once again taking the event management role! And please be patient while the Maryland Day event website is continually updated as partners old and new share their event plans.

See the Participating Partners and Sites for Maryland Day Weekend 2023

Celebrate the season and join the new holiday tour of Historic Annapolis's William Paca House (186 Prince George Street, Annapolis). Bring family and friends to enjoy the elegant decorations, learn about 18th century Maryland holiday traditions, and stories of Christmases past. The guided, one-hour candlelit tour highlights how the Paca household prepared for their holiday guests. The historic home is ready to greet you with music, garlands, a sweet treat, and a take-home recipe!

Advance registration recommended, space is limited. Register for Holiday Spirit Tour: Yuletide Traditions at the William Paca House.

Cost: $15 General Admission; $10 for HA Members, Volunteers, and Military; $7 Children (3-17); Free for Children 2 and under.

This event will be offered on the following date:

Monday, December 26 at 11 am

While familiar Christmas carols such as Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer and White Christmas weren’t written until the 20th century, there were many songs that were popular during the early years of the American republic that we still recognize today. Hark the Herald Angels Sing, Joy to the World, The Twelve Days of Christmas and Greensleeves were just some of the songs that carolers might have sung during holiday celebrations. Popular instruments included the violin, flute, pianoforte, and the harp.

From 1811 to 1857, the Loockerman family lived in the Hammond-Harwood House. The mother, Frances, loved music and played the pianoforte. The Loockermans would have enjoyed the sounds of the holiday season in their ballroom or been entertained by carolers strolling by their mansion on Maryland Avenue.



This holiday season the Garden Clubs were invited to create a faux floral bloom display inspired by the music of Christmas from the first half of the 19th century.

Learn more about Holiday Décor and Music in the Mansion.

The Lost Towns Project, Inc., in collaboration with archaeologists with the County's Cultural Resources Section, is proud to announce the launch of “Native American Archaeology in Anne Arundel County, Maryland: A Heritage Toolbox.” Designed for students, teachers, and the curious public, this virtual toolbox shares exciting local archaeological discoveries, along with images of artifacts from the County's vast archaeological holdings that have helped document and reveal the deep history of indigenous peoples in what is today known as Anne Arundel County, Maryland. 

Visit www.aacounty.org/Native-American-Heritage-Toolbox to explore 13,000 years of indigenous history, learn more about fascinating archaeological resources across the County, download valuable educational resources, and find places where you can visit and experience this history in person! 

Funded in part by the Chesapeake Crossroads Heritage Area, the toolbox provides historical context, along with multimedia resources, including interviews with members of local tribes and professional archaeologists, images of artifacts excavated from across the county, and links to presentations by academic experts, web resources, worksheets, and videos. It also showcases the rich archaeological discoveries from the Jug Bay area, a tidal wetland along the Patuxent River in southwest Anne Arundel County. 

Maryland Nonprofits’ Board Excellence workshops are interactive, virtual programs covering the most important aspects of board operations. You'll leave with clarity about the roles and responsibilities of the board of directors as a governing body and the role of board members in an organization. 

This program is suitable for organizations big and small, regardless of mission focus. To give you specialized information specific to your organization's situation, we offer separate Board Excellence workshops for organizations with paid staff and for entirely volunteer-run organizations.

Upcoming Workshops:

Board Excellence Workshop for Nonprofits with staff

January 18, 2023 | 4:30 PM - 7:00 PM

Register by January 5, 2023 

Board Excellence Workshop for All Volunteer Nonprofits

January 31, 2023 | 4:30 PM - 7:00 PM

Register by January 17, 2023

The Maryland State Archives hiring for an Archivist I position in the Legacy of Slavery Program at the Maryland State Archives!

This position is a professional research archivist with the Study of the Legacy of Slavery Program at the Maryland State Archives engaging with primary and secondary sources to conduct and preserve biographical, historical, and legal research on individuals significant to Maryland's past and present at the direction of the State Archivist and Director. Special topic areas include social and cultural studies of African American History, Maryland History, the Underground Railroad, Civil Rights, Racial Terror Lynching and Slavery. This position will provide support to the Legacy of Slavery study by preparing research results for the publication on the Archives' website, for in-person and virtual presentations, for exhibit and in other media as needed. In addition to research duties, the position will assist in general reference duties in the Archives search room and remote services of order fulfillment via email and telephone correspondence. This position also assists in various student outreach and education programs, such as the Maryland State Archives internship program.

Chesapeake Crossroads Heritage Area | 410-222-1805 | heritage_area@aacounty.org | chesapeakecrossroads.org