Montgomery Parks Offers Free Activities to Commemorate Maryland Emancipation Day

[Howard Hartman]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 29, 2009

Montgomery Parks Offers Free Activities to Commemorate
Maryland Emancipation Day, November 6 & 7

OLNEY, MD—The Montgomery County Department of Parks will host aa variety of FREE activities to honor Maryland Emancipation Day. Maryland Emancipation Day celebrates the historic November 1, 1864 Maryland constitution that freed enslaved persons living in the state. Commemorative activities will include guided hikes that allow visitors to experience the Underground Railroad; a special program at the historic Oakley Cabin; and tours of the Josiah Henson Historic Site (formerly known as "Uncle Tom's Cabin". The Sandy Spring Slave Museum and Odd Fellows Lodge will also host tours.

Friday, November 6, 2009

Night Hike: "The Night Sky and the Underground Railroad," 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm, Underground Railroad Experience Trail at Woodlawn Manor Cultural Park, 16501 Norwood Road, Sandy Spring. Historian Anthony Cohen gets Maryland Emancipation Day started early with this guided night hike. Please be aware: Interpretative materials are appropriate for children ages 8 and up; no dogs (except for therapy animals) are allowed on the hike; dress for the weather; and bring a flashlight. Parking is available at Woodlawn Manor. Admission is $5 per person. Tickets must be purchased ahead of time at www.ParkPASS.org (Course No. 90300).

Maryland Emancipation Day—Saturday, November 7, 2009

FREE Guided Hikes, 9:00 am, 10:00 am, 11:00 am and 12:00 noon, Underground Railroad Experience Trail at Woodlawn Manor Cultural Park, 16501 Norwood Road, Sandy Spring. Trained guides will lead interpretive hikes on this 2 mile natural surface trail from Woodlawn Manor to the Sandy Spring Friends Meeting House. Rain or shine.

Open House at the Sandy Spring Slave Museum & African Art Gallery, 11:00 am to 3:00 pm, 18524 Brooke Road, Sandy Spring. In honor of Maryland Emancipation Day, this private museum and art gallery will be open to visitors FREE of change on Saturday. Special museum activities will include a video performance starring actress Gwendolyn Briley-Strand as Harriet Tubman; live performance and narration by Gwendolyn Briley-Strand as Rosa Parks; and live performance by the All Natural African Dance Troupe. Lunch will be available for purchase by Ribs on the Run.

Open House at Odd Fellows Lodge, 11:00 am to 3:00 pm, 1310 Olney-Sandy Spring Road, Sandy Spring. The historic Odd Fellows Lodge on Route 108 will be open to visitors FREE of charge courtesy of the Sandy Spring Slave Museum.

Maryland Emancipation Day Celebration, 12:00 noon to 4:00 pm, Oakley Cabin, 3610 Brookeville Road, Olney. FREE Maryland Emancipation Day activities will include guided cabin tours; hands-on activities for children; traditional foodways demonstrations by culinary historian Michael Twitty; living history demonstrations; music; archaeology digs and more. The special Emancipation Day program at Oakley Cabin will begin at 1:00 pm and feature a keynote address by Dr. Cheryl LaRoche, lecturer, Underground Railroad scholar, and professor of American Studies at the University of Maryland at College Park and Georgetown University. Parking is only available at Longwood Recreation Center, 19300 Georgia Avenue with shuttle service to Oakley Cabin. In the event of inclement weather, outdoor activities will be moved to the Logwood Community Center in Longwood Local Park.

FREE Cabin Tours, 10:00 am to 4:00 pm, Josiah Henson Historic Site (formerly known as "Uncle Tom's Cabin", 11420 Old Georgetown Road, Bethesda. Take a FREE guided tour of the Josiah Henson site for Maryland Emancipation Day. Parking is only available two blocks away at the Montgomery County Aquatic Center/Wall Local Park, 5900 Executive Boulevard, Bethesda.

On Saturday, November 7, shuttle buses will run between Woodlawn Manor and the Sandy Spring Friends Meeting House (the end of Underground Railroad Experience Trail hike) from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm and between Longwood Local Park and Oakley Cabin from 11:30 am to 4:30 pm.

Volunteers are also still needed to help with these activities. To volunteer, register online at www.ParkVolunteers.org by November 5.

For more information on the Maryland Emancipation Celebration in Montgomery Parks visit www.ParksCulturalResources.org or call 301-650-4373.