Preservation Maryland

The eighth county on travel experts Diane and Jeff’s twenty-three county and Baltimore City exploration of Maryland was Howard County. Their approach continues to be outside adventuring and seeing different parts of history, preservation, and adaptive reuse.

From Diane and Jeff’s Travelogue

My husband Jeff and I put together a general guide for the day and used a lens of being outdoors, seeing more of landscape preservation through trails, conservancies, preserves, and finding some adaptive reuses of Maryland’s many railroad lines into trails.Of course, we also look for ways to buy, eat and drink local where we can while the COVID-19 virus is still restricting what we can do safely.

Howard County was originally part of Anne Arundel county and became the 21st of Maryland’s 23 counties in 1851. Before European settlers, it was the farming and hunting grounds of Native Americans. The county was predominately agricultural until 1966, when construction began on Columbia. In our first tour of the county, we spent time in Columbia, seeing a lot of mid-century modern, then explored historic Ellicott City. In this tour we crisscrossed the county to discover for ourselves other parts we had not seen before. Come along for another fun adventure! 

Apple, key lime, and pumpkin get all the love. Today, on National Pie Day, why not celebrate with a Maryland classic: White Potato Pie! The origins of the White Potato Pie are murky, with some recipes noting that it was a poor man’s dessert, created by those who could not afford high-class ingredients. Joyce White, a culinary historian, and consultant who has worked with Riversdale and guest-curated for the Southern Food and Beverage Museum, suspects this pie has its origins in Maryland’s agricultural history.

First Day Hikes are a great way to start the New Year in a fun and healthy way. Maryland Park Service rangers, staff, and volunteers will lead more than 30 hikes on public lands and state parks New Year’s Day.

Maryland boasts 75 Christmas tree farms – and its own Christmas Tree Association! The primary species of Christmas Trees grown in Maryland are Scotch Pine, White Pine, Blue Spruce, Douglas Fir, and Fraser Fir, according to the Maryland Christmas Tree Association. Preservation Maryland works to protect the state’s cultural landscapes and supports it’s regional legacy businesses, so this holiday season we’re featuring three of Maryland’s oldest Christmas tree farms: