Prince George's County Historical Society

Prince George's County Historical Society
Name	Prince George's County Historical Society
Formation	1950s
Type	Historical society
Headquarters	Upper Marlboro, Maryland
Location	Prince George's County, Maryland
Region served	Prince George's County, Maryland
Leader title	President

Prince George's County Historical Society is a local historical organization dedicated to preserving, documenting, and interpreting the cultural and historical heritage of Prince George's County, Maryland. The Society operates archives, curates collections, publishes research, and maintains historic properties in and around Upper Marlboro, Maryland. Its activities intersect with regional efforts by institutions such as the Maryland Historical Trust, the National Archives at College Park, and the Maryland State Archives.

History

Founded in the mid-20th century amid a wave of local preservation initiatives, the Society emerged as part of broader preservation movements linked to entities like the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the Historic Annapolis Foundation. Early leaders drew on precedents set by the Maryland Historical Society and county historical organizations such as the Montgomery County Historical Society and the Howard County Historical Society. The Society’s formative campaigns addressed threats to antebellum houses, African American schools, and Native American archaeological sites, aligning with preservation efforts related to Oxon Hill Farm, Belair Mansion (Collington, Maryland), and the archaeology of the Piscataway tribe. Over decades the Society collaborated with municipal bodies like the Prince George's County Council and state entities including the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission.

Mission and Activities

The Society’s mission emphasizes documentation, public education, and stewardship of local heritage. Activities include oral history projects modeled after initiatives by the Library of Congress, collaborative exhibits with museums such as the College Park Aviation Museum and the Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History & Culture, and advisory roles in historic designation cases before the Maryland Historical Trust. The Society partners with academic programs at University of Maryland, College Park and professional organizations including the American Alliance of Museums and the American Association for State and Local History to promote scholarship on subjects ranging from plantation landscapes to Cold War-era developments at Andrews Air Force Base.

Collections and Archives

Holdings span manuscripts, photographs, maps, architectural drawings, and ephemera documenting families, businesses, churches, and schools across the county. Notable types of items include deeds linked to estates such as Mount Calvert, census records used by genealogists tracing families tied to Bladensburg, and World War II-era materials connected to military installations like Joint Base Andrews. The archives house church records from parishes affiliated with St. Barnabas Church (Upper Marlboro, Maryland), school records reflecting the legacy of schools like segregated schools and post‑desegregation developments affiliated with Prince George's County Public Schools. Research collections support work on figures such as Elizabeth "Mum"ford Bowie and political actors who served in the Maryland General Assembly.

Programs and Publications

The Society sponsors public lectures, walking tours, school programs, and rotating exhibits in collaboration with organizations like the Anacostia Community Museum, Smithsonian Institution, and Historic Sotterley. It publishes a quarterly journal and occasional monographs documenting topics such as colonial plantation economy, African American community formation in Landover, and transportation history involving the Baltimore and Potomac Railroad. Past publications have profiled local architects associated with the Colonial Revival movement, studies of landscape changes tied to the construction of Capital Beltway (I-495), and bibliographies used by researchers working with the Maryland State Archives.

Facilities and Historic Sites

The Society maintains a headquarters and archival facility in Upper Marlboro, Maryland and is involved in stewardship of historic sites across the county, including antebellum houses, civic buildings, and cemeteries linked to congregations like St. Thomas Church (Sodomes, Maryland). It has participated in restoration projects informed by standards of the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties and has worked with conservation specialists from the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the Maryland Historical Trust to stabilize threatened resources such as historic farm complexes and African American community landmarks in areas like Cheverly and Riverdale Park.

Membership and Governance

Membership includes historians, genealogists, preservationists, teachers, librarians, and civic leaders drawn from communities across Prince George's County, Maryland, including College Park, Maryland, Bowie, Maryland, Hyattsville, Maryland, and Laurel, Maryland. Governance follows a board structure comparable to nonprofit historical societies affiliated with the American Historical Association and the National Trust for Historic Preservation, with committees overseeing archives, education, preservation, and fundraising. The Society has worked with grantmakers including the National Endowment for the Humanities and state funding administered by the Maryland State Arts Council to support core programs.

Category:Historical societies in Maryland Category:Prince George's County, Maryland