March 28, 2024

Lexington Park Geo-Trail Wins Heritage Grant

Posted by Community Development Corporation
Bay Leader

Seeking to prolong the successful historic geo-caching trail developed during the 2011 centennial of naval aviation, the Lexington Park Business and Community Association submitted its first application for a tourism grant.

And they won.

The Southern Maryland Heritage Area Consortium announced late last week the award to the Lexington Park Geo Trail.

“This is an existing and highly successful program that needs resupply of its commemorative coins and refurbishment of the geocaches themselves as we approach the busy War of 1812 Commemoration,” the consortium’s executive director, Roz Racanello wrote in the awards announcement.

The annual Mini-Grant awards are part of the consortium’s efforts to build the heritage tourism resources of Calvert, Charles and St. Mary’s counties.

Three other award winners are also Leader Members:

Annmarie Sculpture Garden and Art Center   for The artLAB, an eco-tourism hot spot! The artLAB is a resource for guests to work with recycled/re-purposed materials to create works of art and decoration. The current goal is to infuse these activities with lessons about the environment and to engage visitors in the site as an eco-tourism destination.

Historic Sotterley  won a mini-grant for its Children’s Discovery Pamphlet. Sotterley will create a new booklet for children to bring Sotterley’s stories alive for young people and to create a more welcoming experience for families with children. The pamphlet will broaden both the historic and natural understanding of young visitors.

Trinity Episcopal Church / Historic Trinity Episcopal Church – a Monument to Religious Toleration. The church will create a brochure that describes the historic significance of their church – in St. Mary’s County – as it relates to the history of the State of Maryland.

The other 9 grants awarded in the region are:

Charles County Garden Club of Maryland / Benedict to Bryantown, Then & Now . The Md. House & Garden Pilgrimage comes to Charles County every 3 years and this year they will celebrate the Bicentennial of the War of 1812 and the British encampment at Benedict. The historic Caleb W. Jones skipjack will come to Benedict and be available for public viewing as part of the festivities.

Point Lookout State Park / Point Lookout Civil War Enhancements. This project will refurbish signage, panels and lighting as well as adding display items at the Civil War Museum at Point Lookout. This is Phase Two of the enhancement project.

 The Society for the Restoration of Port Tobacco / New Rack Card. The current display card information will be updated and made more consistent with other sites in the Historic Triangle, encouraging visitors to see the One Room School, St. Ignatius Church, Thomas Stone National Historic Site and others.

 Town of Leonardtown / Wayfinding Signage on Rte. 5. The town will create and install signage to direct visitors to areas of historic significance – the Old Jail, Tudor Hall, and the Waterfront as well as to local shops, leading tourists through the downtown.

Cedarville Band of Piscataway Indians / The Birds Flew Over. This existing exhibit will be revamped and updated to include changes in the lives of the tribe. Work will be done in collaboration with the Accokeek Foundation and their work on “Indigenous Landscape and the Piscataway Connection”.

Bayside History Museum / Waterman Display figure. The Museum, currently in a larger facility, is in the process of expanding its exhibits. This figure, a flexible foam museum-quality figure, will be part of the museum’s education component about the watermen of the Chesapeake Bay.

Calvert Marine Museum / Museum Outreach Programs. The Museum will launch new programs to bring its themes into schools while the museum is closed for renovations. The programs include: John Smith Mapping, Natural Resources, Oysters, Reptiles and Amphibians, River Otters, Fossils, and Life in the Marsh.

 American Chestnut Land Trust / Develop a Master Naturalist Program. The grant will support this new program and provide materials for the class and meetings. This program is being developed for Southern Maryland in cooperation with Calvert County Natural Resources Division, Cove Point Natural Heritage Trust, and the Calvert County Maryland Cooperative Extension.

 Nanjemoy Community Center / Annual Nanjemoy Heritage Day event. This will be an enhancement of an annual event, supporting performances and demonstrations by local organizations that play an important role in the regional heritage yet were not previously part of the event.

The mission of the Southern Maryland Heritage Area Consortium (SMHAC) is to enhance the economic activity of Southern Maryland through combining quality heritage tourism and small business development with preservation, cultural and natural resource conservation and education. Contact the Consortium at 301-274-4083, or by email, [email protected].

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