Your Maryland

Early in the morning of May 3rd, 1813, Sir George Cockburn and his men launched a surprise attack on Havre de Grace.

In the Allegheny County mining town of Lonaconing, Maryland, Robert Moses “Lefty” Grove perfected his fast ball and went on to a storied career with the Baltimore Orioles throughout the 1920’s and 30’s.

On June 6, 1944, the 29th Division of the United States Army, made up of soldiers from Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Virginia, landed on Omaha Beach in Normandy to begin the liberation of France and Northern Europe from the Nazis.

During the 1960's, Rachel Carson raised the alarm about pesticides and their harmful effects on the environment and human beings.

In 1861, as the Civil War began, Roger B. Taney fights to free John Merryman from a cell in Fort McHenry, where he was being held after the suspension of Habeas Corpus.

In 1794, in the wake of the French Revolution, The Stier family fled Europe and settled near Annapolis, much to the chagrin of his youngest daughter, Rosalie.

Making his way home to Maryland after the surrender at Appomattox, Confederate officer Henry Kyd Douglas was arrested in Shepherdstown, West Virginia, and briefly detained in Washington during the trial of the Lincoln Conspirators.

In January, 1834, a young man named Frederick Bailey was sent from Baltimore to the Eastern shore of his birth, to “re-learn what it meant to be a slave.”

On the wintry afternoon of April 13, 1940, with an inch of snow covering the rolling fields, tow traditions collided in the heart of Maryland horse country,

Henry Kyd Douglas and his Light Brigade were the last to surrender their arms as the Civil War finally came to a close.

The 1894 Baltimore Orioles use legendary antics and creative methods in their battle for the pennant in a surprisingly successful season.

In 1638, a 14 year old girl named Mary Lawn arrived in the province of Maryland, looking for adventure. Her life became a tale of luck and circumstances, as she first worked off her transport fee as an indentured servant, and, later, served as a midwife to her neighbors.

In his early days as a young newspaper reporter, H. L. Mencken and his colleagues often embellished their stories, adding and perfecting details over beers at their favorite local pubs.

The young Englishmen (and few Englishwomen) who first settled around The Chesapeake Bay had very little time to think about "that crazy little thing called love." Money, and a strong work ethic were some of the first qualities they sought in a potential mate, but there were some exceptions, and sometimes, romance ruled the day.

In 1951, Joseph E. Holmes, once known as "The Dinnertime Burglar" for robbing homes whilst families were dining, got a new nickname after he tunneled his way out of the Maryland Peniteniary.

In April, 1860, Harriet Tubman fought to free Charles Nalle, an escaped slave from Maryland who had made his way to Troy, New York, which had a strong abolitionist community.

In 1778, John Kilby and other privateers from Maryland languished in Forton Prison near Portsmouth, England, before being released and serving with John Paul Jones aboard the Bonhomme Richard.

On a visit to England in 1816, Marianne (Caton) Patterson, the daughter of a prominent Baltimore merchant and granddaughter of Charles Carroll, captured the heart of The Duke of Wellington, a hero of the Battle of Waterloo and one of England’s most dashing and respected men.

There were a lot of acts of bravery during the fight to control The Great Baltimore Fire of 1904. On this edition of Your Maryland, Ric Cottom tells the story of Goliath, one of the lesser known heroes of that historic blaze.

Driven by his Catholic belief, a desire for wealth, and a sense of adventure, Cecil Calvert founded the Maryland colony in 1632. Things may have been different if an earlier attempt at a colony, Avalon, had been more successful.

In September of 1946, Albert Einstein spent some time relaxing, sailing his little boat, and contemplating peace on a visit to Deep Creek Lake in Western Maryland.

In the early days of aviation, daring pilots from all over the world competed for glory (and the Schneider Cup) in Maryland.

 The English Civil War influences events in Maryland in the 17th century, as royalists like the Calverts find themselves at odds with others who support Parliament and the uprising against King Charles .

"She is the most dangerous of all Allied spies. We must find and destroy her." - This is the text of a Gestapo transmission regarding OSS agent Virginia Hall, a Baltimore native who fought with the Resistance in France during World War II. This is her remarkable story.

In December, 1944, a lone squad of the 29th Division spent a quiet Christmas in a well-stocked German farmhouse, enjoying a brief respite from the bitter cold and constant fighting of the Battle of the Bulge.

On this edition of Your Maryland, we bring you a brief "history" of the household bathtub, courtesy of Baltimore's own H. L. Mencken.

In the late 19th century, Gus Rice and his band of pirate dredgers illegally harvested oysters in and around the Chesapeake Bay and her tributaries, scoffing at the law and leaving havoc in their wake.

In the 1920s, two extraordinary students attended the Colored High and Training School in Baltimore. After graduation, their lives took very different paths, but each shared his particular talents with the world, arguably making it a better place for all of us.

On this episode of Your Maryland, we trace the history of Thanksgiving, from early religious "days of thanksgiving," the Pilgrims harvest feast with their Native American neighbors, Lincolns proclamation after Gettysburg and the Victorians, to the largely secular gatherings of today.

From the beginning, the state of Maryland, and Baltimore, in particular, has had a passionate relationship with its writers. Here, we celebrate some of the best.