Historical Markers in
St. Mary's County, Maryland

...about the Corner of Vansweeringens Garden fence ...and Coffee House A Bustling Civil War Community A Busy Enterprise A Busy Kitchen A Change in Government A Crucial Point A Land in Need of Labor A Place of History A Place to Talk, Drink, & Smoke A Pressing Situation A Private Lodging House A Seaside Resort at Point Lookout A Target for Big Guns A Time of Troubles A Town Spared A "War to end all Wars" After the Disastrous Fire Against the Odds Agricultural Change and Environmental Damage AIM-9H Sidewinder Missile All Things Fit for a Capital Amish Community An End of Freedom but Persistence of Faith An Experiment with Liberty of Conscience An Innovative Entrepreneur An Opportunity Awaits... Andrew White, Apostle to Maryland Architectural Significance of the First Lexington Park Community Bay Lights Beech T-34B Mentor Bell TH-1L Iroquois Bell-Boeing MV-22B Osprey Test Aircraft No. 8 ("Eight-ball") Blackistone Island Lighthouse Boeing Vertol CH-46E Sea Knight Boeing X-32B JSF Demonstrator Breton Bay Brewing and Baking British Landing Prevented Cadet Pierre A. Mourthé Cardinal Gibbons Institute Carpenters' Marks Cecil's General Store Cecil's Mill Cecil's Mill Historic District Cecil's Saw Mill Cedar Point Lighthouse Cedar Point Lighthouse Cupola (1896) Cellar Archaeology Center of Citizenship Chaptico Chaptico Charlotte Hall School Charlotte Hall School Christ Church King and Queen Parish Clifton Factory Constructed With Colonial Ideas Coole Springs of Saint Marie’s Dating Changes in a Building De La Brooke Manor Death at Point Lookout Defense Strategies Defining Freedom and Building Community Disaster at Ragged Point Douglas F-6A (F4D) Skyray Douglas NA-4M Skyhawk Drayden Schoolhouse Drayden Schoolhouse Drayden Schoolhouse Early Signs of Industry Encountering the Other Entrance to First State House of Maryland Entrance to First State House of Maryland Entrance to St. John's Museum Extending the Rail Fear of War, People of Peace Fenwick Manor Finishing the Walls Forest Hall Fort Lincoln Framing the Past From Many Lands From Slavery to Freedom Fun on the Waterfront Grumman A-6 Intruder Grumman A-6E Intruder Grumman E-2B Hawkeye Grumman F-9J Cougar Grumman NF-14D Tomcat Grumman S-2D Tracker Here Lyeth The Body Historic St. Mary's City Horse High, Pig Tight, and Bull Strong How Old Is This Barn? In 1648 Margaret Brent Asks for “Vote...And Voyce” Invasion! John LaFarge, S.J. John Llewellyn John Wilkes Booth Kaman SH-2G Super Seasprite Keep It Clean Laura Maryland Carpenter Blinn Layers of the Past Leonard Calvert Leonard Calvert Leonardtown Leonardtown Leonardtown Leonardtown Wharf Let There Be Light Lexington Park Lighthouse Keeper's Quarters Lighthouses of the Chesapeake Lockheed S-3B Viking LTV NA-7A Corsair II Lynching in America / Lynching of Benjamin Hance Managing The Line Manor of Little Brittaine Map of Lower Potomac River and Chesapeake Bay Margaret Brent Hall Margaret Brent Pilgrimage Maryland and the Confederacy Maryland Began Here! Maryland Begins Here Maryland's First Capital Maryland’s Pride and Glory Mathias de Sousa Mattapany Street McDonnell Douglas AV-8B Harrier II McDonnell Douglas F-4J Phantom II McDonnell Douglas F/A-18A Hornet Medals of Honor Meet Garrett Van Sweringen Military Influence Mk-82 500-lb Snakeye Bomb Mother of Light Shrine Natural Highways Navy Base Arrives NC-8A Mobile Electric Power Plant (MEPP) No Match for British Might North American RA-5C Vigilante North American T-2C Buckeye North American T-39D Sabreliner Northrop Grumman EA-6B Prowler Origins of the Compass Rose Osprey Out the Door Patuxent River Naval Air Museum Piney Point Piney Point Lighthouse Piney Point Lighthouse Piney Point Lighthouse Piney Point Petroleum Terminal Point Lookout Confederate Cemetery Point Lookout Confederate Cemetery Point Lookout Confederate Cemetery Point Lookout Prison Point Lookout Prison Camp Point Lookout Prisoner-of-War Camp Point Lookout Prisoner-Of-War Camp Point Lookout State Park Point Lookout-Hammond Hospital Port of Entry Potomac River Dory Boat Potomac River Dory Boat Potomac River Military Testing Prison Pen Private William H. Barnes Project Lead Coffins Prosperous Port Town Putting Together the Pieces Rat Hall Raytheon T-6A Texan II Rebuilding a Lost Chapel Reclaiming the Lost City Relax Awhile! Remembering Ancestors at the Sotterley Plantation Rosedale Sacred Ground and Holy Buildings Saint Clement’s Island Saint Mary's Female Seminary Saint Nicholas Church Sergeant James H. Harris Sharing Land and Legacy Shipwreck! Shock Troops of the Counter-Reformation Sikorsky CH-53A Sea Stallion Site of the Methodist Episcopal Meeting House (c.1847) Smallpox Epidemic Sotterley's Remaining Slave Cabin St. Clements Manor St. Clement's Island St. Clement's Island Lighthouse St. Ignatius Church St. Joseph's Manor St. Mary's City St. Mary's College of Maryland St. Mary's College of Maryland St. Mary's College of Maryland Land Acknowledgement and Pledge St. Mary's Female Seminary St. Mary’s County and U.S. Navy History Steamboats at the Waterfront Storm Blocks the Route to Freedom TA-75A Tow Tractor Taking Sail, Taking Chances The African American Monument In Elmer Brown Freedom Park The Arrival of Governor Copley The Brick Chapel's History The Calvert Family and the Founding of Maryland The Chapel Architecture The Cooling House The Council Roome The F9F-8B “Cougar” The First State House of Maryland The Gift of the Society of the Ark and the Dove The Great Depression and New Opportunities The Great House The Illusion of Brick The Kitchen The Landing of the Ark and the Dove The Legend of Moll Dyer The Manor of Cornwaleys’ Cross The Mural Story The Servants The Shrinking Island The St. Mary’s Chapel The Tulip Disaster The Union's Defense The Van Sweringen Family The Van Sweringen Site The Wished For Country The "Priests' House" This Cannon Thomas Allen Senior Three Notch Road Three Notch Trail To Market! To Market! Tobacco Barns Tobacco... "our meat, drink, clothing and monies" Tobacco's Impact Trade on the Waterfront Tree Growth Rings Trinity Church, St. Mary’s Parish Tudor Hall Two Worlds / One County United States Colored Troops United States Colored Troops (USCT) Upon This Shore USS Tulip Monument Veterans Memorial Veterans Memorial Village of Charlotte Hall Village of Mechanicsville War Comes to Breton Bay War Hits Home Watery Highways Welcome to St. Clement's Island Welcome to St. Clement's Island Welcome to St. John's Welcome to the African American Monument of St. Mary's County Welcome to the Chapel Field Welcome to the Maryland Dove Welcome to the Waterfront What Happened Here After 1695? What Kind of Barn Was This? Where is the City? Who Worked Here? Why Is This Barn Here? Witness to History World War I Monument -- Leonardtown Ye Coole Springs "...a hopeful Colony" "...one of the pleasantest summer resorts on the Potomac" "a lande, even as God made it" "Contraband" Camp "Deep Falls" "Dwell here, live plentifully, and be rich" "have Their houses near the Watters" "The Bean Pot" "Three Notch Road" "With a laudable and pious zeal for the propagation of the Christian faith" "…buried…in a most solemn manner" "…for the good and happy Government" "…once the Metropolis" …Adjourn to the Arbour at Vansweringens “…a convenient place for the administration of Justice.”
Maryland was founded as a Catholic colony: Maryland was founded by the English nobleman George Calvert, also known as Lord Baltimore, in 1632. He envisioned Maryland as a haven for Catholics who faced persecution in England at the time. The colony's first settlement, St. Mary's City, was established in 1634.
St. Mary's County, located in the southernmost part of the state of Maryland, holds a significant place in American history as the site of Maryland's first permanent English settlement. The area was initially inhabited by the Yaocomico Native American tribe. In March 1634, a group of English colonists sailed up the Chesapeake Bay and established the settlement of St. Mary's City, named after the Virgin Mary.

St. Mary's City quickly grew into a bustling colonial capital and served as the seat of Maryland's government for over 60 years. It was a center for trade and commerce, with tobacco being the primary cash crop grown in the county. The colonists also established Maryland's first Catholic parish, St. Mary's Catholic Church, which still stands today as a historic landmark.

During the 17th century, St. Mary's County faced several challenges, including conflicts with Native American tribes and religious tensions between Catholics and Protestants. In 1695, the capital was moved to Annapolis, leading to a decline in St. Mary's City's importance. By the early 18th century, the county's economy shifted away from tobacco towards agriculture, lumber, and fishing.

In the 20th century, St. Mary's County experienced significant growth due to its proximity to Washington, D.C., and the establishment of naval and research institutions. During World War II, the Patuxent River Naval Air Station was established in St. Mary's County, which played a crucial role in the development and testing of naval aircraft. In recent decades, the county's economy has diversified with the growth of technology and defense industries, including the establishment of the St. Mary's County Technology and Industrial Park. Today, St. Mary's County is known for its rich historical heritage, beautiful waterfront scenery, and thriving aerospace and defense sectors.

This timeline provides a condensed summary of the historical journey of St. Mary's County, Maryland.

  • 1634: St. Mary's County is established as one of the original counties in the Maryland colony.
  • 1635: The first English settlement, known as St. Mary's City, is founded by colonists led by Leonard Calvert.
  • 1649: The Maryland Toleration Act is passed in St. Mary's County, guaranteeing religious freedom for all Christians.
  • 1689: St. Mary's City is abandoned as the capital of Maryland and the government moves to Annapolis.
  • 1812-1815: St. Mary's County experiences significant economic growth during the War of 1812.
  • 1837: The Great Mills Post Office is established, becoming an important local landmark.
  • 1865: Slavery is abolished in St. Mary's County following the end of the American Civil War.
  • 1942: Patuxent River Naval Air Station is established in St. Mary's County and becomes a major economic and military center.
  • 1969: St. Mary's College of Maryland is founded in St. Mary's City, becoming the state's public honors college.
  • 1980s: St. Mary's County experiences rapid population growth and development, with the establishment of new residential and commercial areas.