What's important about St. Mary's City? Margaret Brent was the first woman to petition for the right to vote in English America in 1648
Mathias de Sousa was the first man of African descent to vote in North America in 1642.
The first Catholic Mass was celebrated in English America by Fr. Andrew White 1634, who also described his 1633 Voyage to Maryland (translated from latin). It was also the location of the first Print House in the southern colonies of America. (more articles).( map Then and Now)
posted by adamvasco on Dec 10, 2008 - 4 comments

Election woes: Or, why not to discount 26 year old lawyers.
posted by oxford blue on Oct 3, 2008 - 27 comments

Want to live for free (sort of) in a historic home? Maryland, Delaware, and Massachusetts all have resident curatorship programs, in which you can live rent-free in a historic home, provided you spend your own time and money renovating it. Contact your state's historic preservation office to see if there's a program like this near you...
posted by dersins on Sep 6, 2007 - 14 comments

3 young Baltimore figurative painters Lillian Bayley (toyworld alienation) Rachel Bone (a saner, calmer Darger) Alyssa Dennis (bleak figures in a bleak world) [via New American Paintings]
posted by Kattullus on Jun 1, 2007 - 12 comments

Public gatherings restricted? Check. Shutdown of independent businesses? Check. Lockdown on traffic and transportation in the area? You bet. Lawmakers in Baltimore trying to curb the city's homicide rate (already 108 this year) have come up with some "desperate measures" of questionable constitutional legality, including heightening police presence in order to lockdown streets in "emergency areas." It has been called, "partial martial law" by some, and one has to wonder if the city of Baltimore may not do better to take a page from The Wire's Hamsterdam for a solution to their inextricably linked drug and homicide issues.
posted by dead_ on May 17, 2007 - 60 comments

Maryland joins the ranks of states attempting to thwart the electoral college. Maryland's General Assembly approved a bill [PDF] to ignore the U.S. Electoral College [official website] in presidential elections, instead awarding the state's 10 electoral votes to the winner of the national popular vote. [via | previously on MeFi | more inside]
posted by terrapin on Mar 30, 2007 - 71 comments

This year, Maryland has been on a path to become the first state to abolish capital punishment, and a bill to repeal the death penalty will be voted on in committee within days. Exonerated death row inmates have been campaigning fervently in support of the bill (including Kirk Bloodsworth, a Marylander who was the first death row inmate ever to be proven innocent by DNA)--and the exonerated are joined by a gamut of other voices that one might not normally expect in the debate. Murder victim family members are vocally supporting abolition. Law enforcement officials, including prosecutors, wardens and police chiefs, are vocally supporting abolition. The Baltimore city council – which presides over the lion’s share of Maryland’s violent crime -- is unanimously in support of abolition. Even Maryland's governor, Martin O’Malley, has taken a bold stance in support of abolishing executions, going so far as to publish an op-ed, "Why I Oppose the Death Penalty," in the Washington Post on the day of the abolition bill’s hearings in Annapolis. And, last but not least, the public is more than 60% in support of replacing the death penalty with life without parole.

So why are so many legislators still supporting death penalty?
Even if the bill doesn’t pass in this session, it seems like Governor O’Malley has nothing to worry about for having come out ahead of the legislature on this issue. It’s the legislatures—in Maryland and elsewhere—that are falling behind, as the entire country backs steadily away from capital punishment.
posted by snortlebort on Mar 15, 2007 - 91 comments

Murders in Baltimore City/Washington D.C., displayed on Google's map of the area: 2005, 2006, 2007.
posted by stammer on Feb 3, 2007 - 38 comments

"In a close-knit Chesapeake Bay community, the world’s fastest muskrat skinners face off in a truly cutthroat competition at the National Outdoor Show. One lucky young lady gets to be their queen." [Warning: Fiddle tunes!] Muskrat Lovely, a documentary about the conflation of the world muskrat-skinning championships with the Miss Outdoors beauty competition. The film will air soon on the PBS program Independent Lens. Catch some of the brackish flavor of the Chesapeake Bay's traditional regional culture, including some muskrat recipes and skinning tips.. And don't miss the link to Everything Muskrat.
posted by Miko on Oct 26, 2006 - 21 comments

There's a lot to be said for a town that mourns a goose. While on an early morning walk last month, a newspaper reporter happened upon the body of Lucy the goose, who, up until then, had been holding court on the town's waterfront for more than ten years. Kind of a touching story, from a tiny town in Maryland.
posted by emelenjr on Jan 8, 2005 - 26 comments

At least 10 percent of high-tech gifts this holiday season may fall victim to "computer rage" - acts of uncontrolled frustration by their owners - estimates University of Maryland professor Kent Norman, a cognitive psychologist who directs the Laboratory for Automation Psychology and Decision Processes.
posted by mhaw on Dec 13, 2004 - 10 comments

Remembering the amazingly mature poetry of Mattie Stepanek: national goodwill ambassador with muscular dystrophy, and 13 year old prodigal wordsmith.
posted by moonbird on Jun 23, 2004 - 7 comments

The College Board today released their annual report looking at the costs of college tuitions. Once again this year the report finds that the costs for students are rising. A group of students at the University of Maryland, College Park said enough is enough and have formed a political action committee to fight the state's refusal to increase funding to public colleges in the state, and curb tuition increases. The Student Citizen Action Networkis the first of it's kind, they have a goal of raising over $50,000 dollars, and they have already made substantial progress in their first few days.
posted by mhaw on Oct 22, 2003 - 6 comments

Missing WMDs found ... buried in a field near Maryland
posted by magullo on May 28, 2003 - 43 comments

Newsfilter: Maryland Gov. vetoes 9-year-old's bill to designate walking as Maryland's official state excercise. "Saying walking has no specific ties to Maryland, Gov. Robert Ehrlich announced Wednesday that he vetoed the bill because 'it serves no public purpose.' Supporters questioned that logic Thursday, especially after learning Ehrlich signed another state symbol bill - [also] sponsored by elementary school pupils - proclaiming the thoroughbred as the state horse."
posted by Joey Michaels on May 27, 2003 - 20 comments

Half-Life meets Matisse in a virtual reconstruction of the apartment of Etta and Claribel Cone. During the first three decades of the twentieth century, the sisters amassed one of America's foremost collections of modern art. Today, many of the pieces can be viewed in the Cone Collection at the Baltimore Museum of Art. As part of the 50^th anniversary celebration of the museum's acquisition of the collection, the Imaging Research Center at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County designed a digital walkthrough of their apartment so that visitors could see the art in its original context.
posted by Aaaugh! on May 4, 2003 - 5 comments

Maryland voted to reduce penalities on folks who smoke marijuana for medical purposes. It's passed the house and is on it's way to becoming law!
posted by cpfeifer on Mar 27, 2003 - 11 comments

An Editorial Cartoon published in the University of Maryland 's Student run independent newspaper, The Diamondback, incites controversy. The cartoon, depicting the death of American pro-Palestinian activist Rachel Corrie, is being called offensive; protestors and university officials are calling for a retraction and an apology from the paper. The newspaper on the other hand is crying free speech and first amendment protection; as well they see the backlash by the campus community as hypocritical.
posted by mhaw on Mar 21, 2003 - 60 comments

Criminal profilers are racist for not thinking a black man could fire a rifle well enough to be the sniper. They didn't think a black person could be smart enough" to pull off three weeks of terror, driving into very public places, hitting his mark, then eluding all the local, state and federal officers. Wow.
posted by BirdD0g on Oct 30, 2002 - 26 comments

And my opponent was all like beepbeepbeepbeepbeep... Bob Ehrlich is running for governor of Maryland. Bob Ehrlich's ad agency has seen the Apple ads and likes what it sees. Bob Ehrlich and his agency think it would be a great idea to jump the Zeitgeist Train: "I used to be a Democrat, but I'm switching."
posted by baltimore on Oct 22, 2002 - 14 comments

Hundreds of people with criminal records in Maryland may have been allowed to purchase guns illegally this year because the state temporarily stopped conducting background checks for the FBI.[More Inside]
posted by Steve_at_Linnwood on Oct 16, 2002 - 18 comments

"Dear policeman, I am God" found inscribed on a Tarot card. This latest clue in the Maryland sniper case will no doubt be tested and thoroughly investigated, although it was reported that it could be the work of prankster. If you have read the interesting post below by stevis ("I am who I am") of a Florida man who was legally denied the right to call himself "God", doesn't it make you wonder if the human desire to personify or impersonate God is a manifestation of the desperation for control over others, but not for the better? God, after all, wants you to surrender your life to the almighty. Or (mental illnesses aside) is it much more complex than that?
posted by taratan on Oct 9, 2002 - 69 comments

Shootings in Montgomery County, Maryland - In the past 15 hours, 5 seemingly random people have been shot and killed, possibly by two men driving around in a White SUV. The county's schools are currently in lockdown.
posted by emptybowl on Oct 3, 2002 - 61 comments

From The Slow Wheels of Justice [Department] we read that "there have been persistent complaints of excessive force by officers of Prince George's County Police Department, Maryland over many years. Cases of concern include police shootings; deaths in custody from dangerous restraint holds or other force and unresisting suspects mauled by police dogs....In November 2000 the US Department of Justice opened a civil rights investigation into the police department to determine whether it engaged in a "pattern and practice" of brutality and racial discrimination....However, after 20 months of investigation, the Justice Department has not yet issued any public findings or recommendations to the police department."
posted by fold_and_mutilate on Aug 30, 2002 - 7 comments

First challenge of Maryland law making animal cruelty a felony results in acquittal. Charges were dismissed against a landlord who forcibly removed two of his tenant's three cats and dispatched them with a 12-gauge shotgun. Judge said law's language fails to clearly define "cruel killing". Also on AP.
posted by LinusMines on Aug 22, 2002 - 16 comments

Do you want fries with that house? Not content with a normal McMansion, the Banner family of Potomac, Md. upgraded four years ago from a 4,500 square foot house to a 8,500 square foot house. Its six bedrooms and nine bathrooms now comfortably accomodate the house's two adults and two children. The unusually ironic NYTimes (reg req.) article does not spare us the absurdities of this arrangement, a growing trend in wealthy suburban enclaves. Interior decorators must now "supersize" furniture to fill up a cavernous "media room". Entire wings of the house sit unused for months, because the suburban rich entertain others at home no more often than their middle-class counterparts.

Suppose you had a $500k income and a completely empty 2 acre zoned lot in Potomac in which to live. What might you build there?
posted by PrinceValium on Jun 20, 2002 - 52 comments

Three Dead From Southern Maryland Tornado. This is the kind of news story you skip because it doesn't happen in your state. It didn't even register to me until I realized that one of my daily reads - Moire - lives in La Plata. The twister went through her front yard. Her account of the storm and its aftermath is pretty powerful. Were any other bloggers involved? (It's my first post; be gentle.)
posted by web-goddess on Apr 29, 2002 - 16 comments

Rioters complain about tear gas. [Bloominton Hearald-Times, link expires after a week] After Indiana University lost to Maryland in the NCAA finals, drunken fans rioted in the streets forcing police to use tear gas. It was stupid enough to start a riot, but rioters complained that the police offered no warning before deploying tear gas after rioters pelted the police with beer bottles and prevented the fire department from putting out fires in the middle of the street. "They could have easily done that," Raggs said. "If they would have said, 'You have 10 minutes, then we are going to use the tear gas,' people would have gone away." Personally, I think the police showed an amazing level of restraint considering that about half of the state troopers on the scene got hit by flying glass.
posted by KirkJobSluder on Apr 3, 2002 - 23 comments

Not surprisingly, police were needed to break up celebrating students at UM last night, though it wasn't as bad as what happened over the weekend. (I guess the Saturday riot really wore them out.) As Bobcat Goldthwait used to say: "If your team wins a major sporting event, you can legeally do anything within the next 24 hours." And this is the school I should be proud to call my Alma Mater?
posted by emptybowl on Apr 2, 2002 - 9 comments

Governor of Maryland married his deputy chief of staff; she resigned (effected immediately) from her $103,588 position on Friday, the day the couple were married. I'm sure boss/subordinate relationships go on all the time, but isn't it a problem when the boss is the governor of a state? I'm not one to focus on the personal lives of politicians, but this does raise my eyebrows. What do you think -- should state employees be subject to a dating policy simply because they work in the government? Or is this no big deal?
posted by jennak on Jan 29, 2002 - 26 comments

Maryland Rescuers Find a Kitten and Look for Justice "In an act of cruelty that recalls last year's road-rage death of a California pooch named Leo, a driver in Poolesville dropped a 10-week-old kitten into the middle of busy Route 107 on Christmas and then took off. Somehow, the animal was not hit by traffic. But in its fright, it darted toward the curb and into a storm drain. And there it likely would have died if not for the lengthy effort of several do-gooders -- one of whom crawled 30 feet through a storm pipe to grab the two-pound bundle of fur. That's an unquestionably happy ending. For chief rescuer Ellie Truman[e], though, the ending won't be complete until the man who abandoned the kitten so egregiously is identified and charged." (Even the Washington Post loves kitten stories!)
posted by Carol Anne on Dec 29, 2001 - 7 comments

1200 video clips of the American Wilderness, captured by PBS, is a great reminder of the country's natural beauty. For insectly weirdness, check out Maryland's cicada invasion.
posted by owillis on Oct 5, 2001 - 7 comments

At its heart, the battle is a border dispute. Virgina poses a threat to Marylands border integrity. It is "..the first skirmish in a much larger battle."
posted by stbalbach on Jul 13, 2001 - 16 comments

It's a bird, it's a plane....no, it's SPEEDO-MAN Almost an urban myth, SpeedoMan jogs the early morning streets of Annapolis, MD wearing nothing but...you guessed it...a Speedo. Is he CIA, is he FBI? Is he just some weirdo guy?
posted by briank on Mar 2, 2001 - 19 comments

The Baltimore Sun has a series of articles that explore the possible failure of Columbia, MD to live up to expectations after 30 years.
posted by rorschach on Dec 28, 2000 - 20 comments

Mike Muuss, author of ping(1), dead at 42. Traffic accident, Maryland, tractor-trailer. Half a dozen bad pastiche jokes go here, but I'm not going to do them.
posted by baylink on Nov 22, 2000 - 9 comments

We're all doomed. All it took was one state, and now they've done it. Maryland, you've let us all down.
posted by Steven Den Beste on Apr 25, 2000 - 3 comments