Eastern Shore Heritage, Inc., recently recognized 16 individuals and organizations for their distinguished contributions to the Stories of the Chesapeake Heritage Area at its 5th Anniversary Celebration and Awards Presentation at Historic Christ Church in Stevensville, MD. Hosted by Eastern Shore Heritage, Inc. (ESHI), the managing entity for the heritage area, the event celebrated the first five years since the heritage area’s certification by the Maryland Heritage Areas Authority (MHAA) on April 19, 2005. Clayton Washington, of Queenstown, ESHI Board of Directors chaired the event.
The evening was ESHI’s first fundraiser and featured awards highlighting heritage projects and volunteers deserving special recognition this year. Paulette P. Greene, ESHI’s president and a member of the Board since 2000, commented, “We are here to celebrate the $6.8 million in direct heritage development investment achieved as a wonderful result of the hard work of the many excellent heritage groups in our region, supported by ESHI’s Board of Directors, volunteers, and staff.”
R. Flanigan “Polly” Shannahan was honored posthumously with ESHI’s prestigious Legacy & Leadership Award for her achievements in and outstanding contributions to heritage preservation in Talbot County, especially her beloved home town of Easton. One of the last projects she supported was the historical and architectural investigation of a small residence on Port Street, supported by a Stories of the Chesapeake Small Grant. The research revealed that the building, owned by Talbot County, was older than previously recognized.
The following people were recognized for the Heritage Research Award: Virginia Sharp and Mary West of Caroline County; William Pickrum, Kent County Commissioner; Madelyn Hollis and Capt. Eldridge Meredith of Queen Anne’s County; Walter Black, Capt. Warren Butler and Kathleen Francis of Talbot County. They were honored for sharing memories and traditions of the Eastern Shore through ESHI’s African-American Heritage Oral History Project.
ESHI also recognized the following individual award recipients. Vicco von Voss of Church Hill (formerly of Chestertown) was named the 2008 Tradition-Bearer for his skills in preserving the traditional craft of woodworking and his outstanding work in sharing that tradition with the public. Michael McCrea of Preston received the 2010 Heritage Community Volunteer Award for his leadership in the restoration of the Linchester Mill while involving students in this outstanding preservation project. The 2010 Heritage Initiative Award was given to Mary Margaret Revell Goodwin of Centreville for initiating and providing research for a website commemorating the War of 1812 onMaryland’s Eastern Shore.
Organizational awards were given to the following organizations. Queen Anne’s County received the 2010 Maritime Heritage Initiative Award for preserving and creating recreational access to Ferry Point Park, scenic and fragile land surrounded by the Chesapeake Bay watershed. The land, visible from the modern bridge over Kent Narrows, is now a park. C. V. Starr Center for the Study of the American Experience, Washington College, was awarded the New 2010 Heritage Initiative for Public Preservation Award for research and production of a multimedia audio tour, “History on the Waterfront: A Journey into Chestertown’s Past.”
The Chesapeake Country National Scenic Byway Committee, the Maryland Agriculture Council, Inc., and the Maryland Heritage Areas Authority together received the 2010 Heritage Partnership Award for collaboration in the interpretation and promotion of Maryland’s agricultural heritage on the Eastern Shore. With support from the council and the authority, the committee produced a brochure on farming and the countryside for the benefit of visitors along the byway, which runs from Chesapeake City in Cecil County through Kent and Queen Anne’s counties to Stevensville on Kent Island.
The Stories of the Chesapeake Heritage Area was begun in the late 1990’s by a group of citizens and public officials seeking ways for Caroline, Kent, Queen Anne’s, and Talbot counties to enjoy the benefits of the state’s heritage tourism program. Following many public meetings and the support of then-US Senator Paul S. Sarbanes andWashington College, in 2000 the committee incorporated as a nonprofit with the name of Eastern Shore Heritage, Inc.
After earning formal recognition by the MHAA in 2001 as a potential heritage area, ESHI began developing a heritage area management plan with a major grant from the MHAA and matching funds from the four counties. Those funds sustained the program until the heritage area was certified on April 19, 2005. ESHI is now obliged to raise an increasing share of its local match for MHAA operating funds from private sources.
Certification in 2005 meant that nonprofits and local governments in the heritage area could begin applying for special state funding from the MHAA. Today, more than $1.1 million in state funding has supported 52 projects led by 31 different organizations and agencies in the four counties. The projects have generated local cash investment of more than $4.7 million and volunteer services and donations worth an additional million dollars.
A 2009 study by the National Trust for Historic Preservation found that cultural heritage travelers spend an average of $994 per trip compared to only $611 for other leisure travelers, making this a highly desirable travel industry segment. Approximately three-quarters of all leisure travelers in the United States participate in cultural and/or heritage activities while traveling, or about 118 million adults each year.
Today, the Stories of the Chesapeake Heritage Area represents the collaborative efforts of more than 100 nonprofit and governmental institutions and over 500 local businesses involved in heritage tourism in four counties and 18 towns, with an estimated combined work and volunteer force of 12,000 individuals.
For more information about the Stories of the Chesapeake Heritage Area, visit www.storiesofthechesapeake.org.