All Museums & Historic Sites in Salisbury

Originally founded in 1925 on Salisbury’s Main Street as Kahelas Israel Congregation, Beth Israel is the only conservative congregation on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. At the time, only nine Jewish families were present in the Salisbury area and the number of families remain few. Despite this and several migrations from building to building, the synagogue has survived as a safe Read more...

The Franklin Hotel was a hotel catering to African Americans when segregation was enforced. The building was constructed in 1930 and was known as the Mainlake Building. The bottom floor hosted a restaurant and four spaces for shops while the second floor held apartments. In 1955 the Franklin Hotel was established by Melvin E. and Donzelle Hutt and the hotel Read more...

Originally established in 1953 as the Salisbury Art League, SAS is now beginning its 65th year of service. The mission of SAS is to advance the visual arts in the mid-Delmarva region through exhibitions for seasoned and emerging artists and art education for children and adults. After 65 years, this unique art center continues to fulfill its mission by offering many opportunities to Read more...

Built in 1838, the Chipman Center is the oldest standing African-American church on Delmarva. It occupies the site of a former open meadow where slaves gathered for worship services conducted by Methodist circuit riders. In 1837 five local freedmen began holding services in a small red-pine slab building on the property of William Williams. Funds were raised to purchase the Read more...

Parsons Cemetery in Salisbury, Maryland is an historic operational cemetery, an urban green space, an outdoor museum, and in the words of architectural historian, Keith Eggener, a place where “life meets death, nature meets city, and present meets past.” The site offers self-guided walking tours based on their on-going historical and genealogical research, maintains the 18 acres of sacred grounds Read more...

In 1795, Major Levin Handy took out a deed for 357 acres of the original 700 acre land patent called “Pembertons Good Will.” The house Handy began in 1795-96 was an ambitious Federal-style structure, outdistancing most buildings in the area in size and fine detail. When Handy died, the unfinished house was eventually sold to Dr. John Huston, Salisbury’s first surgeon, who Read more...

The Maryland Military Monuments Inventory lists this cannon as commemorating the War of 1812. It was erected in 1977 by The Jewish War Veterans of the U.S.A Read more...

UPDATE: Following the split between the Ward Museum and Salisbury University in 2023, Salisbury University announced a new museum, The Museum of Eastern Shore Culture at Salisbury University, in Downtown Salisbury. Located in the first floor of the Powell Building at 218 W. Main St., this new museum will display the permanent collection that was formerly at the Ward Museum. Read more...

Pemberton Historical Park, once home to a thriving plantation, shares historic legacies of the lower Chesapeake region from the 18th century. The fully-restored Pemberton Hall is furnished to reflect the pre-Revolutionary period. Plantation tax records, archaeological investigations and architectural research were used to locate and restore other structures, including a 1786 kitchen, stand-alone milk house, wooden-lined well and well sweep. Read more...