All Museums & Historic Sites
Folk Ways include all the locations and activities in which our residents have been engaged since the settling of the Lower Eastern Shore.
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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...
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Sturgis One Room School Museum, formerly known as Sturgis School, is the only African American One Room School in Worcester County retaining its original integrity. It is a small structure built about 100 years ago on Brantley Road on land that was purchased by William Sturgis in 1888. Sturgis One Room School operated as a school for 37 years. Grades 1 Read more...
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From 1828-1850 the Nassawango Iron Furnace was in its heyday. Many workers – miners, sawyers, colliers, molders, draymen, and bargemen – labored to make iron. Furnace Town (also called Nescongo or Nasseongo) was a company town, built by the Maryland Iron Company. About 300 people lived and worked here. There were blacksmiths, broom makers, wainwrights, wheelwrights, bakers, cobblers, coopers, and Read more...
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Built in 1832 for Isaac Covington and his family, this gable-fronted, Federal-style house was saved from demolition in 1981 and now swerves as a Town museum of local history. In the early 19th century, this house was the home of Robert J. Henry, who was instrumental in bringing the railroad to Berlin. In the 1890s and early 20th century it was Read more...
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A 1740s merchant-planter’s home overlooking Assateage Island and scenic Sinepuxent Bay. Rackliffe House was constructed in the 1740s by Captain Charles Rackliffe, the merchant-planter grandson of one of the earliest English immigrants to Maryland’s seaside. The large two-story, three-bay Manor House features Flemish bond brickwork with random glazed headers, a steeply pitched gabled roof with kicked eaves, and large windows. Read more...
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The Ocean City Life-Saving Station Museum, located on the board walk at the inlet, inspires and supports the interpretation and appreciation of the cultural and natural history of Ocean City, Maryland, the Worcester County coastal region, and equally, the historical role performed by the United States Life-Saving Service, and preserves with subsequent mandate the 1891 structure that once served as Read more...
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The waterside community of Crisfield in Somerset County, MD is the southernmost town in Maryland. Located on the Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake Bay, Crisfield is famous for its seafood – especially the Maryland blue crab – its Watermen, wildlife, natural beauty, simple lifestyle and strong sense of community built on faith and hard work. Read more...
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At the Delmarva Discovery Museum visitors can explore 16,000 square feet of universally-accessible exhibits featuring the natural and cultural histories of Delmarva’s Chesapeake Bay region. The Delmarva is the 170-mile long peninsula flanked by the Chesapeake Bay on one side and the Atlantic Ocean on the other and is comprised of parts of Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia. Discover how the Read more...
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The Crisfield Heritage Foundation invites you to explore exhibits about Crisfield’s maritime past. Discover the natural history, the crab and oyster industries, shipbuilding, decoys and much more. Learn the story of Crisfield and the Chesapeake, from the first humans inhabitants to the era of bustling “seafood capitol of the world”. The museum is the central hub for CHF and a must-see Read more...
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The Skipjack Heritage Museum is dedicated to sharing the story of America’s last commercial sailing fleet. At the turn of last century, hundreds of skipjacks plied the cold waters, dredging in search of Chesapeake gold – the oyster. Now, less than a dozen of these graceful vessels still carry on that tradition. The museum features photos, artifacts, and displays about these Read more...