A virtual lecture for Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission (MNCPPC)
Dennis J. Pogue, PhD, University of Maryland
In 1980 a group of young architectural historians—who were generally associated with state agencies and historic sites and museums— embarked on a long-term effort to record early agricultural buildings in the Tidewater region, extending from Delaware to North Carolina. The stimuli for this work were the threats to the once-ubiquitous buildings, as they no longer served their traditional functions—and which were largely unadaptable for contemporary uses— and the realization that these humble, yet iconic, structures had been largely ignored by the traditional interests of architectural history. The focus of attention fell on corn houses and granaries, meat houses and dairies, stables, livestock shelters, and cart sheds, and, most commonly, on barns— for hay, dairying, and curing tobacco. This effort continues, and with even greater urgency, as the forces of time, weather, negligence, and rural development take their inexorable toll. Faculty and students with the University of Maryland Historic Preservation Program are in the process of documenting outstanding examples of a range of farm buildings dating to the first half of the 19th century, both to record the threatened structures and to encourage property owners to preserve these important historical resources. In this presentation I will report on this recent work and place the findings within the context of studying the agricultural history of Southern Maryland.
The event is free to the public; registration is required.