Pone, mush and more

(OIYK) After I posted my friend Lorie's recipe for corn pudding in late January, I ended up with several other really good corn recipes.
Jo said it was funny that I'd brought up corn; she writes, "I just found my lost corn pone recipe from cousin Nancy. I like this better than corn bread although the two are similar. I sometimes eat it with milk and a little sugar. It's good anytime." Continued

The Land of Pleasant Living is Nevermore

(Firecured) ... You know, it wasn't always this way. Not so long ago, Maryland liked to think of itself as "The Land of Pleasant Living," a slogan which, despite the fact that it came off a beer can, had more than a little truth to it.
There was a time when the Chesapeake Bay boiled with seafood, the Orioles and Colts were powerhouse organizations, Johnny Unitas was immortal, and Boog Powell still fleet of foot. And there were good jobs for everybody, good union jobs.
Out in the far-flung suburbs people lived more-or-less happily in modest homes and were very polite, even patiently taking turns driving across the one lane bridges that dotted the countryside. Almost everyone smoked, drank, and went to church. Continued

Photo: The Boh Man hovers above Baltimore, mocking us.

Md. senators announce $22M to replace Susquehanna River Bridge

(AP) Maryland’s senators say the state will receive $22 million to replace the Susquehanna River Bridge.
Democratic Sens. Barbara Mikulski and Benjamin Cardin said Monday that the money is part of the U.S. Transportation Department’s investment in high-speed rail in the Northeast Corridor.
The Amtrak Susquehanna River Bridge is more than 100 years old. Continued

Photos: MDRails

Thomas Viaduct, Doughoregan Manor among endangered Howard sites

(Baltimore Sun) Howard County is often seen as a young, fast-growing suburb, but an annual list of the county's top 10 endangered historic sites compiled by the group Preservation Howard County tells another story. ... "These sites were the forerunners of what Columbia and Howard County developed into," Dorsey said. "We're doing this because we feel there's not enough attention given to historic sites by the county. These sites are important, and should be important." Continued

Mother’s Day

“A printed card means nothing except that you are too lazy to write to the woman who has done more for you than anyone in the world. And candy! You take a box to Mother - and then eat most of it yourself. A pretty sentiment.” - Anna Jarvis: Founder of Mother’s Day

Bidding B&O passenger trains goodbye

(Baltimore Sun) With the coming of Amtrak 40 years ago last week, many of the nation's fabled and storied passenger trains, including the Baltimore & Ohio's premier Capitol Limited, which sailed daily between Washington and Chicago for nearly 50 years, began their final runs April 30, 1971.
The clock inextricably ticked toward midnight when at 12:01 a.m. Saturday, May 1, 1971, the National Railroad Passenger Corp. — better known as Amtrak — would assume operation of 182 passenger trains with 21 intercity routes that served 314 American cities and towns.
Another 178 were doomed to extinction, as rail fans across the nation watched, many with cameras to record their passing, bidding them godspeed as they rolled off the timetables and into memory. Continued

Photo: MDRails

Weeb Ewbank

(Wikipedia) Wilbur "Weeb" Ewbank (May 6, 1907 – November 17, 1998) was an American professional football coach. He coached the New York Jets to victory over the Baltimore Colts in Super Bowl III in 1969.
... Ewbank joined the Colts at the recommendation of Cleveland Browns coach Paul Brown. Colts owner Carroll Rosenbloom had called Brown, asking for a coaching tip, as he was interested in Browns assistant Blanton Collier. Brown suggested Ewbank instead and Rosenbloom took the offer.
As coach of the Colts, Ewbank won the 1958 and 1959 NFL championships. The 1958 game is often referred to as "The Greatest Game Ever Played". By the end of the 1962 NFL season, Rosenbloom thought that the Colts had slipped and Ewbank was fired. Rosenbloom replaced him with the then-youngest head coach in NFL history, Don Shula. Continued

Website Promotes People, Places & Events of 1812 War

(WoCCP) Oh, say can you see…. Maryland’s bi-centennial commemoration of the War of 1812 making its way to the Upper Bay Region? A website http://www.upperbay1812.com/ has been developed to share the history, notable people and places of the War of 1812 Upper Bay or Chesapeake Campaign.
A steering committee of stakeholders from both Harford and Cecil Counties is working to capitalize on the events that occurred in the region during the Chesapeake Campaign of the War of 1812. Maryland’s 200 year anniversary of the War presents opportunities to promote and improve the visitor experience in the Upper Bay region. Sites such as The Concord Point Lighthouse, Principio, Elk Landing, and Rodgers Tavern will help connect visitors to this National story and how it relates to the Upper Bay. Continued

Cinco de Mayo

(LoC) Mexican troops under General Ignacio Zaragoza successfully defended the town of Puebla on May 5, 1862, temporarily halting France's efforts to establish a puppet regime in Mexico. With the U.S. absorbed by the Civil War, Emperor Napoleon III hoped to create a French sphere of influence in Latin America. The victory is commemorated as a national holiday in Mexico.
The Mexican victory at Puebla was short-lived. French reinforcements seized the town in March 1863. The following June, Maximilian, younger brother of Emperor Franz Josef of Austria and a member of the Hapsburg dynasty, was crowned emperor of Mexico. He remained in power until 1867, when Napoleon III abandoned his Mexican adventure and withdrew his troops.
In the United States, Cinco de Mayo has become an occasion to celebrate Hispanic culture. Fairs commemorating the day feature singing, dancing, food, and other amusements, and provide a means of sharing a rich and diverse culture. More

Caution: I Brake For History

(Douglas Brinkley) "O Public Road … you express me better than I can express myself. ” I first read Walt Whitman’s “Sone of the Open Road,” in Leaves of Grass , as an Ohio schoolboy. The great democratic chant struck me hard, a lightning bolt of simple, authoritative words proclaiming that only in motion do people have the chance to turn dreams into reality. Even as a fourteen-yearold I already suspected this. After all, my favorite reading, be it Jack London’s Alaska stories, Mark Twain’s Mississippi River tales, or Jack Kerouac’s highway antics, had adventurous escape as a subplot. Continued

DNA Brings WWII Vet Home Decades Later

(WBAL) The remains of a World War II veteran returned home to Maryland on Tuesday more than 66 years after Pfc. Robert Bayne lost his life.
Like so many of his generation, Bayne went off to war as a young man. He was killed by Germans in France and was buried in an unmarked grave.
With the sound of jet engines more that 66 years after he lost his life fighting for his country, a soldier came home. Continued

Samuel Ogle

(Wikipedia) Samuel Ogle (c. 1694 – May 3, 1752) was the Provincial Governor of Maryland from 1731 to 1732, 1733 to 1742, and 1746/1747 to 1752....
Under Ogle's leadership Maryland quickly became engaged in a border dispute with Pennsylvania. Several settlers were taken prisoners on both sides and Penn sent a committee to Governor Ogle to resolve the situation. Rioting broke out in the disputed territory (now known as Cresap's War) and Ogle appealed to the King George II for resolution.Faced with this situation, Charles Calvert, 5th Baron Baltimore arrived in Maryland and assumed charge of the colony in December 1732.
Upon Calvert's arrival, Ogle retired from the governorship for the first time. He would do this twice more. He resumed the governorship in 1733.
The border dispute would not be settled until 1767 when the Mason-Dixon line was recognized as the boundary between Maryland and Pennsylvania. Continued

Heritage trust event adds vital records information from family Bibles

York, PA (YDR) The picture was one she knew nothing about.
It was of a 3-year-old boy who was "somebody that mattered to a Miller," her father's side of the family, Elizabeth Singley said.
The faded photo was one of many in the Miller family Bible that Singley brought with her Saturday to the York County Heritage Trust. She also brought the King family Bible, from her mother's side of the family.
The 67-year-old traveled from Virginia to meet up with her cousin Helen Lehman, 77, to learn more about family history. Continued

Disunion: Maryland, My Maryland

(NYTimes) ... Virginia’s secession threatened to place hostile forces right at Washington’s throat, but it was what Virginia’s decision augured for Maryland, which encloses the capital on three sides, that struck fear in unionist hearts. The assumption has always been that whatever Virginia was going to do about secession, Maryland would do as well, as though their common attachment to terrapin, horseflesh and tobacco would bind their destinies in lockstep. Were that to happen, the capital would surely be lost. Rebel forces would not have to march on Washington; they would merely have to roll out of bed. Continued

Photo: Hon. Thomas Holliday Hicks of Md. (Library of Congress).

Benjamin Latrobe

(Wikipedia) Benjamin Henry Boneval Latrobe (May 1, 1764 - September 3, 1820) was a British-born American architect best known for his design of the United States Capitol, as well as his design of Baltimore's cathedral.
Latrobe came to the United States in 1796, settling first in Virginia and then relocating to Philadelphia where he set up his practice. In 1803, he was hired as Surveyor of the Public Buildings of the United States, and spent much of the next fourteen years working on projects in Washington, D.C.
Later in his life, Latrobe worked on a waterworks project in New Orleans, where he ended up dying in 1820 from yellow fever. He has been called the "Father of American Architecture." Continued