By James Crabtree In the opening years of the American Civil War, the Army of Northern Virginia, led by General Robert E. Lee, enjoyed a great deal of success, outperforming all expectations and dealing numerous defeats to the Union Army. After Lee had prevented many Union attempts to capture Richmond, the capital of the Confederacy,…
Category: Historical Society
Tracks to Trails: The History of the B&A Railroad
As members of the Severna Park community, we all know and love the B&A Trail. Allowing places to run for our sports team or an easy bike ride to school, but did you know the B&A Trail has an interesting past? Beginning its use in 1887 with its first passenger run, the B&A Railroad served…
The Life of Jimmy Carter
On January 6th, Jimmy Carter, our 39th president, wrote a powerful opinion piece in the New York Times about the one-year anniversary of the Capitol insurrection. While his words about the state of our democracy were eye-opening, my mind wandered in a different direction: what do I really know about Jimmy Carter? The first thing…
Severn School Grad Launches Original Space Telescope
By Alex Brenia, ’22 Recently, NASA launched the James Webb Space Telescope, a satellite designed to detect infrared light from celestial bodies. The telescope is so precise that it can detect light that took over 13 billion years to reach Earth, but did you know that a former Severn student helped launch the James Webb’s…
The Maryland Zoo in Baltimore: Our Nation’s 3rd Oldest Zoo!
Did you know the Maryland Zoo in Baltimore is the third oldest zoo in the nation? Although the then named Baltimore Zoo officially opened in April 1876, the zoological gardens that acted as the basis for the zoo opened all the way back in 1862. To put that in perspective, our very own Maryland Zoo…
Crimes Committed in the Name of Science: Anatomy Riots
This is the first in a series of articles dedicated to Crimes Committed in the Name of Science By Reese Corckran & Parker Collins The Anatomy Riots took place in New York City in 1788. At this time, doctors needed bodies to dissect, as they were trying to figure out how the body was put…
Myths and Magic: The Salem Witch Trials
Beginning in January 1692, many women and one man were accused of participating in witchcraft. It began when a doctor diagnosed a group of young girls who were experiencing fits consisting of screams, contortions, and seizures as witches partaking in dark magic. Over the course of many months, more than two-hundred women were accused of…
History of the Chesapeake Bay Retriever
The Chesapeake Bay Retriever is known and loved across Maryland as our official state dog. But where did this water-loving dog come from? As legend goes, an English shipwreck in 1807 in the Chesapeake Bay left two surviving Newfoundland dogs: Sailor and Canton. Quickly, the two became cherished and adored by residents across the Chesapeake…
History of Old Bay
Cowritten by Lila Gibson and Doug Schwartz For Marylanders, Old Bay is a household name. It goes on everything from crabs (its intended use) to popcorn (probably not its intended use). Although most of us know and use Old Bay, not many people are aware of its historical ties to Maryland. . . and Germany. …