Category Archives: Montgomery County, Maryland

Montgomery County, Maryland

The Montgomery County (MD) Poor Farm and Almshouse

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For nearly 160 years, the Almshouse at the Montgomery County Poor Farm was the last resort for poor people who were unable to take care of themselves due to physical, mental, and developmental disabilities. A look at some of their stories, including how they lived and died, sheds a light on conditions there. Despite the oversight of county officials and the efforts of reformers, the Almshouse was a place where the poor were neglected, abused, and exposed to unsafe conditions until it closed in 1948.

On December 17, 2024, I gave a Zoom presentation on the Montgomery County Poor Farm and its Almshouse for Montgomery History. Almshouses were in some ways a precursor to the state hospitals for the mentally ill. Some of my ancestors were inmates of almshouses (also known as poor houses) in Connecticut and Rhode Island.  This is a video of my talk.

Local History, Maryland, Montgomery County, Maryland, Music

Will Adams, Fiddler of Ken-Gar

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Detail from Frank H. M. Klinge, Atlas Of Montgomery County, Maryland, Landsdale, Pa.: 1949.
Detail from Frank H. M. Klinge, Atlas Of Montgomery County, Maryland, Landsdale, Pa.: 1949.

Video of virtual talk from February 15, 2022. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-GULm_6pTFM

Introduction

In 1953, two people from different worlds met in Ken-Gar. Will Adams was an elderly African American man from Ken-Gar, a predominantly Black neighborhood wedged between Kensington and Garrett Park in Montgomery County, Maryland. Mike Seeger was a young White man from upscale Chevy Chase, the son of two prominent music scholars. His older half-brother was Pete Seeger, the famous folk singer and banjo player. Mike Seeger made field recordings of Will Adams playing the fiddle, and old-time music history was made.

I wanted to know more about Adams, where he came from, and how he might have learned his music. While doing this research, I realized that his ancestry offers a glimpse into African American life in Montgomery County from the final years of slavery into the mid-twentieth century. In addition, the musical legacies of both men – Will Adams and Mike Seeger – live on to this day. Continue reading Will Adams, Fiddler of Ken-Gar →

Local History, Montgomery County, Maryland

Sanctified Sisters of Colesville: The Hidden History of Commonwealth Farm

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"A Sanctified Sisterhood," The Washington Times, April 6, 1902, section three, pp. 1, 4.
“A Sanctified Sisterhood,” The Washington Times, April 6, 1902, section three, pp. 1, 4.

Watch the video: “Sanctifed Sisters of Colesville: The Hidden History of Commonwealth Farm” (YouTube)

Commonwealth Farm was a 119-acre property in Colesville that was owned by a women’s commune formed in the 1870s in Belton, Texas. They were called the Sanctified Sisters or Sanctificationists at first, but eventually became known as the Woman’s Commonwealth. Their beliefs were based on divine revelations received by their leader which espoused sanctification, non-sectarianism, and celibacy. They were economically self-sustaining, pooling their financial resources and living communally. In 1898, the commune moved from Texas to Washington, D.C. In 1903, they purchased the Colesville farm, where they raised dairy cattle, chickens, and pigs, and grew vegetables, fruit trees, corn, and wheat. For over four decades, the commune ran the Commonwealth Farm Inn and restaurant on the property, which became a popular spot for members of high-society and influential Washingtonians.
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Local History, Montgomery County, Maryland

Commonwealth Farm, Colesville, Maryland

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Stone retaining wall visible from New Hampshire Avenue. (J. Mangin, January 24, 2021)
Stone retaining wall visible from New Hampshire Avenue. (J. Mangin, January 24, 2021)
Watch: “Sanctifed Sisters of Colesville: The Hidden History of Commonwealth Farm” (YouTube)

Introduction

Late last year, stuck at home, my activities hampered by the pandemic, I found myself intrigued by a posting in a Facebook group.  Someone asked if anyone knew the history behind a stone retaining wall he’d seen on the east side New Hampshire Avenue, while heading north toward Good Hope Road. I didn’t know, but having nothing better to do, I set about to find the answer. I knew I had the research skills; for the past few years, I have scoured photograph archives, land records, digital newspapers, and maps to write the history of the Aspin Hill Pet Cemetery. Even so, when it comes to historical research there are times when, no matter how hard one looks, there’s nothing to go on. But this time, I was in luck. Continue reading Commonwealth Farm, Colesville, Maryland →