Maryland is filled with iconic landmarks – from one of America’s bloodiest battles to the birthplace of an anti-slavery activist – making this state one worth adding to your travel bucket list. Here are 13 amazing destinations worth checking off your list.
Francis Scott Key composed our National Anthem as he witnessed Fort McHenry being bombarded in September 1862, marking an important turning point in the Civil War which eventually resulted in President Lincoln issuing his Emancipation Proclamation Proclamation. Explore its significance today when visiting Fort McHenry!
St. Mary’s City
Maryland’s inaugural capital combines waterfront hamlets, woodlands, and tidal river as part of an elegant living history exhibits collection curated through decades of research. Step aboard the Dove (replica ship of Lord Baltimore that brought his settlers here in 1634); stroll Town Center where you’ll find an antique store full of colonist favorite (reproduction) items like Dutch “face jugs”) while visiting Town Square to tour a mercantile filled with the items colonists treasured in 1634–all at once! Visit Maryland’s first capital reconstructed Print Shop south of Boston–an experience like no other!
Once Annapolis became Maryland’s capital in 1695, Colonial St. Mary’s City nearly disappeared from view. But archaeologists kept searching for signs of this 17th century town – and found enough evidence to reconstruct many buildings including a statehouse! Stroll around this property for more such as Woodland Indian hamlets and working reproductions of printing presses from Southern colonies before visiting Godiah Spray’s 17th-century tobacco plantation where you’ll get a sense of life before religious freedom became a legal right.
Antietam National Battlefield
Antietam National Battlefield in Sharpsburg in Washington County in northwestern Maryland honors one of the bloodiest days in American Civil War history. A visitor center and national military cemetery can be found here along with Burnside’s Bridge – commemorating Burnside himself – a stone arch bridge known as Burnside’s Bridge as well as a field hospital museum. Contrasting Gettysburg where visitors come for monuments and displays, Antietam offers more of a somber experience for visitors.
Park Rangers offer guided tours designed to give visitors insights into the maneuvers and their consequences at this historic site. The National Park Service has begun elevating stories of those who lived and died here, including children. A Kid’s Track Trail at the park leading through Mumma & Roulette farms as well as walking past Pry House Field Hospital can help children understand sacrifice. Alternatively, book a personalized private tour with one of their licensed Battlefield Guides for an exceptional experience.
Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Historic Park
Maryland was home to more people fleeing bondage and slavery than any other state, offering authentic escape missions at various sites along Maryland’s Network to Freedom. Visit Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Historic Park for immersive exhibits about her childhood as an enslaved woman and daring rescue missions by Tubman herself; alternatively visit Corbit-Sharp House where Quaker abolitionists helped fugitives by hosting an exhibit about Quaker Abolitionists helping fugitives escape.
Dorchester County, with its vast network of waterways and marshes, would have been familiar to Harriet Tubman during her many escape attempts and subsequent returns to aid other freedom seekers. This National Park Service site forms part of an expansive heritage network on Maryland’s Eastern Shore that connects to other Network to Freedom sites across southern Maryland. You can even embark on Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad All American Road as you journey through an area rich in African-American history!
Maryland State House
The Maryland State House is one of Maryland’s most historic locations, having served as the location where Congress of Confederation met (an early precursor of today’s United States bound by Constitution) from 1783-84 and housing where Treaty of Paris was ratified (formally ending America’s first war of independence against Britain).
Touring Annapolis’ historic sites offers visitors an exhilarating journey through American history. Many say taking a guided tour is the ideal way to pass an hour or so in Annapolis.
Maryland boasts many incredible historical landmarks to discover, such as Accokeek Creek Site – a Native American village – and Carrollton Viaduct (once the longest stone railroad bridge). Harriet Tubman’s birthplace and first act of defiance against her enslavers should also be visited – these locations make up part of Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Historic Park.
