Society Celebrates the Reopening of the Frederick S. DeMarr Library of County History

“Wow! This is the best event the Historical Society has ever had!”Those were the words of one Historical Society member who attended the grand reopening of theFrederick S. DeMarr Library of County History and the preceding special literary event. No wonder the Historical Society’s Board of Directors and Library Committee feel so good about the afternoon of 31 May 2008! In spite of torrential rain, thunder, and the threat of a tornado, more than 80 visitors packed into the meeting room at the Greenbelt Community Center to hear local authors talk about their books on Prince George’s County history, and then to witness the library reopening. The crowd comprised not only members of the Society, but also many interested members of the public, who we hope will have been inspired to join us.

County Executive Jack Johnson joined the group, and gave very apropos remarks about his childhood memories of the arrival of a library in his rural community. Elizabeth Dougherty, as mistress of ceremonies, acknowledged the contributions of many who made the event possible - individuals from the County Library system, the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission, architect Kent Abraham, the Petro Design/Build crew, Society sponsors, the Library Committee, and many hardworking volunteers. Thanks were given to the DeMarr family who joined us for the occasion, especially Louise DeMarr Tatspaugh and Robert DeMarr, sister and brother of Fred DeMarr, the founding father of our library. Elizabeth then introduced each of the 15 authors, who briefly introduced their books on various aspects of Prince George’s County history.

After the forum, the crowd took advantage of the opportunity to talk with the authors, examine and buy books, and enjoy punch, cookies and cake. The gathering then adjourned next door to the Greenbelt Branch of the County Library system for the ribbon cutting and formal reopening – and what a delight it was to see the ribbon cut by Fred DeMarr’s sister and brother! The happy event continued, with tours of the new library rooms. All expressed great admiration for our handsome new space, the extent of our collection, and the efficiency of its arrangements.

The library will now be open for research and browsing on Saturdays from noon to 4:00 p.m., and we will soon announce additional hours of service during the week. Feel free to call the library staff at our new number, 301-220-0330. The e-mail address for library inquiries has not changed – it is still pgchslibrary@aol.com. We will try to respond to all inquiries as promptly as possible. Remember, we are now located in the Greenbelt library building at 11 Crescent Road in Greenbelt, but inquiries sent by mail should still be addressed to the Historical Society address, P.O. Box 14, Riverdale, MD 20738-0014.

Several guests at the reopening event asked for a list of the authors and books from the Authors’ Forum. We provide it here.

Authors and Books, Authors’ Forum, 31 May 2008

1.   Fannie L. Basim, Town of Bowie, Maryland, 1870–1960 (Bowie, Md.: Huntington Heritage Society, Inc., 2006)

2.   Virginia Beauchamp, on behalf of herself and Mary Lou Williamson, Greenbelt: History of a New Town, 1937–1987 (updated ed., Norfolk, Va.: Donning Company, 1997)

3.   Katharine D. Bryant and Donna Schneider, Prince George’s County, Maryland, Images of America Series (Charleston, S.C.: Arcadia Publishing, 2000)

4.   George H. Callcott, A History of the University of Maryland (Baltimore, Md.: Maryland Historical Society, 1966); and The University of Maryland at College Park: A History (Baltimore, Md.: Noble House, 2005)

5.   Margaret Law Callcott, ed., Mistress of Riversdale: The Plantation Letters of Rosalie Stier Calvert, 1795–1821 (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1991)

6. Ann Harris Davidson, Berwyn Heights, Then and Now Series (Charleston, S.C.: Arcadia Publishing, 2008)

7. George D. Denny, Proud Past, Promising Future: Cities and Towns in Prince George’s County, Maryland (Brentwood, Md.: G. D. Denny Jr., 1997); and Brentwood, Town in Transition (Brentwood, Md.: G. D. Denny, Jr., 2008)

8. Michael W. Kauffman, American Brutus: John Wilkes Booth and the Lincoln Conspiracies (New York: Random House, 2004)

9. Cathy D. Knepper, Greenbelt, Maryland: A Living Legacy of the New Deal (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2001)

10. Nathania Branch Miles on behalf of Nathania Branch Miles, Jane Taylor Thomas, and Beverly Babin Woods, Fort Washington, Images of America Series (Charleston, S.C.: Arcadia Publishing, 2005); on behalf of Nathania Branch Miles and Jane Taylor Thomas, Oxon Hill, Images of America Series (Charleston, S.C.: Arcadia Publishing, 2006); and on behalf of Carolyn Corpening Rowe, Jane Taylor Thomas, and Beverly Babin Woods, Prince George’s County, Maryland, Black America Series (Chicago, Ill.: Arcadia Publishing, 2003)

11. Susan G. Pearl, Illustrated Inventory of Historic Sites: Prince George’s County, Maryland (Upper Marlboro, Md.: Maryland–National Capital Park and Planning Commission, 2006); and African-American Heritage Survey, Prince George’s County, Maryland (Upper Marlboro, Md.: Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission, 1996); and on behalf of Jack E. Boucher, Susan G. Pearl, and Catherine C. Lavoie, Landmarks of Prince George’s County (Baltimore, Johns Hopkins University Press, 1993)

12. Anthony Pitch, The Burning of Washington: The British Invasion of 1814 (Annapolis, Md.: Naval Institute Press, 1998)

13. Stephanie E. Stullich and Katharine D. Bryant, College Park, Images of America Series (Charleston, S.C.: Arcadia Publishing, 2005)

14. Diane Stultz, on behalf of the Prince George’s County Genealogical Society, Early Records of the White Marsh Church, Prince George’s County, Maryland (Bowie, Md.: Prince George’s County Genealogical Society, 2005); and Gleanings from the Records of the Francis Gasch’s Sons Funeral Home, Prince George’s County, Maryland 1860–1940 (Bowie, Md.: Prince George’s County Genealogical Society, 1996); and Records of the Almshouse of Prince George’s County, Maryland (Bowie, Md.: Prince George’s County Genealogical Society, 2003); and Jean A. Sergeant, Stones and Bones, Cemetery Records of Prince George’s County, Maryland (Bowie, Md.: Prince George’s County Genealogical Society, 1984, now available on compact disk).

Susan G. Pearl, June 2008

The book and author list can be downloaded in Word format here.