The seat of Charles County in Southern Maryland is near the head of the Port Tobacco River, which was a center for international trade in the 17th and 18th century. Port Tobacco, now just a group of historic buildings on La Plata’s outskirts, was once the second-largest river port in Maryland, driven by a booming …
In northeastern Maryland, the seat of Harford County is an outer suburb of Baltimore, but with its own story to tell. Artsy downtown Bel Air packs history, cultural venues, a veteran farmers’ market, lively events, and an ever-growing network of hiking and biking trails to help you get around without a car. The founder of …
Twenty minutes by train from North Station, Lynn is a city with such a sordid historical reputation that it was known as the “City of Sin”. The exact origin of the jingle, “Lynn, Lynn, City of Sin” is unknown, but it might have something to do with the city’s hardscrabble heritage. Long a manufacturing powerhouse, …
Just south of Boston, Quincy is a city with 27 miles of shoreline and a special role in the early history of the United States. This is the birthplace of John Adams (1735-1826) and his son John Quincy Adams (1767-1848), the second and sixth U.S. presidents. John Hancock, the first signer of the Declaration of …
One of the windiest cities in the country, Brockton is a blue collar community of 100,000, about 20 miles south of Boston. In keeping with its hardscrabble character, Brockton has produced a couple of the greatest boxers of all time, Marvin Hagler and Rocky Marciano. Marciano is remembered with a monumental statue at Brockton High …
Within the Capital Beltway, less than ten miles northeast of Washington, D.C., College Park is a suburban city, home to the University of Maryland (UMD). UMD is a recurring feature in this list, for its Big 10 sports, culture and a stunning campus with the largest quad in the country at McKeldin Mall. There’s a …
On Maryland’s Eastern Shore, Salisbury is the Wicomico County seat and the commercial and cultural powerhouse of the Delmarva Peninsula. Between 2018 and 2022 the city was the venue for the roving National Folk Festival, which has helped bring about a cultural and physical renewal of the city’s downtown area. This is perfect for an …
Designed and built in the midst of the Great Depression, Greenbelt is an intact example of an experimental planned New Deal community. Inspired by Utopian collectivist ideals, in which town businesses were owned and managed cooperatively by residents, this Garden City is rare for surviving relatively unchanged. Even a couple of the cooperatives remain at …
Set on the Patuxent River, halfway between Washington, D.C. and Baltimore, Laurel is a city with early roots in the iron and cotton industries. You can travel back to those times at an historic mill worker’s house, now Laurel Museum, and the opulent Montpelier Mansion where several generations of the powerful Snowden family resided. Nowadays, …
The seat of Carroll County in northern Maryland sits in rolling green countryside, woven with orchards, vineyards and sunflower farms. Westminster is an essential part of Maryland’s wine industry. As well as having a few wineries within easy reach, the city has hosted the state’s annual wine festival for close to 40 years. There are …