Frederick County, AARCH Society to launch study on African American history

Ceoli Jacoby, The Frederick News-Post, Md.
Updated ·2 min read

Sep. 20—The Frederick County government and the African American Resources Cultural and Heritage (AARCH) Society will conduct a countywide study as part of a Recovering Identity project.

The Recovering Identity project is an initiative to create a historical record of African American communities throughout Frederick County.

The first phase of the project, completed in collaboration with the Catoctin Furnace Historical Society, focused on communities in the northern part of the county.

Based on their findings from phase one, the historical society put forward 15 possible sites to be added to the Maryland Historical Trust's Inventory of Historic Properties. The partners on the project also put together a historic context study of the area.

Elizabeth Comer, the president of the Catoctin Furnace Historical Society, said on Wednesday that historic context studies "provide a framework to evaluate individual sites and structures for historical significance."

Phase two of the Recovering Identity project will concentrate on African American history, culture and traditions in the rest of the county, according to a press release issued Wednesday.

Both phases of the project received grant funding from the Maryland Historical Trust, a division of the Maryland Department of Planning.

Planning Department spokesman David Buck wrote in an email to The Frederick News-Post on Wednesday that the trust awarded a $25,000 Certified Local Government Grant to Frederick County in 2021 for background research in support of Recovering Identity.

For the first phase of the project, the Catoctin Furnace Historical Society was awarded a $50,000 Non-Capital Historic Preservation Grant in 2021, Buck wrote.

Comer said on Wednesday that the grant funds for phase one of the project were used to hire architectural historians to conduct field research.

Frederick County was awarded a $35,000 Non-Capital Historic Preservation grant for phase two of the project in 2023, according to Buck.

County spokeswoman Chloe Scott told the News-Post on Thursday that Frederick County also contributed $41,500 toward the second phase of the project, bringing the total budget for phase two of Recovering Identity up to $76,500.

The Frederick County government and the AARCH Society will officially launch the new historic context study during a community meeting on Sept. 27 at 7 p.m.

The meeting will be held at the Rollins Life Celebration Center on Catoctin Avenue in Frederick, according to the press release.

Community members who attend will learn about the importance of historic context studies in the community planning process and how to get involved with the Recovering Identity project.

The meeting will also address the goals of the countywide study and other ongoing efforts to accurately document African American history in Frederick County, the press release said.

The county is encouraging anyone seeking more information about the Recovering Identity project to email RecoveringIdentity@FrederickCountyMD.gov.