Museum of Howard County History Exhibits

Whether it’s daily life in an 19th century mill town, the history of the 4-H Club or a closer look at the lives of the county’s founding fathers, our permanent collection along with periodic themed exhibitions of artifacts and information provide visitors with a deeper understanding and a hands on experience of Howard County history.
Lesson Plans

Temporary Exhibits

VOTES FOR WOMEN: A PORTRAIT OF PERSISTENCE

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Ongoing Exhibits

ELLICOTT CITY: A VISUAL HISTORY

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A RIVER RUNS THROUGH IT: THE FLOODS OF ELLICOTT CITY

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MUSEUM EXHIBITS

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FEATURED OBJECTS

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GIFT SHOP

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Did You Know?
Scientist, mathematician, farmer, astronomer, publisher, and descendant of enslaved Africans, Benjamin Banneker publishes his Almanac in 1791.
In the 19th century, Ellicott City was a resort where the wealthy escaped the heat and stink of Baltimore in the summer. Both this collapsible key and a more regularly shaped companion were found around 1940 at the Howard House. This Main Street, Ellicott City hotel also provided space to the local Masonic Society. Today the building houses apartments. The key is shown against a piece of the original Howard House china.

Howard House Collapsible Key & Plate

Thomas Johnson (1732-1819) was a delegate to the 1774 and 1775 Continental Congress. His family's factory near Frederick, Md. manufactured ammunition for the rebels. He was the first governor of Maryland after the Revolutionary War from 1777 to 1779. George Washington appointed him as associate justice on the Supreme Court in 1791, where he became the author of the Court's first written opinion in 1792. Due to ill health, he declined an appointment to become Secretary of State, although he had been nominated by Thomas Jefferson. He retired to Rose Hill Manor near Frederick, Md. where he died in 1819.

Thomas Johnson’s Dentures

This 1885 organ built by the A.B. Felgemacher Organ Company of Erie, PA is housed in the Society’s Museum. Formerly the First Presbyterian Church of Ellicott City, this magnificent building features stained and leaded glass windows as well as a “hidden” rose window picturing two angels depicting Henry and Melissa, children of Rev. Branch, who died in infancy. The building was donated by Mrs. Alda Hopkins Clark in 1958 and is now used to display our Museum collection as well as a venue for organ concerts, meetings and weddings.

A.B. Felgemacher Organ

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