Honoring Our Past. Celebrating Our Future.
In 2026, America marks 250 years of independence — and here on Maryland’s Lower Shore, we’re celebrating our unique role in that incredible journey.
From working waterfronts, fertile farmlands, and to the cultural crossroads of Somerset, Wicomico, and Worcester County, our communities have shaped — and been shaped by — the American story. Whether through military service, civic leadership, innovation, or everyday resilience, the people of the Lower Shore have played a vital role in our nation’s development.
As part of the national America250 commemoration, Maryland Lower Shore 250 invites you to explore our shared heritage and engage in meaningful ways. Through local events, educational programs, exhibits, and storytelling, we will honor the generations who came before us and inspire future leaders and changemakers.
From working waterfronts, fertile farmlands, and to the cultural crossroads of Somerset, Wicomico, and Worcester County, our communities have shaped — and been shaped by — the American story. Whether through military service, civic leadership, innovation, or everyday resilience, the people of the Lower Shore have played a vital role in our nation’s development.
As part of the national America250 commemoration, Maryland Lower Shore 250 invites you to explore our shared heritage and engage in meaningful ways. Through local events, educational programs, exhibits, and storytelling, we will honor the generations who came before us and inspire future leaders and changemakers.
Events:
Visit our event calendar for more information on upcoming MD 250 events: https://dir.beachesbayswaterways.org/events/
- MD 250 Event - Pocomoke Indian Nation Talk: November 10th, 2025. 5:30pm - 6:30pm
- The Pocomoke Indian Nation will be holding a talk at the Snow Hill library. From maps, treaties, and court cases recorded by the pens of colonists and early Marylanders, we can learn much about a once thriving vibrant culture whose descendants continue to live in our region today.
- Worcester County Library - Snow Hill Branch, 307 N Washington St, Snow Hill, MD 21863.
- For more information, visit https://worcesterlibrary.libcal.com/event/14803574 or https://pocomokeindiannation.org/
- Lower Shore 250 Meeting: November 11th, 2025. 10:30am - 1:30pm
- Salisbury University’s Institute for Public Affairs and Civic Engagement (PACE) hosts conversations regarding ideas for the upcoming Lower Shore 250 celebration.
- Salisbury University, Guerrieri Student Union, Nanticoke Room.
- Contact us to let us know you're coming (it helps with planning).
- Liberty of Conscience: The Founding of Maryland MPT Premiere | November 15th, 2025. 8:00pm
- Liberty of Conscience: The Founding of Maryland explores the origins of the United States 7th state, where early ideals of religious liberty took shape amid colonization, power struggles, and Indigenous displacement. Don’t miss the statewide premiere on Maryland Public Television on November 15th, 8pm ET.
- To watch live, channel guide, and more information, go to https://www.mpt.org/
- The American Revolution on the Shore | November 16th, 2025. 2:00pm
- A lecture by Dr. G. Ray Thompson, Professor Emeritus at Salisbury University and co-founder of the Edward H. Nabb Research Center for Delmarva History and Culture at SU. More details to come. Hosted by the Somerset County Historical Trust.
- St. Andrews Parish Hall, 30513 Washington St., Princess Anne, MD.
- Holiday Historic House Tour: Celebrating 250 Years in Somerset | December 6th, 2025. 10:00am - 6:00pm
- Enjoy a Holiday Tour of historic homes, churches & public sites in Somerset County, MD.
- In honor of the 250th Celebration our our Nation, the 2025 tour will feature several properties built in the 1776 time period/vicinity. Several of the private homes have not been on the tour for decades, if ever!
- Note: transportation is not provided.
- Tour tickets are $25 and are available through the Somerset County Historical Society.
- SPARK! Exhibit at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore | January 17, 2026 - March 1, 2026
- Spark!: Places of Innovation explores the unique combination of places, people, and circumstances that sparks innovation and invention in rural communities.
- Selected sites will host the Smithsonian exhibit, work with local partners in their community, and create additional programming to support the exhibit.
- SPARK! has been made possible in the state by Maryland Humanities. SPARK! is part of the Museum on Main Street, a collaboration between the Smithsonian Institution and state humanities councils. Support for Museum on Main Street has been provided by the United States Congress.
We're Planting Liberty Trees
To help kick-off the MD250th celebration, a tree will be planted in every county in 2026, with a major kick off on Maryland Day. The lead partnerships are the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, Preservation Maryland, Maryland Center for History and Culture, and the Maryland Heritage Areas Coalition. BBHA will work with local partners and select a site for the Liberty Tree in each county.
The first “Liberty Tree” was an elm that stood in Boston, Massachusetts, and under which protests were held in 1765 to resist the unfair British tax policies. A Liberty Tree became a symbol in the late 18th century as a place to meet and condemn the oppression and launch a resistance that would end in our independence.
In 1889, a scion (In horticultural use a scion is defined as “a detached living portion of a plant, such as a bud or shoot, joined to a stock in grafting”) was planted nearby to guarantee the original tree would always live on. In 1999, Hurricane Floyd felled the original, appx. 400-year-old tulip poplar – but the genetically identical scion survived. Today, that scion casts off seedlings which are grown to saplings – keeping the spirit of this original liberty tree alive. If you would like to recommend a location in Wicomico, Worcester or Somerset, send an email to
[email protected]
The first “Liberty Tree” was an elm that stood in Boston, Massachusetts, and under which protests were held in 1765 to resist the unfair British tax policies. A Liberty Tree became a symbol in the late 18th century as a place to meet and condemn the oppression and launch a resistance that would end in our independence.
In 1889, a scion (In horticultural use a scion is defined as “a detached living portion of a plant, such as a bud or shoot, joined to a stock in grafting”) was planted nearby to guarantee the original tree would always live on. In 1999, Hurricane Floyd felled the original, appx. 400-year-old tulip poplar – but the genetically identical scion survived. Today, that scion casts off seedlings which are grown to saplings – keeping the spirit of this original liberty tree alive. If you would like to recommend a location in Wicomico, Worcester or Somerset, send an email to
[email protected]
Social Media:
Follow us on our social media to stay up to date on the latest history trivia, events, and information about Lower Shore 250!
Partners:
MD 250 Commission: https://mdtwofifty.maryland.gov/
Institute for Public Affairs and Civic Engagement (PACE) at Salisbury University: https://www.salisbury.edu/academic-offices/liberal-arts/pace/
Beach to Bay Heritage Area: https://www.beachesbayswaterways.org/
