Have a photo you'd like to place in Washington County's family album?

April 14, 2004

Your photos. Your stories. Your county. Your book.

This describes The Herald-Mail Company's first book venture, "Washington County, Maryland - Our Past, Our People, A Historical Portrait." It will be a treasure trove of Washington County photographs and the historical information they portray, dating from the late 1800s through the 1950s.

We are now collecting photos from the citizens of Washington County to publish in the book. These photos are not necessarily of the newsmakers of the day, but our ancestors who formed the backbone of the community. People living, working and playing in Washington County.

We are planning Volume I of this limited-edition hardbound book to be printed in August and available in September. People are already ordering the book at the reduced pre-publication price to make sure they get a copy.

We've received more than 300 photos to date. Many of these are exquisite, personally treasured photos from people in the community. But there are many more we're seeking to make our book complete.

If you have any of the following photos through the 1950s, which have never been published, we'd love to hear from you:

Picnicking, dancing, riding the carousel or any activity at Pen Mar Park.
Construction at Crystal Grottos in the early 1920s or people viewing the caverns in the 20s or 30s.
The last train leaving Hagerstown showing passengers or any early railroad photos.
People having fun at Richardson's, Dairy Queen or Jim's Always on Dual Highway in the 50s.
Photos of people at the famous teenage congregation spot "The Val" on North Potomac Street.
People planting or harvesting crops, milking cows, working their farms before the 1950s.
C&O Canal photos showing people living, working, and playing on the canal.
Church picnics, people at festivals, family reunions.
Early Hagerstown Fairground photos showing people enjoying events.

The cover photo, showing the Veterans Victory Homecoming Parade on Nov. 11, 1946, was donated by the Washington County Historical Society. We'd be pleased to hear from other historical societies, churches, and businesses with long histories in the county.

We need to know as much accurate information as possible about the photos we put in the pictorial history book. If you have a photo and know when it was taken, who's in it, the location, etc. - please call Michele Wills or Susan Snyder at 301-733-5131 or 800-626-6397 for an appointment. We're looking forward to meeting you.

|

|

|