Carroll Yesteryears 24 July 2011 Wheat Added to County’s Charm by Mary Ann Ashcraft There are few sights in Carroll County as pretty at this time of year as a freshly-harvested field of wheat. The rich tawny color and the pattern left by a combine following the contours of a field are asking to be captured [...]
Carroll Yesteryears 10 July 2011 Feeling the Pain of Civil War by Mary Ann Ashcraft When historian R. J. Rockefeller spoke at a recent Carroll County Genealogical Society banquet, he described the activities of Maryland soldiers from the 1700s through World War II, but he went one step further, pleading with listeners to do more than [...]
Carroll Yesteryears 26 June 2011 Carroll Turned to POWs During WWII Labor Shortage by Mary Ann Ashcraft As America sent millions of her young men off to fight in World War II, the shortage of manpower became more and more critical here at home. Although women went to work in many industries, there were simply not [...]
Carroll Yesteryears 12 June 2011 County Clothing Industry Expanded in Late 1800s by Mary Ann Ashcraft A lengthy article appeared in Westminster’s Democratic Advocate on November 13, 1897, announcing the opening of the Westminster Shirt Factory. It appears this was the first of many clothing manufactories to operate in Carroll County over the next fifty or [...]
Carroll Yesteryears 22 May 2011 Bring Back Tradition of Flowers on Memorial Day by Mary Ann Ashcraft Holidays are all about traditions and this Memorial Day you can help revive a tradition which began in Carroll County in 1868. It is the tradition of putting fresh flowers on the graves of veterans who made the ultimate [...]
Carroll Yesteryears 8 May 2011 Warm Weather Prompted Start of Westminster Ice Company by Mary Ann Ashcraft For centuries, people relied upon harvesting ice during the winter and storing it in ice pits or ice houses for use during the warm months. Ice cream was a treat everyone enjoyed, but it wasn’t possible without access to [...]
Carroll Yesteryears 24 April 2011 Secession Spilled Over to County by Mary Ann Ashcraft Little is remembered today about Dr. Bernard Mills and the role he played when Maryland was caught between allegiance to the North or South as the Civil War began in 1861. Mills was a native of Calvert County, but he married a [...]
Carroll Yesteryears 10 April 2011 Mill a Part of County’s Past by Mary Ann Ashcraft Mills for grinding grain, sawing wood, fulling (thickening) wool and other purposes dotted the Carroll County countryside in days gone by. There was abundant local water power to operate them and milling could prove a very profitable business. Early maps show [...]
Carroll Yesteryears 27 March 2011 Lodge Nears 200th Anniversary by Mary Ann Ashcraft Fraternal organizations such as the Elks, Jaycees, Odd Fellows and Freemasons have attracted members from Carroll County over the years, but perhaps no group has a longer history in the county than the Door to Virtue Lodge of Freemasons which is celebrating its [...]
Carroll Yesteryears 13 March 2011 Sign of the Times by Mary Ann Ashcraft As the United States pulls itself out of this “Great Recession” we have experienced the last few years, it is interesting to look back at earlier recessions and depressions to see how they affected Carroll County. The Great Depression, which began in 1929 [...]