Visualize Maryland’s history through colorful mural trail
By Dorchester County, MD
November 19, 2024
Dorchester County, located on Maryland’s Eastern Shore, is home to more than 20 stunning hand-painted murals. These large-scale artworks make up the Chesapeake Mural Trail, decorating street corners, community centers and museums all over the county. Together, the murals chronicle Dorchester’s unique history and culture – from its rich oyster harvesting traditions to its direct ties to the Underground Railroad.
One such mural, “Ode to Watermen,” depicts three watermen harvesting oysters on the Choptank River. Maryland is known for its fresh seafood, and Dorchester is home to the oldest crab house in the world, J.M. Clayton Company, where professional pickers prepare renowned Chesapeake Bay blue crabs.
“The watermen are our lifeblood,” said Jerry Hayes, the owner of Elusive Tours, a premium transportation and touring company based in Cambridge. “They’ve passed on this tradition from generation to generation, and this is what made our county so special. Visitors from all over the world come here to eat the best crabs and oysters that we have to offer.”
Dorchester’s “Take My Hand” mural, which shows Harriet Tubman reaching out to the viewer as if to help them climb over a brick barricade, went viral in 2020. Visitors can find another depiction of Tubman on the corner of Maryland Avenue and Route 50.
This mural is dedicated to Dorchester’s Pine Street Neighborhood Historic District, which boasts more than 150 years of African-American history. The work shows Tubman flanked by a crowd of other vital leaders from Maryland, including Gloria Richardson Dandridge, a key figure in the civil rights movement, and Nurse Maxine Magee, one of the first Black public health nurses in the country.
“Pine Street was a Black Wall Street,” said Veronica Taylor, the executive director for Groove City Black Heritage and Culture Group. “It was a very important part of history. We want to make sure that Pine Street can be what it was.”
With an abundance of murals spread across the county, it comes as no surprise that Dorchester is a location where both artists and art lovers flock. Downtown features an array of galleries where visitors can view and purchase work by local artists.
In 2022, Bridget Cimino, a Maryland-born artist, completed a large mural on Poplar Street that honors 12 remarkable women of Dorchester, such as Anna Ella Carroll, advisor to President Lincoln, actress Bea Arthur of “Golden Girls”, and legendary sharpshooter Annie Oakley.
“The art scene in Dorchester County is pretty amazing,” said Linda Starling, the director of Main Street Gallery, which is the only artist-run cooperative in Cambridge. “Not only do we have several galleries downtown, but we also have a lot of artist groups that are very active, and then of course we have all these beautiful murals around town.”
Visit Dorchester County to visualize the story of Maryland’s Eastern Shore.
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