Join me for a patriotic trip around Charles County on the 4th of July. Our first stop is a 10 a.m. memorial service at Thomas Stone National Historic Site in Port Tobacco.
What better place to start an Independence Day tour than the home of one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. Guest speaker at the event, College of Southern Maryland Assistant Professor Dr. Cicero Fain noted that Thomas Stone at the age of 31 was chosen to be a member of the Charles County Committee of Correspondence, tasked with keeping in touch with the other colonies, which were not only dispersed but different in many respects, including how they dealt with slavery.
Dr. Fain noted that the document signed by Thomas Stone and 55 others (the document was not actually signed until August 2nd) was “the foundation document of the rights of all men.” But he said that document created a “bifurcated society” because the framers of the Declaration of Independence had trouble dealing with the question of property rights versus human rights.”
Dr. Fain said the country still hasn’t reconciled slavery and its aftermath. He noted that there is no mention of Thomas Stone’s slaves in the interpretation at the historic site. “There is nothing of the slave-master relationship,” he said.
Dr. Fain called for the creation of a Reconciliation Commission, similar to what Nelson Mandela did in South Africa, to finally resolve the unresolved issues.
Chief of Interpretation at Thomas Stone National Historic Site and also at Washington’s Birthplace Scott Hill acted as master of ceremonies for the memorial service. He noted that there was a connection between Thomas Stone and General William Smallwood and that he would talk about that in an afternoon ceremony at Smallwood State Park (put that on the tour). Hill noted that the National Park Service and the State of Maryland were cosponsoring the two events.
The ceremony was in a field overlooking Thomas Stone’s home, Haberdeventure, which suffered a major fire in 1977 and was restored and reopened 20 years later.
Time to move on a few miles and 180 degrees to the second event: the Watermelon Bash at the La Plata Town Hall. This is an event that has kids and family at its very core. It featured free food (watermelon, hot dogs, ice cream), rides and of course watermelon eating and watermelon rolling contests. And a ladder truck from the La Plata VFD provided a shower to cool off.
After taking advantage of that free lunch, it was off to event number three, at the aforementioned Smallwood State Park. The event on the grounds of Gen. Smallwood’s home, Sma
