Journey Stories of Harford County

The B&O Railroad's famous 'Royal Blue' train, 1937

MAY 19, 2012 – JULY 6, 2012

Harford County Public Library

2510 Tollgate Road
Abingdon, MD 21009
(410) 638-3990

www.hcplonline.org

Partner: Harford County Department of Community Services

Harford County has long been a hub of innovation and technology, fostered by its connective roadways, waterways, and access to the railroads.  Exhibits at local libraries will explore the building of Bel Air, the rise and fall of the canning industry, and how changing economics and industry has shaped Harford County.  Exhibits also celebrate the County’s love affair with cars, food on the move, and the highway hospitality of the Rt. 40 of the past, filled with quirky hotels and roadside attractions.

The Harford County Public Library System, with the partnership of the Harford county Department of Community Services, present exhibits and events from April to July at area libraries. Visit MHC’s Events Calendar for up to date event listings.  

Click here to view the Spring/Summer Edition of "Headlines & Happenings," a publication of the Harford County Public Library.

Join us!
OPENING CELEBRATION

Ribbon cutting and community conversation
MAY 19, 2012, 9:30am | Abington Library

Take a tour through Journey Stories exhibits and join the conversation with Professor Vincent Cannato, author of American Passage:  The History of Ellis Island.

Featured Exhibits

Jarrettsville
Cars: A Harford County Love Affair                    
April 13 – May 21, 2012
Local professional photographers take to the road (and imagination) to create their interpretation of Harford County’s Car Culture.  This is a juried fine art photography exhibition.  Photographs are for sale with proceeds benefitting Harford County Public Library.

McFaul Center (Bel Air)
From Trail to Train: The Building of Bel Air                
May 11 – July 6, 2012
From the early horse trails, to the motorways, to the Ma and Pa Railroad, Bel Air has been the apex of how families, companies, and immigrants delivered and received services and traveled.  Explore the transitions innovation has caused and the history of a Town on the move!   

Havre de Grace Center  
Money and Migration:  Population and the County Economy          
May 11 – July 6, 2012
Description: Changing economies, innovations, and global factors have influenced the business of Harford County and its populations.  Women at work, the rise of the techopolis and uncommon commutes, and factory successes and failures have brought people in and out of the County. Discover the partnership between the people and business.

Chenowith Center (Fallston)
Journey Through Harford History                        
May 11 – July 6, 2012
The Story of Harford County from its early beginnings to the technology leader it is becoming today. Explore the major events through the pages of the Aegis and consider personal accounts from the individuals who have shaped the County through time.

Abingdon  
Smithsonian Exhibit: Journey Stories                      
May 19 – July 6, 2012
Hours: Mon & Wed open 10am to 3pm; Tue & Thu open 1pm to 8pm; Sat 10am to 5pm
The United States was populated through immigration, migration, and transportation, but it was the dreams of people to create a better life that made it a Nation. The Journey Stories Project is the story of the development and evolution of our need as Americans to move and expand – to journey – both physically and psychologically.       

Abingdon
Highway Hospitality   
May 19 – July 6, 2012
Before the building of “super highways” and interstates, travelers considered the means of getting to their destination as part of the vacation itself… It wasn’t the destination; it was the journey that made the memories!  Highway Hospitality explores Harford’s Rt. 40 of old – quirky motels, sparkling diners, full-service auto stations, and amusing roadside attractions – and contrasts it to the more utilitarian road of today.  

Edgewood
Food On The Go!                              
May 19 – July 6, 2012
Because we journey, we eat… and eat well!  Explore how human travel has made food about more than sustenance.    

Aberdeen
Iron, Tin and Paper: Canning in Harford County                
May 19 – July 6, 2012
The canning industry was hot in Harford County.  The rail lines provided transportation to new markets out of the county and the farmers provided the wonderful product.  Dozens of families made their living from the industry until the end of WWII when the industry was on the wane, shut out by larger businesses elsewhere.   

Bel Air
Fugitives, Accessories, and Catchers: The Underground RR in Harford County    
May 19 – July 6, 2012
The Journey to freedom was fraught with obstacles as vast as the Susquehanna River and as personal as the noisy neighbor.  Three groups of people “rode” the railroad in Harford Count; all were on the run because of the Peculiar Institution and its Fugitive Slave Act.