Gunpowder

In Baltimore CountyLibrary branches to close to prepare computers for Y2KTOWSON -- All branches of Baltimore County Public Library will be closed May 14-16 to prepare library computers for the year 2000. Books and other materials will not be due during those days.Many remote services available from home computers or telephones will be out of service from 9: 30 p.m. May 13 to noon May 17, including Shelf Help, interlibrary loan services, and access to patron accounts, library catalogs and the Community Information File.

An 18-year-old man was killed early yesterday after the car he was driving went off the road and crashed into trees near Phoenix in northern Baltimore County, police said.The driver was identified as Adam Durian, the son of WBAL television and radio personality Dave Durian. Police said he was driving north on Sweet Air Road near Manor Road about 1 a.m. when he lost control of the vehicle.County police attributed the crash, which occurred near the Gunpowder Falls State Park, to excessive speed.

Baltimore County's Gunpowder River is a nationally recognized destination for anglers, but its trout fishery is in danger of becoming a casualty of the drought gripping Maryland.Temperatures in the river are rising as the water level of the Prettyboy Reservoir recedes -- threatening a devastating fish kill.The reservoir's water is released into the Gunpowder so it can flow to Loch Raven Reservoir, which supplies the city and surrounding counties with drinking water. Water in the Prettyboy is warmer than usual now because it is so low.State officials say they are taking steps to protect the fishery, but if the drought forces a choice between its needs and those of homes and factories, the trout are out of luck.

An Anne Arundel County judge freed yesterday one of three teen-agers held in a juvenile jail since April 29 in an alleged bomb-making plot after tests showed that what authorities suspected was gunpowder seized from his home was flour and cornstarch.The 15-year-old did not react to the decision until his attorney, Patrick M. Smith, squeezed his shoulders and said, "You're going home today." Then he nodded and perked up.His mother left the courtroom with teary eyes but a smiling face. "I am very happy," she said.

To relieve severe overcrowding at Kingsville Elementary School in northeastern Baltimore County, school officials proposed last night redistricting some of its pupils to Gunpowder Elementary School in the fall.The school board, as expected, also formally approved a $127.7 million capital budget request for the next school year. Almost all the money will be spent to renovate and repair aging buildings.The redistricting change would end up shifting about 115 pupils from Kingsville to Gunpowder over the next four years, according to Donald I. Mohler, northeast area superintendent.

FireLineboro: Firefighters assisted Baltimore County at 1: 46 p.m. Tuesday, responding to a field fire in the 2000 block of Gunpowder Road. Units were out 40 minutes.Pub Date: 3/18/99

If the weekend weather forecast holds up, and the January thaw begins to arrive, anglers can expect to cash in on winter fishing for trout at Gunpowder Falls and along the Patapsco River."

Lab results show that what investigators suspected was gunpowder seized from the home of one of three teen-agers accused in a bomb plot at Glen Burnie High School is flour and cornstarch, a defense lawyer said yesterday.Defense lawyer Patrick M. Smith and a spokeswoman for the state's attorney's office said they would ask today for the immediate release of the 15-year-old, who has been held at the Waxter Children's Center since April 29. The other two suspects are also being held at Waxter.

They are men now. But on a misty spring night six years ago, they were just boys and bored when they broke into a Chrysler New Yorker in West Baltimore and took it for a joy ride.Andre. Terrill. Quentin. Duane. With them, sandwiched in the middle of the back seat, a 14-year-old named Simmont "Sam" Thomas nervously tagged along.What happened that night grew into one of Baltimore's more racially divisive cases of alleged excessive police force. Stopped by Baltimore Police Officer Edward T. Gorwell II, who is white, the five black teens jumped from the car and scattered into Gwynns Falls Park.

Editor's note: In 1780, the British nearly controlled South Carolina. Many patriots had fled or taken oaths not to fight against the king. Marauding bands of British loyalists terrorized the few remaining patriots. One turning point that rallied patriot morale in South Carolina took place near Martha Bratton's home. After that battle, more patriots returned to join the local militias. The reinforcements led to a series of patriot victories.By the summer of 1780 it seemed to Martha Bratton the American Revolutionary War would never end. In Charleston, South Carolina, many patriots started giving up hope that they might win the war, especially after the city surrendered to the British.

D OROTHY L. HORNER, 65 of Bardenton, FL., passed away November 20, 2008 in Bardenton, FL. She was born March 11, 1943 in Baltimore, MD., and relocated to Bardenton, FL, in 1993. She enjoyed travelling, camping, fishing and crabbing. Survivors include her husband of 27 years, Robert L. Horner of Bradenton, FL.; one son, Robert McAndrew of Crossroad, PA.; one daughter, Diane McAndrew of Baltimore, MD.; a brother, William Rode of Chase, MD., and four grandchildren. A graveside inurnment service will be held on Saturday, 11 A.M at Holly Hill Memorial Gardens with a luncheon to immediately follow at the Gunpowder Post VFW.

An unprofitable public golf course in Kingsville could become a regional park with trails, athletic fields and possibly a gymnasium, but not without a battle from golfers who want it to stay open. Baltimore County recreation officials have scheduled a community meeting 7 p.m. Wednesday at Kingsville Elementary School to help chart the future of the 112-acre course on Raphel Road and a recently purchased adjoining 28 acres. "We will gather a consensus and lean more toward that," said Robert J. Barrett, county director of Recreation and Parks.

Known as the "Pride of the Gunpowder," the community of Oliver Beach in Chase is nestled in the far southeastern corner of Baltimore County. The residential waterfront neighborhood of about 500 homes boasts beautiful views of the Gunpowder River at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay and of the woods directly across the river at Aberdeen Proving Ground. It was the water that first drew Frank Orzolek, an avid windsurfer, to Oliver Beach eight years ago. "It's a little mecca for water sports, crabbing and fishing," said Orzolek, the president of the Oliver Beach Improvement Association.

Summer's not officially over when Labor Day hits. But it may as well be. More than winter, more than autumn, more than spring, summer is a state of mind, existing not so much because of the calendar, not so much because of the temperature, but because we close our eyes, exhale and let it happen. After Labor Day, as we become about less vacation and more school, more work, more wearing shoes, summer fades. It evaporates like condensation on a glass of lemonade. But before it's gone for another year, there's one weekend left - a long one. Make it good.

Simone Collins smiled shyly as she wiped dirt-splotched hands on her limp T-shirt, a bead of sweat sliding from her hairline down her neck. "This dirt gives me a sense of honor," said the Baltimore teen, her gaze switching from her hands to a newly refurbished trail at Gunpowder Falls State Park. "I, we all, did this." Instead of sitting home, waiting for summer to end and school to start, 145 city kids are out at Gunpowder and at Patapsco Valley State Park, giving the landscape and buildings a little love.

With Memorial Day weekend about to begin, state biologists are racing to set up decontamination stations along six popular trout streams in an effort to stem the spread of an alien algae that destroys fish food supply and habitat. Strong saltwater is the enemy of didymo, an algae that forms a thick mat on the bottom of rivers and streams and suffocates plants, insects and tiny creatures. Scrubbing fishing gear and waders for a minute with a brush dipped in a saltwater solution kills microscopic traces of algae, preventing it from getting a free ride to another trout stream.

Maryland's premier trout stream, Gunpowder Falls, is under attack from an algae strain feared worldwide for its ability to coat the bottom of rivers and lakes and smother the habitat and food supply of fish. Heavy, with the consistency of a wool coat, Didymosphenia geminata is a recent invader of East Coast waterways. It begins as microscopic organism that travels from stream to stream on boats, fishing gear and the bottoms of felt boots and waders. The algae is not hazardous to humans, but could have a "profound" effect on fish and the quality of freshwater streams and recreation, upsetting the delicate balance of nature, said Jonathan McKnight, coordinator of the Department of Natural Resources invasive species team.

On March 11, 2008, WALTER T. KEES, M.D. A Memorial Service will be held on May 3, 2008 at The Gunpowder Friends Meeting House, 14934 Priceville Road, Sparks, MD 21152 at 2 p.m. with reception following service. Inquiries 410-472-4583

Sometimes, it's important to see the forest and the trees. By illegally taking a chainsaw to small trees along the Gunpowder River, several members of the Greater Baltimore Canoe Club proved blind to both. It might not seem like a big deal as you walk along the riverbank below Prettyboy Reservoir. Four weeks after the incident, the trunks that end abruptly at the water's edge still look freshly cut, and the severed pieces lie waterlogged below. What's a couple of trees in a thick forest?

On March 6, 1918, Lt. Col. William H. Walker was made commander of the Gunpowder Reservation, a new installation established to help the U.S. military adapt to the new methods of gas warfare. On April 22, 1915, the first gas attack in World War I introduced a new era of war. Two years later, the United States entered the war, but the country was unprepared. Immediate action was initiated, by the surgeon general's office to develop gas masks, by the ordnance department to develop a gas shell, and by the trench warfare section to procure the poison gas to fill the shells.