Maryland History

A decade ago tomorrow, the worst tornado in Maryland history struck La Plata, killing three people and flattening buildings with 261 mph winds. The F5 twister, the top of the scale for tornado intensity, left a plate of fried chicken on the counter of a fast-food restaurant but tore off two of the building's walls and its roof, according to one Baltimore Sun report. It left one resident's mailbox standing, waiting for more mail in front of a house that was torn from its foundation, resting on some bushes.

With her perky, upbeat attitude, Maryland's Karri Ellen Johnson has always been a glass-half-full person. Right now, however, her glass is just about running over. After repercussions from a concussion wiped out the last 12 games of her junior season, including Maryland's run to the NCAA women's lacrosse final, she is relishing every minute on the field as the No. 3 Terrapins prepare to host No. 6 Loyola in Saturday's noon NCAA quarterfinal. "It's so exciting to put an emphasis on the tournament," Johnson said.

In many parts of the world, spring is a time to celebrate the end of the cold dark days of winter. Spring and summer are exciting and colorful seasons when people welcome new life and celebrate the outdoors. There are many Baltimore traditions connected with these seasons. The Farmers' Markets and baseball are some of Baltimore's favorite warm weather events! Many people celebrate their joy in the coming of spring and summer by wearing colorful party hats. Hat's off to warmer summer ! Let's celebrate the seasons by making an old-fashioned party hat!

A decade ago tomorrow, the worst tornado in Maryland history struck La Plata, killing three people and flattening buildings with 261 mph winds. The F5 twister, the top of the scale for tornado intensity, left a plate of fried chicken on the counter of a fast-food restaurant but tore off two of the building's walls and its roof, according to one Baltimore Sun report. It left one resident's mailbox standing, waiting for more mail in front of a house that was torn from its foundation, resting on some bushes.

WHEN I WAS a child one of my favorite places to eat lunch was the tea room at the old Hutzler's department store in Towson. A little girl could feel genteel and grown-up there amid the pearl-draped ladies with their shopping bags, a neat little sandwich on her plate instead of the usual burger-and-fries kiddie fare.And there were those murals -- the walls covered with painted scenes from Maryland history, including a beautiful place called Hampton Mansion.Funny, but it never occurred to me that Hampton Mansion might be a real house, and that I might actually go there.

Beta Kaessmann Manakee, 95, author of the standard textbook used to teach Maryland history to elementary school students, died Dec. 19 at Church Home and Hospital, where she resided at the time of her death.Her work -- "My Maryland, Her First 300 Years" -- was published in 1934 by Ginn & Co. and remains in print. She was assisted in the writing by her husband, local historian Harold Manakee, and the late Joseph Wheeler, longtime director of the Enoch Pratt Free Library.She also helped research the 1931 literary and historical map of Maryland drawn by artist Edwin Tunis.

Police who seized a ton of cocaine from a Baltimore warehouse last week broke up an elaborate scheme to smuggle drugs from Houston to New York and uncovered connections to South and Central America, newly filed court documents say.Two affidavits totaling 18 pages, filed in U.S. District Court, detail a five-month undercover investigation of suspected drug distributors and how they allegedly planned to get $25 million worth of cocaine to New York through Baltimore.Federal...

Actress and storyteller Mary Ann Jung took children at Rippling Woods Elementary School on a journey back in time yesterday -- more than 350 years back.Life was pretty tough then: To the moans and groans of students sitting in a semicircle in the school's gymnasium, she told how there was no Nintendo, pizza, hamburgers or McDonald's.People greeted each other with a "Good day," not a "Hello."Bringing back to life the earliest days of Maryland, Jung portrayed Mistress Margaret Brent, who came to Maryland with the first settlers.

John Carleton Jones, a former longtime Sunday Sun reporter, author and critic who was known for his stylish writing and love of Maryland history, died from complications of dementia Dec. 29 at an assisted-living facility in Shallotte, N.C. The former Westminster resident was 84. Mr. Jones was born in Columbia, Mo. He was raised there and in Washington, where his father, Army Gen. Lloyd E. Jones, a West Point graduate, held a military assignment during...

A close race in suburban Washington's 8th Congressional District was the most expensive U.S. House campaign in Maryland history -- and one of the most costly in the nation -- as Rep. Constance A. Morella and state Sen. Christopher Van Hollen Jr. together spent nearly $6 million seeking the seat. Van Hollen, the Democratic challenger, raised slightly less than Morella, an eight-term Republican incumbent, but won by a 52-47 percent margin. Morella spent just under $3 million, while Van Hollen spent almost $2.9 million.

Maryland coach Randy Edsall unveiled his second Terps recruiting class today at the Gossett Team House in College Park. The 24-man group is ranked 42nd in the country by 247Sports.com, 44th by Scout.com, and 49th by Rivals.com. Here are news and notes from Edsall's news conference: * Edsall started his news conference lauding his staff's efforts locally, with 11 of the Terps' signees coming from Maryland or Washington. Pennsylvania (five players) and Virginia (one) were also areas of emphasis.

Clayton Cann Carter, a retired Queen Anne's County Circuit Court judge who was a Maryland history buff and a collector of Maryland-related objets d'art, died July 30 of an apparent heart attack at Chesterfield, his Centreville home. He was 92. The son of a miller and a storekeeper, Judge Carter was born and raised in Centreville. He was a 1935 graduate of Centreville High School and earned a bachelor's degree in 1939 from Duke University. "There were only 11 grades in those days at Centreville High School and he was 16 when he entered Duke, where he earned his degree at 20," said a daughter, Rachel MacDonough Carter Gross of Chestertown.

The Swingin' Swamies are scheduled for the Summer Concert series at River Hill shopping center Friday, July 29 from 6 to 8 p.m. They provide Swingin' entertainment with Jazz, Latin rhythms, R&B and soul music. There's something for every musical taste. Mis Spent Youth will play classic rock and pop music Aug. 5. The Ellis Woodward Kids' Show is scheduled for Aug. 12. Mark your calendar and plan to dine al fresco while enjoying pleasant summer evenings with family and neighbors.

A few years ago, one of Sarah Mollison's Maryland teammates squished her name together and ever since the 5-foot-5 senior attacker has had the nickname "Smalls. " Her contributions, however, have been anything but. Mollison, an All-American and 2011 Tewaaraton finalist, became only the sixth player in Maryland history to contribute 100 goals and 100 assists in her career. She ranks fifth on the Terps all-time points list (268) and fourth in assists (119). The Terrapins' playmaker leads the team in assists with 45, but has done a little bit more finishing recently and ranks second in goals with 52. In the 15-6 quarterfinal win over Princeton, she had four goals – three of them within 30 seconds.

The announcement that Maryland schools Superintendent Nancy S. Grasmick will retire in June after 20 years on the job marks a watershed for public education in the state, whose history could fairly be divided into two eras — before and after Ms. Grasmick. Her extraordinary leadership raised the bar on what was possible for schools across the state and won Maryland national recognition as an education powerhouse. She's been called "the heart and soul" of Maryland schools. Whoever succeeds her will have big shoes to fill.

If you wanted to see genuine emotion, not the phony stuff that so often comes from sports these days, you needed to see Greivis Vasquez's face light up when they honored him here Sunday. The Maryland Terrapins did this one up right, folks. Right before their sloppy 87-80 win over North Carolina State, they hung a banner with his No. 21 from the rafters at Comcast Center, making him only the 16th player in Maryland history accorded that tribute. They put together a wonderful highlight reel of the former Terps great's career that played on the scoreboard, narrated in the stentorian voice of veteran announcer Johnny Holliday.

With her perky, upbeat attitude, Maryland's Karri Ellen Johnson has always been a glass-half-full person. Right now, however, her glass is just about running over. After repercussions from a concussion wiped out the last 12 games of her junior season, including Maryland's run to the NCAA women's lacrosse final, she is relishing every minute on the field as the No. 3 Terrapins prepare to host No. 6 Loyola in Saturday's noon NCAA quarterfinal. "It's so exciting to put an emphasis on the tournament," Johnson said.

Baltimore is 31 homicides behind last year's pace and, for the first time in three years, is not on a record-setting homicide rate. Police and city officials attribute the decline to one of the coldest winters in Maryland history and a series of raids in violent drug neighborhoods.Story on page 1B.

Bernard John "Jack" Medairy Jr., a retired Baltimore County lawyer and former member of the Maryland legislature who wrote a history of his family, died Friday of heart failure at his Rodgers Forge home. He was 89. Mr. Medairy, the son of a lawyer and an educator, was born in Baltimore and raised in Charles Village. He attended Polytechnic Institute for three years and graduated in 1940 from City College. In 1941, he was working as a hull draftsman for the shipbuilding and repair division of Bethlehem Steel Corp.