Maryland State House

The Maryland State House in Annapolis is not only the site of the state capital, it was the nation's capital from November 1783 to August 1784. It is the oldest state capital building in the United States in continuous legislative use and was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1960. The building's original Senate Chamber was where George Washington resigned his commission and where Congress ratified the Treaty of Paris. Over the years, the building has had several additions and renovations, including a recent restoration of the original wooden dome.

Triadelphia Ridge Elementary School is very proud of their fifth grade art students. Fifteen students were recently honored to have their artwork selected to be hung and displayed as part of the holiday tree in the Maryland State House in Annapolis. A fun family outing over the holidays would be a visit to historic Annapolis, and while there, be sure to stop by the State House to view ornaments created by Maryland students, including the patriotic quilled ornaments created by the following Triadelphia Ridge students: Ethan Coates, Taylor Currie, Luke Gezelle, Katie Grimes, Ryan Hopkins, Erin Jeffery, Ian Kirn, Tommy Maloney, Chase McGeehan, Ayaka Ohara, Grant Owens, McKenna Rueter, Braden Simmons, Martayn VanDeWall and Adriana Zakel.

During a recent pro-O'Malley rally in Annapolis, union boss "Josh" Williams, president of the Metropolitan Washington Council of AFL-CIO, said of the Maryland State House: "Are we going to let our piece of property be taken over?" The last time I checked, the unions didn't own the State House. The citizens of Maryland do. Through these words, Williams articulated the need for fundamental political change in Maryland more eloquently than any Republican ever could. Richard Cross, Baltimore

When is hard candy more than just something to eat? Perhaps when you make it from 15 pounds of raw materials, stir in blue and green food coloring, add miniature "waves" as the mass hardens, and let the giant aquatic-looking entity surround the tiny lighthouse you've already crafted from other edible objects. "The Thomas Point Lighthouse," the scenic-but-sugary creation of Don and Marlena Dillenbeck of Hanover, is a contender this year in a gingerbread house competition sponsored by the Historic Annapolis Foundation, a contest in which creativity, technical skill and awareness of local history are as important as ingredients to a recipe.

Gov. William Donald Schaefer recently honored C. Roy Shine as one ofMaryland's outstanding volunteers at the 1991 Governor's Volunteer Award Celebration at the Maryland State House in Annapolis.Shine, a Pasadena resident, received the award in the category of Arts and Culture for the restoration of a 1937 Mini Mariner seaplane at the Baltimore Museum of Industry, preserving the piece of history for generations to come.With the assistance of 12 volunteers, Shine works 20 hours a weekat the museum and at homeon the project.

The Maryland State House is used to being host to representatives from around the state. In that respect, the party under the dome was the same. This time, however, the representatives from each of Maryland's counties and Baltimore City weren't elected officials but the winners of the "Maryland's Most Beautiful People" awards, who were nominated and selected for their outstanding volunteer efforts. There were also two other "elected" officials greeting each of the party's 150 guests -- Miss Maryland 2001, Kelly Glorioso, and Mrs. Maryland 2001, Robyn Huffman.

Wanda Cecile Paxton, a retired Maryland Department of Natural Resources artist , died of cancer Sept. 18 at Georgetown University Hospital. The Annapolis resident was 72. Born in Covington, Va., she graduated from Anne Arundel Community College and earned a bachelor's degree in gerontology from the University of Maryland, College Park. She worked as an FBI file clerk in the 1950s and, after raising a family, became an admissions clerk at Anne Arundel Medical Center. She retired in 2005 as a graphic artist for the state DNR. Ms. Paxton taught oil painting and arts and crafts at Anne Arundel Community College.

Maryland's congressional delegation met with Gov. Martin O'Malley in Annapolis yesterday to discuss a possible infusion of federal funds through a fiscal stimulus package and how that money could be used to prop up the state's economy. O'Malley convened a meeting at the governor's mansion for more than an hour with Sens. Benjamin L. Cardin and Barbara A. Mikulski along with several congressmen, including newly elected Rep. Frank Kratovil, and Maryland State House leaders. The lawmakers, all Democrats, talked about the state's wish list of projects they would like to be funded.

In an emotional march on the Maryland State House, more than 300 state workers vowed last night to mount an intense, personal appeal for better pay and pension benefits.Social workers, correctional officers and other unionized state employees held aloft handmade signs with an election-year reminder for the legislature."I want some respect! And I vote!" shouted George Reason, a veterans employment representative with the state Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation.State workers came from across Maryland to protest that they have not received a raise in several years, and their retirement benefits rank among the lowest in the nation.

What local city served as the first peacetime capital of the United States in 1783? If you answered Washington, or Baltimore, perhaps a visit to Annapolis is in order. From November 1783 to August 1784, the Maryland State House in Annapolis served as the nation's capital while the Continental Congress met there. The area was first settled in 1649 by Puritans from Virginia seeking religious freedom. They built their town on the north shore of the Severn River and called it Providence. But the pioneers realized that the river's south side offered a better protected harbor and moved there.

It's brilliant and blustery atop the tallest building in Annapolis, a bank of white clouds scudding quickly across the sky. John Greenwalt Lee leans against a temporary railing, gazing down with fondness on the town he calls home. A few blocks to the northeast, the dome of the Naval Academy Chapel looms far above the street. Lee helped renovate it in 1999, rappelling out a window to apply chemicals to the copper to bring out its historic-looking green. A little to the west, the spire of St. Anne's Episcopal Church towers above downtown.

During a recent pro-O'Malley rally in Annapolis, union boss "Josh" Williams, president of the Metropolitan Washington Council of AFL-CIO, said of the Maryland State House: "Are we going to let our piece of property be taken over?" The last time I checked, the unions didn't own the State House. The citizens of Maryland do. Through these words, Williams articulated the need for fundamental political change in Maryland more eloquently than any Republican ever could. Richard Cross, Baltimore

You know the state's fiscal situation is serious when officials start talking about cutting back on MACO. The Maryland Association of Counties summer conference in Ocean City, known by its acronym, looms large in the state's political calendar. Every year, thousands of bureaucrats and elected officials from state and local governments converge on Maryland's beachside resort for three days of panel discussions, speeches and seminars - not to mention a golf tournament, crab feast, political fundraisers, swanky and not-so-swanky receptions, and the occasional bit of beach time.

Maryland's congressional delegation met with Gov. Martin O'Malley in Annapolis yesterday to discuss a possible infusion of federal funds through a fiscal stimulus package and how that money could be used to prop up the state's economy. O'Malley convened a meeting at the governor's mansion for more than an hour with Sens. Benjamin L. Cardin and Barbara A. Mikulski along with several congressmen, including newly elected Rep. Frank Kratovil, and Maryland State House leaders. The lawmakers, all Democrats, talked about the state's wish list of projects they would like to be funded.

Wanda Cecile Paxton, a retired Maryland Department of Natural Resources artist , died of cancer Sept. 18 at Georgetown University Hospital. The Annapolis resident was 72. Born in Covington, Va., she graduated from Anne Arundel Community College and earned a bachelor's degree in gerontology from the University of Maryland, College Park. She worked as an FBI file clerk in the 1950s and, after raising a family, became an admissions clerk at Anne Arundel Medical Center. She retired in 2005 as a graphic artist for the state DNR. Ms. Paxton taught oil painting and arts and crafts at Anne Arundel Community College.

Maryland lawmaker Heather R. Mizeur shepherded a bill through the General Assembly this year to establish a new fund supporting the emerging field of nanobiotechnology. In the process, she also succeeded in securing a potential funding source for companies she had registered to represent on Capitol Hill. The Montgomery County Democratic delegate acknowledges working extensively for a nanobiotechnology company as a congressional lobbyist with the Washington law firm of Kirkpatrick & Lockhart Preston Gates Ellis, but she says she got clearance from the state legislature's ethics counsel to sponsor and vote on the legislation.

Triadelphia Ridge Elementary School is very proud of their fifth grade art students. Fifteen students were recently honored to have their artwork selected to be hung and displayed as part of the holiday tree in the Maryland State House in Annapolis. A fun family outing over the holidays would be a visit to historic Annapolis, and while there, be sure to stop by the State House to view ornaments created by Maryland students, including the patriotic quilled ornaments created by the following Triadelphia Ridge students: Ethan Coates, Taylor Currie, Luke Gezelle, Katie Grimes, Ryan Hopkins, Erin Jeffery, Ian Kirn, Tommy Maloney, Chase McGeehan, Ayaka Ohara, Grant Owens, McKenna Rueter, Braden Simmons, Martayn VanDeWall and Adriana Zakel.

It's brilliant and blustery atop the tallest building in Annapolis, a bank of white clouds scudding quickly across the sky. John Greenwalt Lee leans against a temporary railing, gazing down with fondness on the town he calls home. A few blocks to the northeast, the dome of the Naval Academy Chapel looms far above the street. Lee helped renovate it in 1999, rappelling out a window to apply chemicals to the copper to bring out its historic-looking green. A little to the west, the spire of St. Anne's Episcopal Church towers above downtown.

Though colorful holiday decorations gave the rotunda of the Maryland State House a festive and joyous atmosphere, the message that Tony and Hazel Pung came to deliver was anything but. In voices shaking with emotion, the Pungs told a rapt audience how their 23-year-old daughter, Terri, and her fiance were killed 19 years ago by a drunken driver, and about how the pain had not gone away and probably never would. "The pain is reactivated each time we read about or hear about another similar event, which happens all too frequently in our state," Tony Pung said.

The Maryland State House in Annapolis is not only the site of the state capital, it was the nation's capital from November 1783 to August 1784. It is the oldest state capital building in the United States in continuous legislative use and was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1960. The building's original Senate Chamber was where George Washington resigned his commission and where Congress ratified the Treaty of Paris. Over the years, the building has had several additions and renovations, including a recent restoration of the original wooden dome.