Pondering the Past at Heritage Days

>At Rockville Central we make a big point of emphasizing our comment policy, so I searched the Montgomery County Historical Society’s exhibit Good Advice during Heritage Days last Sunday for some applicable words of wisdom.

Since we ask readers to be “decent and civil”, an 1894 quote from Manner, Culture and Dress of the Best American Society by Richard Wells entitled Bow of Civility caught my attention.

If there is any one of your acquaintances with whom you have a difference, do not avoid looking at him, unless from the nature of things the quarrel is necessarily for life. It is almost always better to bow with cold civility, though without speaking.

Since we certainly don’t bow anymore in society and we can’t bow through the internet, it’s a bit of a stretch to apply this advice today. However, the exhibit explains that ignoring an enemy is almost as vulgar as the initial insult, so perhaps simply acknowledging the disagreement online without further discussion would be considered appropriate.

In addition to all the etiquette and advice, the Breakfast exhibit passed along interesting tidbits about our morning meal, such as brunch being called a “party” breakfast. Dr. Stonestreet’s Medical Museum was filled with people all afternoon as he explained about his practice from 1853 to 1903 while his mother, Mrs. Stonestreet, kept folks chuckling about keeping cool. Imagine wearing a cabbage leaf under your hat. Even my seven-year-old enjoyed all her recipes and stories.

In general seven-year-olds are not enamored with historical walking tours, so we didn’t complete the “Victorian Homes and Summer Hotels” tour led by Mary van Balgooy, the new Executive Director of Peerless Rockville. The walk down West Montgomery Avenue to Chestnut Lodge described the history of all those exceptional homes and the people who first built them. We could easily picture long-ago Rockville. Next time it’s offered, I’ll complete the tour and I recommend that you do too.

The City of Rockville Historic District Commission was on hand with brochures for self-guided walking tours. You can explore the graves in the Rockville Cemetery. Soon there will be markers installed for the African American Heritage sites tour.

The Good Advice and Breakfast Exhibits are on display at the Beall-Dawson House through September 21, 2008. Tuesday through Sunday, 12 – 4 PM with admission.

Heritage Days are Here

This weekend June 28-29, 2008, Montgomery County celebrates Heritage Days. From Glen Echo to Poolesville experience the >42 sites open to the public, including music, dance, crafts, and food from 12 Noon to 4 PM. Heritage Montgomery says “You don’t have to go away to get away”. Pick a place and find out why. Plan a special brunch or tea and create a day to remember. Montgomery County has so much to offer.

In Rockville on both Saturday and Sunday, the Beall-Dawson House and Stonestreet Medical Museum will be open with their regular tours and exhibits. Learn how to make pills, remove bullets, and use leeches at the Medical Museum. Enjoy the current exhibit, “Good Advice” at the Beall Dawson House, where you can compare your etiquette to 200 years worth of American advice books. I’m thankful we don’t have to wear white gloves anymore! Right now they have added a special exhibit on breakfast (my favorite meal of the day) with this cute “food” from Lilly Bean. Admission is free on both days, 12 Noon – 4 PM.

Also on Saturday and Sunday, the Latvian Museum at 400 Hurley Avenue will have folk arts, crafts and costumes with hands-on activities for all ages. A special traveling photography exhibit “One Day in the Life of Latvia” will be on display along with ceramic and wood carvings.

Sunday is the day for all the special activities in Rockville.

At the Beall-Dawson Historical Park, you can meet “Dr. and Mrs. Stonestreet” who will dispense medical advice and let you know how to keep cool.

At 12:30 PM join Peerless Rockville at the Beall-Dawson House to learn about the Red Brick Courthouse, the Art Deco Bank, and 1970s Brutalism.

At 2:15 PM take a West End Stroll starting at the Beall-Dawson Historical Park to see Victorian homes and summer hotels including the Chestnut Lodge. Round-trip time will be about 50 minutes.

Rockville’s Historic District Commission will also be providing self-guided walking tours and a display on Victorian Summer Resorts and Hotels. This is an opportunity to find out about Rockville’s African American history and the Civil War in our city.

Sunday’s events are “one-stop shopping” to learn all about Rockville’s history. You can even learn why the “Pink Bank” is worth saving.

Contributor Opinion by Steve Cavallo: Remember Thomas Farm

The following >contributor opinion is by Steve J. Cavallo, who blogs at Down By The River. He was kind enough to offer it for publication at Rockville Central. Thanks Steve!

I thought to write you in the hope of bringing to light an issue that a few (certainly not very many it would seem) of your readers may be outraged or at least dismayed over. I am sure you are familiar with the development known as Fallsgrove at old Rt 28 and Shady Grove Road. However, do you know what was there before Fallsgrove? It was a farm — the last of a dieing breed in Rockville and from what I could gather as a kid roaming around it, rather old. The area now known as Fallsgrove used to be the Thomas Farm. Unlike King Farm where the City has made an attempt to retain some of the historic value, Rockville seems to have forgotten the Thomas Farm. In the City’s haste to allow developers to build Fallsgrove, they allowed this important part of Rockville history to be lost. I grew up across 28 from the Thomas Farm. My grandparents still live in that house on Glenora Lane.

In 1999 the City began the process of building Fallsgrove against the wishes of the last owner’s will (she died in the mid ’90s). There is a 1999 Gazette article about this and the subsequent law suit–this is, by the way, one of only two articles mentioning the Thomas Farm I could find at the MCHS library. That same year I went to college. Upon my return my now wife and I were looking for apartments nearer to work and discovered Post Fallsgrove. This is built on what was the Thomas Farm. My love of history and Rockville sent me on a search for records of the farm and family. Much to my surprise I found next to nothing save the aforementioned article.

It seems that Rockville is willing to let a part of our history slip quietly away. In my opinion, the City has done a great disservice to its residents by allowing this part of Rockville’s past to be lost. I’m not saying that Fallsgrove should not have been built. However, to build it and not bother to research and try to preserve some of the Thomas Farm’s history is unthinkable. How can Rockville pride itself on its history and the preservation of that history if we pick and choose what to preserve. Peerless Rockville makes mention of King Farm on it’s website but not the Thomas Farm. Why? We cannot decide to document and preserve one historical landmark and ignore another. That is not historical preservation.

In closing, for my part, I will continue to research the Thomas Farm in the hopes of digging up enough of the history of it to present to the City Council during a public comment period. At least in that way the City will be made aware of the historical value they allowed to be lost. Also, what’s left will be preserved so that future residents of Rockville and Fallsgrove will know what sat at the corner of 28 and Shady Grove Road long before the houses, the apartments, and the shopping center were even thought of.

Steve J. Cavallo

Rockville Central runs occasional, edited opinion pieces by contributors as well as other guest columns. Their views are not necessarily those of Rockville Central. We encourage you to join the growing list of contributors! To submit your piece for consideration, contact us.

POTD: Haiti-Martin's Lane

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I love going around reading the historical signs in Our Fair City!

Contributor Opinion by Eileen McGuckian and Mary van Balgooy: Peerless Rockville Preserving Recent History

>The following contributor opinion is by Eileen McGuckian, Executive Director Emerita, and Mary van Balgooy, Executive Director, for Peerless Rockville:

Dear Rockville Citizens,

This is a response to a comment made by Roald Schrack in his recent opinion piece for Rockville Central. Toward the end of his discussion of the Mayor and Council’s actions regarding the location of the proposed District Courthouse, Roald wrote:

“In a parallel move to block the construction of the courthouse at the library site, there was an attempt to declare the old library a Historic Site and thus immune from destruction. The Planning Commission denied the request last week.”

Peerless Rockville has for almost 34 years followed its mission of preserving buildings, spaces, objects, and information important to Rockville’s heritage. To advance this mission, Peerless Rockville has utilized education, example, advocacy, and community involvement. There has never been an instance of Peerless Rockville viewing a proposal or initiating an action that does not conform to this mission.

In 2003, Peerless Rockville initiated a program entitled “Rockville’s Recent Past.” It is a pioneering study to create a database of information on buildings constructed in Rockville between 1914 and 1984, with particular emphasis on the post-WWII decades of the 1950s through the 1970s. The study has thus far produced a survey of 300 properties and has identified 50 or 60 of these, including the 1971 Rockville Regional Library, as of paramount importance to our community. This project also held a symposium on the Recent Past in October 2006, an outgrowth of which is a Recent Past Advisory Committee composed of residents, property owners, preservation professionals, academics, and others interested in this time period.

It is incorrect to frame Peerless Rockville’s motives in the context of the current controversy about the location of the new courthouse. Simply, Peerless Rockville has been at this for a long time, and the information about the 1971 Library has been around for years. Our staff has featured it in presentations and newsletters and in education and outreach programs, some of which have been televised on The Rockville Channel and made available to a wide public audience.

In May of 2007, Peerless Rockville proceeded with the nomination to the Historic District Commission because our research demonstrated that the Library is significant. Historically, it is our City’s first full-service, purpose-built library. Completed in 1971, it was the culmination of a century-long odyssey to build a permanent facility for library services in Rockville. It is an emblem of the City’s post-war emergence as a major suburban center. Architecturally, it is the only International Style library in Montgomery County and is one of Rockville’s best-known modernist buildings.

Peerless Rockville’s objective is not to block anything but to do what Peerless has always done. Following our nomination nearly a year ago, the Historic District Commission held two public hearings and open discussions, then in June 2007 voted that the property meets the criteria for designation and recommended it to the Mayor and Council. This nomination sat in the City Manager’s office while the District Courthouse issue was heating up. The Mayor and Council unanimously agreed to take up the nomination by its action on March 3 to authorize filing of the Map Amendment.

The Recent Past is the Rockville we know today. Increasingly citizens, institutions, and local governments, including the Planning Commission, are coming to the realization that buildings of the mid-20th century are an important part of our heritage, equally important as the Victorian architecture Peerless has espoused and protected since the 1970s.

Peerless Rockville shares the concerns of the citizens against the courthouse in the context of our mission. We are deeply concerned about the negative impacts the proposed structure would have on the existing adjacent Historic Districts. On Washington Street and in Courthouse Square are 12 significant buildings that were listed in the National Register of Historic Places and in a Rockville designated Historic District two decades ago.

Lastly, let me remind you of the process of historic designation in Rockville, the same as in the rest of Maryland. A property is nominated, the Historic District Commission and Planning Commission make recommendations, and the governing body (the Mayor and Council) makes the decision. It is the same process as a Map Amendment. And, unfortunately, nothing is ever immune from destruction. Buildings designated as Rockville Historic Districts have been demolished in the past, and they will be in the future. As has been discussed and reported, State actions and wishes trump those of the local jurisdiction.

So in the end, the question that will come before the Mayor and Council at the public hearing on this Map Amendment on March 31 is whether the 1971 Rockville Regional Library meets the criteria for designation as a Rockville Historic District.

Rockville Central runs occasional, edited opinion pieces by contributors as well as other guest columns. Their views are not necessarily those of Rockville Central. We encourage you to join the growing list of contributors! To submit your piece for consideration, contact us.

POTD: The Doctor's Office

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Have you ever been to Dr. Edward Stonestreet’s office? You should, it is a very cool experience.

Glenview Mansion An Official Part Of History

The >Gazette reminded me this morning that one of the City’s wonderful jewels, the Glenview Mansion, has been placed on the National Register of Historic Places.

To commemorate the occasion, the Mansion will offer a free tour and lecture on April 6 from 3:15 to 4:15 (Call 240-314-8660 to reserve a spot). According to the press release:

Rockville’s Jeff Winstel, Historic Preservation Planner for the Department of Community Planning and Development, will give a lecture about the history of the estate, its contribution to Rockville’s identity and why it merits national recognition.

“We will be looking at the mansion from a cultural point of view discussing what the design of the building and grounds tell us about the people who built it and the society in which they lived. The landscape at Glenview has evolved over time, and many different periods have left their mark on the grounds. The challenge of managing this type of cultural landscape begins with understanding what the important elements are from each period,” said Winstel.

Glenview Mansion is a 19th century neoclassical home situated on 153 acres of Rockville Civic Center Park. Its hilltop location and stately white columns offset a stone façade exterior making the mansion an attractive place to visit and a desired site to host social gatherings.

Here at Rockville Central, we’re doing our small part, too. You might have noticed the “banner” at the top of each page has a new photograph — why, look! It’s Glenview Mansion!

Rockville Named A "Preserve America" Community

Way to go, us! Our Fair City has been named a “Preserve America” city by the White House. We join a select few cities in Maryland (Annapolis, Baltimore, and Frederick).>

The Preserve America initiative, according to the City’s press release:

recognizes communities that protect and celebrate their heritage. This designation recognizes Rockville’s success in using historic assets for economic development and community revitalization while also encouraging residents and visitors to experience and appreciate local historic resources through education and heritage tourism programs.

“We take great pride in celebrating Rockville’s rich heritage and history,” said Rockville Mayor Susan Hoffmann. “To have our First Lady recognize Rockville with this honor means a great deal to our residents who are so desirous of preserving and protecting our past.”

According to one Rockville Central reader who drew my attention to this, it is “[g]reat news honoring the work of the City and its partnership with Peerless Rockville“

Couldn’t have said it better m’self.

What's Worth Saving?

In a quest to visit as many amusement parks as possible, my family spent a day at historic >Knoebels in PA. A highlight of the day was the carousel, because for the first time, I got a chance at the “golden ring”. My entire life I’ve heard of the fabled brass ring. How you would hang off the horse and grab it. As a child, I was always told that it was too dangerous. They just don’t have them anymore. I thought they were all gone. As we went around, the man on the horse in front of me got the golden ring, but if he had missed, it would have been mine. I had a handful of non-golden rings that you throw back at a lion, and never thought it would be such fun.

As I rode all the old & new rides, I spent the day thinking about what is worth saving. Sometimes old things surprise and delight you. Rockville owes a great deal of thanks to Eileen McGuckian, the Executive Director of Peerless Rockville. She recently announced her retirement from the organization she founded more than 30 years ago and she will be missed. Our heritage and history are important and if it wasn’t for her, Rockville would have lost a great deal of character.

So I’ve found myself thinking about the “Pink Bank” where Bank of America is located. They formalized a plan to tear it down and put up a building much like the rest of the new downtown. Don’t get me wrong, I like the new downtown, but does it all have to all be exactly the same from the same era? We lose a sense of place when our downtown is just a development rather than a city that evolved over time. Our pink bank is cool, 60’s cool. The 3D rectangular design is different and breaks with tradition, but it fits with the rest of the architecture as you look up North Washington. It’s just 43 years old and it will be such a waste of resources if it comes down.

KSI is making a choice to demolish but they should recognize how much more impressive this building will be over time. It’s worth having a great example of New Formalism in our downtown. It’s a kind of architecture that people will be pleased to discover and it has very impressive cousins across the country. I’m hoping that the economic downturn will save this building because we might not need the 290 dwelling units. If there’s an opportunity to preserve it, Rockville should take it.

Do you think it’s worth saving or do you want to press the button to bring it down?

6/24/08 Here’s a picture showing North Washington Street with the “Pink Bank” way down at the end of the buildings. I like the way the new buildings mirror its architecture and roofline.