The Banneker-Douglass Museum, named for Benjamin Banneker and Frederick Douglass, is dedicated to preserving Maryland’s African American heritage, and serves as the state’s official repository of African American material culture.

The museum was dedicated on February 24, 1984. The original museum was housed within the former old Mount Moriah African Methodist Episcopal Church in the heart of historic Annapolis. This building was completed and dedicated in 1874. Among the notable guests present at the dedication was native Marylander and celebrated abolitionist Frederick Douglass.

After the Mount Moriah congregation moved to a new location in Annapolis, the building was left vacant until it was targeted for demolition to make room for the expansion of the Anne Arundel County Courthouse. Through the efforts of many local historians, preservationists, and the Mt. Moriah congregation, the building was saved from destruction and was leased by Anne Arundel County to the state of Maryland.

The building was included on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973. The building officially opened as the Banneker-Douglass Museum on February 24, 1984. In 2006, the Banneker-Douglass Museum completed a four-story addition (one underground story) which uses the nineteenth-century brick of the church’s façade as its interior lobby wall. Throughout 2009 the Banneker-Douglass Museum will celebrate its 25^th anniversary with several special programs and events.

The museum hosts several exhibitions throughout the calendar year. The museum currently has four exhibitions on display:

• Deep Roots, Rising Waters details the lives of African Americans in Maryland from the colonial era through the Civil Rights Era.
• Explore Colors of Life, the latest exhibition from Washington, DC-based photography organization The Exposure Group African American Photographers Association Inc. This latest exhibition is a new juried members exhibition showcasing the photographic work of the association members which include portrait artists, photojournalists, documentary, and fine art photographers. The exhibition coincides with the release of the Association’s first photography book also entitled Colors of Life. Exhibit closes December 5, 2009.
• Hidden Treasures: Celebrating 25 Years of the Banneker-Douglass Museum displays a sample of the numerous collections of the Banneker-Douglass Museum and documents the history of the museum and the fight to save the former Mount Moriah AME Church, the eventual home of the Banneker-Douglass Museum. Exhibit closes December 18, 2009.

Visit the Banneker-Douglass Museum's website at www.bdmuseum.com for more information about exhibitions and programs!

To get a behind the scene look at the Banneker-Douglass Museum, check out our blog at http://BannekerDouglassMuseum.blogspot.com.