The Beach to Bay Heritage Area recently received a grant to develop African American products, including 12 interpretive signs across Somerset, Wicomico, and Worcester counties.
One of the new signs detailing the historic significance of the Sturgis One Room Schoolhouse is pictured with volunteers and county public works crews after installation.
Tara Fischer/Bayside Gazette
By Tara Fischer, Staff Writer
An Eastern Shore-focused nonprofit group, Beach to Bay Heritage Area, recently received a grant to develop African American products, including 12 interpretive signs across Somerset, Wicomico, and Worcester counties.
The group defines itself as a “grassroots, nonprofit organization whose purpose is to preserve, protect, and promote the cultural, natural, and historical heritage” of the Eastern Shore counties. The interpretive signs aid in that effort.
Worcester County Public Works assisted in the installation of two signs at the Germantown School Community Heritage Center and the New Bethel United Methodist Church, both in Berlin. The signs give a concise history of the site’s importance.
The structure at the Germantown School details the facility’s past. It was built during a time when it was illegal for black and white children to receive an education together.
“The school closed in the late 1950s, and on Dec. 11, 1962, the Board of Education sold the site to the Worcester County Highway Association for $1,” the marking reads.
The building was converted into a truck and storage garage. In the late 1990s, community members raised money to restore the structure, intending to preserve its history. Renovation was completed in 2013, and now, “the former school serves as a museum and community gathering place.”
On June 14, a sign was also placed on Willow Street in Pocomoke City at the Sturgis One Room Schoolhouse. Worcester County Public Works completed the installation.
The markings detail the African American experience on the shore and the impact these individuals have had on the region’s development and heritage. The Pocomoke sign explains that the Sturgis School is one of the last remaining one-room learning buildings intended to educate African American children in Worcester County. The structure now acts as a museum.
“These sites were chosen for their significant contributions to the lower Eastern Shore …,” Beach to Bay Heritage Area Executive Director Lisa Challenger said. “The signs are designed to present history in a brief and accessible way. It is important to showcase our heritage and allow people, both visitors and residents, to understand better the place they visit or call home. This discovery enriches a person’s experience when exploring the shore.”
Challenger said that the QR code on each sign directs visitors to a page on their website that provides more information on the black heritage of the lower Eastern Shore. The organization is also in the process of finalizing three murals, including one that will be located at the Henry Hotel in Ocean City.