Frequently, the Anne Arundel County grand jury conducted special criminal investigations, many of which failed to result in indictments. The previous article discussed the activities regarding liquor licensing and gambling. Other areas of concern included juvenile delinquency, organized crime, elections, and bribery.
The earliest concern about juvenile delinquency among the extant reports occurred in 1940. The grand jury attributed the rise in juvenile crime to parental delinquency and the automobile. Parental delinquency was defined as the neglect of children by their parents. The automobile permitted juveniles to come from surrounding counties to commit crimes. It also subjected young people to attack by parking with their friends in isolated places, too often first spending the evening at taverns. The grand jury continued to focus on alcohol as a factor, noting in 1943 that "it is not so much the child who needs a curfew law as it is ... those parents who deliberately abandon their infant children and spend their nights and days in the various taverns." The next report contained a recommendation for a law keeping children out of taverns and saloons.
By 1972, the grand jury was examining the juvenile justice system as a whole. It concluded that the states attorney's office and the court were keeping fairly current with case loads. Most delays and inadequacies were found at the state level with the Juvenile Services Agency. "Maryland's long-term detention facilities for juveniles are already overloaded, do not provide effective rehabilitation and have an unacceptably high escape rate." Grand jury recommendations for change included dealing with first offenders quickly and firmly, providing harsher punishments for recidivism, developing additional detention facilities, and increasing rehabilitation operations such as youth sanctuaries and foster care homes.
On several occasions, the grand jury investigated election law violations and shortcomings. After the primary election in 1938 the jury received reports of infractions by election officials and police officers. Some police, one while in uniform, were soliciting votes and distributing campaign literature. Ballots in many polling places were improperly guarded after removal from ballot boxes. Many election judges and clerks lacked the training to tally votes appropriately, thus resulting in many inaccuracies. The grand jury returned no indictments because the irregularies stemmed from ignorance or lack of instruction from election supervisors and from partisanship and lack of supervision in the police department. During the general election that fall, the jurors visited every polling place and declared the election the most orderly and well conducted ever held in the county. Later extensive election law investigations were conducted in 1973 and 1974. The grand jury found insufficient evidence to substantiate most allegations and suggested legislation to remove ambiguities.
In 1955, the grand jury examined rumors that pressure from police in Baltimore City was driving organized crime into Anne Arundel County. Despite finding no evidence to support the rumor, the jury believed "that syndicated racketeers who operate big business in gambling, sports fixing, narcotics, and commercial prostitution endeavor constantly ... to extend their sphere of operation in all directions...." In 1962 the grand jury conducted an inquiry into alleged bribery of members of the county delegation to the General Assembly, and after seeing insufficient evidence to indict anyone, declared media reports misleading.
In 1976 the grand jury handed down the first indictment under the new state antitrust law against a taxicab firm that held an exclusive contract to provide service at Baltimore-Washington International Airport. The indictment included several counts of false pretense and violation of insurance laws. The next installment will begin a consideration of the role of the grand jury regarding public facilities.
STAFF NEWS
We are pleased to note the following staff appointments: Elaine Rice as Curator of Artistic Property, Betsy Bodziak as Database Administrator, Arian Ravanbakhsh as Associate Director of Geographic Services, Emily Murphy as Assistant Registrar and Beverley Coombes as Archival Assistant I.
LIBRARY ACCESSIONS
Conrad, Dennis M., ed., The Papers of General Nathaniel
Greene, vol. 8: 30 Mar.-10 Jul. 1781.
Denton, Lawrence M., Southern Star for Maryland: Maryland
and the Secession Crisis, 1860-1861.
Eberhart, Edith Whitcraft, Branch of the Flitcraft,
Whitcraft, Witcraft and Allied Families Who Came to America during
the Colonial Period.
Eff, Elaine, You Should Have Been Here Yesterday: A Guide to
Cultural Documentation in Maryland.
Galloway, Bruce, Treasuring the Chesapeake: A Celebration of
the Bay's Past and Present, 1st ed.
Getty, Joe, Abstracts from the Engine Liberty and Uniontown
Advertiser, 1813-1815.
Harwood, Herbert H., Jr., Baltimore's Light Rail: Then and
Now.
Hobson, Charles F., ed., The Papers of John Marshall, vol.
7: Correspondence, Papers, and Selected Judicial Opinions, Apr.
1807-Dec. 1813.
Hobson, Charles F., ed.,The Papers of John Marshall, vol. 6:
Correspondence, Papers, and Selected Judicial Opinions, Nov.
1800-Mar. 1807.
Lee, Carol, Legacy of the Land: 250 Years of Baltimore in
Carroll County, Maryland.
Luckenbach, Al, Providence 1649: The History and Archaeology
of Anne Arundel County Maryland's First European Settlement.
(MSA Publication 1190)
Middleman, Jo-Ann, Till a Hundred and Twenty Years: A
Memoir.
National Association of Government Archives and Records
Administration, Members Directory and Roster of State and
National Archives and Records Officials, 1995-1996 edition.
Northrop, Albert W., Decedent's Estates in Maryland.
Owen, David R., Courts of Admiralty in Colonial America:
The Maryland Experience, 1634-1776.
Ross, D. Reid, Edward Bennett and His Family in Early
Seventeenth Century Virginia and Maryland.
Weybright, Victor, Spangled Banner: Story of Francis
Scott Key.
White, Andrew, Voyage to Maryland 1633: Relatio Itineris
in Marilandiam. Translated and edited by Barbara
Lawatsch-Boomgaarden with Josef Ijsewijn
Williamson, Gene, Chesapeake Conflict: The Troublesome
Early Days of Maryland.
STATE AND LOCAL RECORDS REFERENCE REPORT
No doubt reflecting the negative impact of the "Blizzard of '96", the January total of 811 reference requests represents a 15.1% decrease from the January 1995 total of 955. Not surprisingly, this decrease in requests was accompanied by a 8% decrease in the number of records circulated, from 1297 last year to 1193 in 1996. The overall picture is mixed. There were 4 more vital records requests in January 1996 (223) than in 1995 (219). Circulation of district court records decreased by 54.9%, 167 compared to 370. Requests for records of the circuit courts and other agencies increased by 18.6%, 658 compared to 555.
Overall, the judiciary continues as the largest single user of SLR reference services. While the number of reference requests received from the courts decreased by 29.1% (185 compared to 261), court requests still accounted for 22.8% of all requests received and total record circulation. Requests received by phone decreased in January, accounting for 35% of total requests, compared to 38.3% in 1995. The number of requests faxed to the Archives increased from 72 to 87. Overall, fax requests made up 10.7% of the January 1996 total, while accounting for 7.5% of the January 1995 total. Fewer requests were generated from the search room (90) than had been the case in January 1995 (137). Search room requests accounted for 11.1% of January 1996 reference activity as compared to 14.3% last year, a decrease of 3.2%. We also received 13 requests handled in the lobby without requiring the patron to register for the search room.
The number of phone/fax requests (371) surpassed the number of requests received through the mail (337), by a respectable margin (34). Encouragingly, phone/fax requests continue to exceed the number of requests received either through in-person visits (103) or through the mail (337). Phone/fax requests accounted for 45.7% of total requests, with the mail accounting for 41.6%. Revenue from reference activity was up an impressive 26.5%, $6772 compared to $5355.
PRESS RELEASE: Archives Appoints New Members of Search Room Advisory Committee
March 4, 1996 --- The Maryland State Archives has appointed five new members to its Search Room Advisory Committee. The new members are: V.L. Skinner, Jr. of Brookville; Mary K. Meyer of Mt. Airy; Eleanor M.V. Cook of Silver Spring; Jane McWilliams and Lois Green Carr of Annapolis; and Geneva Sparks of Baltimore.
The Search Room Advisory Committee is made up of representatives of groups who use the Archives' public search room on a regular basis. Mr Skinner, Ms. Meyer, Ms. Cook and Ms. McWilliams will represent the many researchers and genealogists who use the Archives. Dr. Carr will represent the educational community and Ms. Sparks government agencies. The committee meets twice a year with Archives' staff to discuss how the search room is operated and how to make it more useful for researchers.
PRESS RELEASE: Archives Completes Restoration of Allegany County Plats
February 12, 1996 --- The Maryland State Archives, in cooperation with the Allegany County Circuit Court and the Administrative Office of the Courts, has completed the restoration of more than 3,000 Allegany County plats, a collection of important records relating to land ownership in the county.
The project included microfilming and scanning the items and entering them into a database for easy reference and retrieval in the future. The Allegany County Circuit Court has received microfilm of the plats and will receive a detailed finding aid. The originals of the plats and a security copy of the microfilm will remain at the Archives in Annapolis.
The collection includes filings from equity cases, railroad right of way surveys, mineral rights, road plans, and courthouse architectural drawings, some dating from the late 19th century. The records were covered with coal dust, and many were in such fragile condition that they could no longer be used without damaging them. The size of items in the collection ranges from letter size to 409" x 23"; some are on linen while others are on paper or are blueprints.
The conservation of the collection was carried out in the Archives' Conservation Lab under the supervision of Chief Conservator Hanna Szczepanowska and took 12 months to complete. The work involved surface cleaning to remove coal dust and other dirt and mending and encapsulating in mylar those items which were too damaged to be placed in folders. About one half of the collection was so fragile that pieces detached when they were unrolled.
According to Dr. Edward C. Papenfuse, Maryland State Archivist: "This was a major conservation project for us and an important one for Allegany County. We hope to be able to perform the same service for other counties whose plats are deteriorating to the point that they will soon be lost forever. They are vital to the records of land ownership, so the originals should be preserved for posterity and microfilm produced for every day use."
The project was initiated by Raymond W. Walker, Clerk of the Allegany County Circuit Court, when he approached the Archives about the possibility of having the collection restored. For many years, the documents had been stored in small drawers in the courthouse and were being torn every time they were used. According to George Riggin, State Court Administrator: "The current reliance almost entirely on paper records for title search purposes has reached the point that the integrity of these records is being threatened. It is very important that these irreplacable records be restored and preserved for future generations." This project was made possible with funding from the Circuit Court Real Property Records Improvement Fund. For more information about the Archives' plat preservation services, please contact: Kevin Swanson or Arian Ravanbakhsh.
RECORD TRANSFERS
DEPARTMENT OF LICENSING AND REGULATION, MARYLAND DEPOSIT INSURANCE
FUND CORPORATION (Mortgage File, First Maryland Savings and Loan)
var.d. [MSA T2629].
DEPARTMENT OF LICENSING AND REGULATION, MARYLAND DEPOSIT
INSURANCE FUND CORPORATION (Minutes and Tax Returns, First Maryland
Savings and Loan) var.d. [MSA T2634]
DEPARTMENT OF LICENSING AND REGULATION, MARYLAND DEPOSIT
INSURANCE FUND CORPORATION (Legal History, First Maryland Savings
and Loan) var.d. [MSA T2637]
GENERAL ASSEMBLY, HOUSE OF DELEGATES (Bills and Resolutions)
1995 [MSA T290]
GENERAL ASSEMBLY, HOUSE OF DELEGATES (Journal and Roll Calls)
1995 [MSA T291]
GENERAL ASSEMBLY, SENATE (Bills and Resolutions) 1995 [MSA
T293]
GENERAL ASSEMBLY, SENATE (Journal and Roll Calls) 1995 [MSA
T294]
GENERAL ASSEMBLY, SENATE (Bill Books) 1993 [MSA T295]
GENERAL ASSEMBLY, SENATE (Vetoed Bills) 1995 [MSA T1763]
GENERAL ASSEMBLY, SENATE (Committee Calendars, Reports, and
Receipts) 1992-1995 [MSA T2481]
GOVERNOR'S COMMISSION ON COMPETITIVE FORCES FACING MARYLAND'S
HORSE-RACING INDUSTRY (General File) 1994-1996 [MSA T2689]
FREDERICK COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT (Church Charters) 1880-1883 [MSA
T2686]
FREDERICK COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT (Descent Record) 1795-1836 [MSA
T2687]
FREDERICK COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT (Naturalization Record)
1799-1906 [MSA T2688]
TWIN OAKS
Just over one hundred years ago, an aged man, not know for his architectural skills, designed a home with a second floor balcony tower so that "as a free man I could look across the Bay to the land where I was born a slave." The 'Bay' was the Chesapeake. The 'land' was Talbot County. The man who did not live to see the house completed in 1895 was Frederick Douglass.
Representing the Archives, I visited the proud, two level, dark wood, Victorian structure called Twin Oaks, on Thursday, February 29, as a guest of the Highland Beach Historical Commission and Delegate Michael E. Busch. The occasion was the first official open house of this three bedroom, three bath, weather boarded, residence which was built by Douglass' youngest son, Charles Redmond. Charles was a well known political and business figure of his own right during this time and between 1893 and 1895 bought land and founded the community of Highland Beach as a summer haven for Blacks. Over the years such prominent African American figures as the poet Paul Laurence Dunbar, and educator Booker T. Washington, vacationed at this site bordered by the Chesapeake. In 1922, the town of Highland Beach was incorporated as a city in Anne Arundel County under the guidance of its first mayor, Frederick Douglass' grandson, Haley Douglass. Twin Oaks stayed in the hands of the Douglass family until 1986 when it was sold by the freedom pioneer's great-great grand-daughter.
Twin Oaks rests on the corner of Wayman Avenue and Highland Beach Park. From the street, a brick pathway curves forward to the front steps and trails around the home. Wooden railings surround the porch and long posts give support to the over hanging roof. A large circular dining table centers a room appointed sparely with antique chairs and effects. Wide glass windows face the water. Behind the dining area sits the den which includes a desk and a full couch where one can imagine Douglass conversing with his guests while puffing on a favorite pipe. The nearly floor length kitchen and dinette to the left of the home is painted a grayish green which breaks up the deep brown hue which both dominates and enhances the dwelling. Stairs separating the kitchen and living areas lead to the more confined and private bed chambers. The master bedroom lies at the top of the steps and faces the bay. The four poster bed one can envision Douglass rising from is handsome, but not ornate. In the anteroom behind Douglass' room stands a sturdy, golden brown dresser and a walk-in closet with a chair and racks to hang towels, and shelves for folded clothes. Nestled at the end of the hall is the guest bedroom which has the solitary feel of a study. It is guarded by the guest bath and a tight hatchbox collection of steps which lead to the attic.
Delegate Busch, Highland Beach Mayor Raymond Langston, and D.C. Congresswoman Charlene Drew Jarvis were among the dignitaries present who praised the efforts of Program Open Space in its efforts to preserve Maryland history, and the Douglass home in particular. A special 15 minute slide show depicting the origin and evolution of Highland Beach followed the talks.
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