Call for Articles
The Riversdale Historical Society invites articles of between 250 – 800 words for our periodic newsletter which reports on programs, activities, and research related to life at the estate now known as the Riversdale House Museum in Riverdale Park, Maryland. The newsletter is distributed as a benefit of membership in the Society, and is made available to visitors to the Museum. As such, articles should be written for a non-specialist audience.
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Riversdale was home to many over the centuries: the Stier family who emigrated from Antwerp in the 18th century and began the construction of the house in 1801; the Calvert family who completed the construction of the home and resided there until the late 19th century, including Charles Benedict Calvert who founded the University of Maryland; Adam Francis Plummer, an enslaved man who along with dozens of other individuals labored at Riversdale; and several politicians who used Riversdale as their home while serving in office in Washington, DC.
Articles might address, but are not limited to, subjects such as:
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19th-century agricultural science and gardening
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Colonial and Palladian architecture
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19th-century decorative arts
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19th-century foodways
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The University of Maryland (originally the Maryland Agricultural College)
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Notable residents of Riversdale
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The Stier, Calvert, Plummer, or other descendant families histories
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The history of African and enslaved populations
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Belgium and Belgian customs
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19th-century social conventions and customs
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Colonial and Federal-era Maryland
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Themes are open to interpretation.
Contact
Please send a title and short summary of your proposed article to our newsletter editor, Howard Menaker, at newsletter@riversdale.org. Please include your full name, any affiliations, and a brief bio. If you are connected in any way to Riversdale or the Riversdale Historical Society, please also include that information.