By Claire Gunster-Kirby
The carved pumpkin, or jack o’ lantern, is a staple of Halloween in the United States. How did this custom originate? To find the origins of the jack o’ lantern, one must go back centuries to around 500 BC when the Celts arrived in Ireland. Because the Celts did not believe in keeping any written records of their history, little is known about their customs and culture before […]
Stay Active – Community Activities
October 23-24 – St. Peter’s Episcopal Church Fall Rummage Sale and Christmas Attic – 10:00 a.m.
October 25th – WUMCO Help – Celebrate the hanging of a portrait of 2 of WUMCO’s beloved founders Jane Stearns and Beulah Clarke Harper by local artist Margot de Messières, made possible by a grant from […]
If you are a bit too squeamish for the full Markoff’s Haunted Forest Experience, you may want to try the Lights On Night on the Markoff Trails on Wednesday, October 28th from 5:00 pm to 9:00 pm.
You […]
The weather on Poolesvile Day was ideal and the Poolesville Seniors made a great showing. Our volunteers set up and manned our booth. We turned out an enthusiastic group of parade walkers who were rewarded by the hardy crowd with cheers and applause.
We would like to thank all those who volunteered for us and made this day fun.
If you know anyone who did not get into town to drop by our booth, remind them they […]
Celebrate Harriet Tubman (1822-1913) on the anniversary of her first attempt to reach freedom on September 17, 1849. Tubman was born into slavery as Araminta Ross on a plantation in Dorchester County, MD. As a child she was beaten and suffered a traumatic head injury when an overseer threw a heavy weight that hit her in the head
In 1849, Tubman escaped to Philadelphia, only to […]
According to USA Today, hundreds of plants are considered toxic to cats and dogs, causing severe vomiting, diarrhea or death without proper veterinary treatment.
In recent years, lilies ranked as one of the toxins leading to the most cases of cat poisonings, according to Pet Poison Helpline, an animal poison control center. Azaleas, sago palms and oleanders ranked high for dog poisonings. Mildly toxic plants include pothos, known as devil’s […]
Join us for our next bus trip on October 15th to enjoy Autumn in the Allegheny Mountains!
Find out more and register here!
Women’s Equality Day is celebrated in the United States on August 26 to commemorate the 1920 adoption of the Nineteenth Amendment (Amendment XIX) to the United States Constitution, which prohibits the states and the federal government from denying the right to vote to citizens of the United States on the basis of sex. It was first celebrated in 1971, designated by Congress in 1973, and is proclaimed each year by […]
Astronomers and stargazers should look to the sky from mid-July through late August for the Perseid Meteor Showers. The Perseids, a trail of space debris from the comet Swift-Tuttle, will reach their peak on the night of August 12, before dawn on August 13, 2025. This year may be a great year to see the meteor shower because the sky will be […]
Quick and accurate communication is important to the military, especially in war. Despite a nearly 70-year effort by of the U.S. government to eradicate Native American languages, the Choctaw Telephone Squad used the Choctaw language to transmit secret tactical messages during WWI. It was instrumental in a successful surprise attack against the Germans.
After WWI, Germany and Japan sent students to the United States to study Native American languages and cultures, such as […]