EARLEVILLE — For the first time in eight years, the Maryland Home and Garden Pilgrimage is returning to Cecil County this coming Sunday.
The Maryland House and Garden Pilgrimage, according to their website, is a “non profit organization dedicated to the restoration of historically significant properties in the State of Maryland.” Since 1930, the MHGP as it’s known has been showing off some of Maryland’s best and most beautiful historic homes and gardens. Each year, four counties are featured, but this year is special for Cecil County.
This year marks the first time since 2010 that the tour comes to Cecil County, and this year nine homes will be featured in the tour, including Bohemia Manor and, of course, Mount Harmon Plantation, which executive director of programming at the Plantation, Paige Howard, was thrilled to hear.
“The Maryland Housee and Garden Pilgrimage is a big deal,” she said. “It’s exciting to be back in it and for people from all over the state to come and visit us. It’s a great opportunity for folks who love history.”
Mount Harmon is helping to promote the tour, and is also a one of the beneficiaries, along with St. Augustine Church in Chesapeake City. Howard went on to explain what it is exactly that folks can expect to find as they explore the history in each house.
“Antiques, architecture and gardening are all on display,” she said, “and there’s a lot of DuPont history connected with the tour.”
As is well known to many, the DuPont family owned a great deal of property and preserved much of the history of the area, as well as created and lived in some of the most beautiful homes in the region. Howard went on to assert that anyone wanting to find out more about the family history of the DuPonts would be right at home on this tour.
As for Mount Harmon, the historic plantation is surrounded by beautiful land and makes a perfect stop for the tour, and they will be getting ready and holding special events while tourists come to visit.
“We’ll have our hearth cooking in the colonial kitchen and living history interpreters at the herb garden,” Howard said.
In terms of other places to visit, the aforementioned Bohemia Manor, the famous estate of Augustine Herman, as well as his place of worship, St. Augustine’s Church, will both be open to pilgrimage participants. Woodstock Farm, Chateau Bu De Winery, Worsell Manor, The Rounds, the Anchorage, and Brick House Farm will also all be featured on the pilgrimage.
Cecil County is a place brimming with history and beauty, and after eight years away, it’s only fitting that the Home and Garden Pilgrimage comes back around to a place central to not only the history of the state and region, but the country.
“Cecil County has centuries of history and it’s rare that so many houses are featured on the pilgrimage,” Howard said. “As for us at Mount Harmon, we’ve put together a great tour since 2010, so I hope a lot of people plan on joining us.”
The Maryland Home and Garden Pilgrimage will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday, May 20. For more info on tickets, which are $35 in advance and $40 day of, as well as info on the pilgrimage, history of each location and directions, head to mhgp.org.
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