National Trust for Historic Preservation Awards Grant to Applegarth Tubman Medicine Hill Project in Dorchester County

Church Creek, Md. – The Applegarth Tubman Medicine Hill Preservation and Education Foundation is pleased to announce it has received a grant in support of its Medicine Hill preservation project from The National Trust for Historic Preservation’s Bartus Trew Providence Preservation Fund. The grant will support the Foundation’s efforts to preserve and restore the historic 196-acre Medicine Hill rural farm complex, including its 15 buildings, in Dorchester County. The complex is situated on the Honga River south of Church Creek not far from the recently established Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Museum.

The property has a significant history, having been in the Applegarth and Tubman families for more than 200 years. Both families have played key roles in Dorchester County’s history and in the County’s political, religious, and business development. Eight generations of these families are buried at the nearby St. Mary Star of the Sea church and in a family cemetery at St. Giles Fields, both of which date from the 1700’s. The site is now so threatened by the effects of rising waters of the Chesapeake Bay, storms and time, that the Maryland Historical Trust has included it as among its list of most endangered historic properties.

The Applegarth family recently created the nonprofit Applegarth Tubman Medicine Hill Preservation and Education Foundation to preserve the historic site and plan for its future to benefit the public. With plans to implement a multi-pronged project and to become a model for best preservation practices, the Foundation hopes other challenged historic rural properties in the Chesapeake Bay water shed region will benefit. Paul Edmondson, President and CEO of the National Trust for Historic Preservation said: “The National Trust is honored to provide a grant to help preserve this important part of our national heritage. We are very supportive of this worthwhile project. The Medicine Hill project was selected from a large number of qualified applicants competing for a very limited amount of funds.” The President of the Foundation, Paul Applegarth, said that receiving the grant was an important milestone for the project, confirming Medicine Hill’s significance and helping with other potential donors.

Grants from The Bartus Trew Providence Preservation Fund of the National Trust for Historic Preservation are designed to encourage preservation at the local level by providing money for the acquisition, maintenance, and preservation of landmarks and memorials on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. These grants enable local groups to respond proactively to a preservation challenge by providing funding for property acquisition, bricks and mortar preservation, and technical assistance, while building public awareness of the value of preserving the Eastern Shore’s unique heritage. The late Bartus Trew, a long-time resident of Chestertown, and owner of the historic Providence Plantation in Kent County, provided a generous gift to the National Trust for Historic Preservation which established the Bartus Trew Providence Preservation Fund.

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