We had to temporarily close the doors of the Museum as of March 15 in order to conform to social distancing criteria, but we wanted a way to stay in touch with our members, visitors, and the community. I came across the hashtag movement, #museumfromhome on Twitter and thought that was definitely something we could do. Some of the zoos and big history museums and sites had such fun things to offer and even though we don’t have cute penguins touring their own zoo or lots of behind-the-scenes spaces, I thought we could still write about some elements of Greenbelt history that would hopefully be educational and entertaining, sort of bite-sized snacks of information.

 

With each post, I think it’s important to offer different layers of information and something a bit interactive, whether it’s a film short, a recording, or links to other articles, etc. That way people can learn more if they want to.

 

So far we’ve covered a lot of territory, from FDR’s first fireside chats to the unbuilt Green Town in New Jersey, to the Drop Inn, to canning during WWII. We’re averaging about 55 page views for each of the blog (some as high as 80/90) and they get lots of shares on Facebook, too, so I think as a way to stay in touch with people it’s working.

Here are some of my favorite bits of Greenbelt history that I learned from the #Museumfromhome posts:

Bored teens are nothing new in Greenbelt, we learn from reading about their “hijinks” and the Drop Inn teen center created for them. “Other teen hijinks in the earliest days included vandalism of the Mother and Child statue in the (Roosevelt) Center. At its worst, some youths attempted to tear down the statue! Another concern in the Center was at the soda fountain located in the Co-op Drugstore. In 1944 the shop was losing money. A new manager was brought in and he soon discovered that the teen workers were giving their friends free ice cream, treats, and sodas. This manager put a stop to the free giveaways and was the victim of severe backlash from Greenbelt teens, some of it anti-Semitic. He resigned after only seven weeks.” (No white-washing of history here!)

Greenbelt’s popular Easter Egg Hunt has had challenges before the pandemic. “Back in 1943, in very early Greenbelt days, colored eggs for the popular Easter Egg Hunt just weren’t possible to make. Food shortages were the reality during the war, and colored eggs for the 425 children who participated in the hunt were impossible. The City staff created an ‘ersatz egg hunt’ also called the ‘eggless Easter egg hunt.’ The ‘eggs’ were brightly painted wood chips, and the consensus was that the children had just as much fun!”

And the post about Greenbrook, the Green Town that was planned but stopped by lawsuits, is a fascinating addition to the history not just of Green Towns but planned communities everywhere.

There’s More

Museum staff have been teleworking this whole time, so in addition to the #museumfromhomes, we’ve got lots of other stuff going on too. We’re brainstorming ways we might reopen safely (so far, walking tours might be the best way because the guide could be mic’d and people can stay 6-10 ft apart).

We’re also working hard, still, on the Education and Visitor Center at 10A Crescent Road. We have draft plans that have been shared with City Council and have a virtual work session coming up where we’ll hopefully be able to share what we’ve accomplished so far. We still have many steps to go before the plans are final, including meetings with GHI and their approvals, but it’s progress! Sheila has been working on developing some new programs for kids and families that we hope to roll out in the future and I’m answering various research questions that come in, so we’re definitely busy!