Banneker-Douglass-Tubman Museum

10/22/2026

Meet our Fall 2026 Marketing and Communications Interns, Alexia Castillano and John Mannino! 🤎

🎓 Alexia Castillano is a 2026 graduate of Baruch College, where she earned her bachelor’s degree in International Business and Marketing along with a minor in Spanish.

🎓 John Mannino is a 2025 graduate of Salisbury University, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in Communications with a track in Public Relations & Strategic Communication, along with a minor in Marketing.

We’re excited to have Alexia and John on the MCAAHC and Banneker-Douglass-Tubman Museum teams and look forward to the insight, creativity, and contributions they’ll bring to our Marketing and Communications work. 📚

Welcome to the team, Alexia and John! We’re glad to have you with us as we continue sharing and preserving Maryland’s African American heritage.

10/21/2026

The Maryland Commission on African American History and Culture held its October 2026 Public Meeting on Monday, October 5, 2026, at the Building African American Minds, Inc. (BAAM) in Easton, MD. The meeting was led by Chair Kali-Ahset Amen and host Commissioner Dina Daly.

During the meeting, the public heard from the following featured speakers and received updates and reports for the commission:

🎤 Dr. James Bell, Director of Instruction, Academic Support & Community Well-Being at Building African American Minds (BAAM), Inc., spoke about the programs and resources that BAAM has brought to Talbot County and the positive impact it has had on the community.

🎤 Mr James Redman, Head of Schools at Polaris Village Academy (PVA) discussed the unique curriculum and philosophy behind PVA’s educational approach. He also brought in several of his students to share their own experience with Polaris Village Academy.

Reports:

🔊 Chair Report - Chair Amen highlighted a recent workshop at the Annual Meeting of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History, showing how to establish African American History State Commissions with Commissioner Brian Morrison.

✒️ Directors Report - Executive Director Chanel C. Johnson announced funding for a revamp of the museum’s permanent exhibition and upcoming temporary exhibition, "Dark Testament: A Century of Black Writers on Social Justice", at the Banneker Douglass Tubman Museum. She also highlighted the 2026 Capital Emmy Awards won by Maryland Public Television and WETA Arts specials for ‘Sacred Spaces.’

🏛️ Government Affairs and Community Engagement Report - Vice Chair Jaelon T. Moaney discussed Senate 776, which established the Commission on the House of Reformation and Instruction for Colored Children, and the review of roadside markers with the MDOT alongside the unveiling of an updated marker.

📜 The African American Heritage Preservation Program officially renamed the Speaker Adrienne Jones African American Heritage Preservation Program alongside the opening of a new non-capital grant.

🖼️ BDTM Committee - Commissioner Ada Pinkston reported on the Aesthetic Inheritance Symposium at Bowie State University, participation in the upcoming Annapolis Jazz and Roots Festival, and the launch of sales for the ‘She Speaks’ hardcover catalog.

The MCAAHC leadership is helmed by Chair Kali-Ahset Amen, Ph.D. and Vice Chair Jaelon T. Moaney.

View the full recording of the MCAAHC October 2026 Public Meeting on YouTube here: https://youtu.be/tHWminYXuZo

View the photo gallery here: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.122298898208149451&type=3

10/21/2026

✏️ New at BDTM: Interactive Worksheets for Self-Guided Visits! 🎨

Exploring the museum on your own? Grab one of our 5 new interactive worksheets, designed for grades K–12 but fun for all ages! They’re a great way for the whole family to slow down, look closely, and connect with the art.

🔍 Look & Find Scavenger Hunt (Pre-K & up)
Perfect for young explorers and visual learners (though we’ve seen all ages get hooked!). Search through artworks in the 'She Speaks' exhibition to find the items on your sheet.

💭 Think & Reflect (Middle School)
Look closely at 3 artworks across the museum and reflect on how they connect to your own experiences.

🧵 The Art of Storytelling (3 worksheets)
Created in collaboration with featured artist Zsudayka Nzinga, these worksheets center on her large textile piece The Art of Storytelling (2025):

📝 Pre-K–5th grade (with an adult): Learn about collage and quilts, go on a mini scavenger hunt, discover the history of quilt parties, and draw and write about your own story.
📝 5th–8th grade: Explore visual storytelling, the cultural tradition of quilt parties, and creative writing and drawing prompts.
📝 9th–12th grade: Dig into visual storytelling, quilt parties, and silhouette, with prompts on personal reflection, narrative, and the power of symbols.

A big thank you to our Maryland250 Fellow, who created "Look & Find" and "Think & Reflect!" 🙌

📍 Pick up a worksheet on your next visit and see what stories you discover. Visit https://bdmuseum.maryland.gov/plan-your-visit/

10/16/2026

A Keepsake of History & Vision Honoring 250 Years of History Through a Black Feminist Lens

🔊We are thrilled to announce the pre-sale launch of the exhibition catalogue and official merchandise for 'She Speaks: Black Women Artists and the Power of Historical Memory'!

📖 The Exhibition Catalogue
More than a companion piece, the She Speaks catalogue is a lasting critical resource, archival record, and invitation to explore how Black women preserve, interpret, and reshape the stories we inherit.

📖 What’s Inside: Newly commissioned essays, scholarly reflections, artist profiles, archival materials, and family histories exploring themes of preservation, resistance, archival practice, and Afrofuturism.

🖋️ Contributors: Martina Dodd, Leslie Rose, Chanel Compton Johnson, Hess Love, Angela N. Carroll, Keondra Freeman, Belinda Moses, Rosa de la Vega, and Morgan White.

🎨 Featured Artists: Elizabeth Catlett, Alanna Fields, Dr. Joan M. E. Gaither, Charlyn Griffith-Oro, Khaleelah I. L. Harris, Martha Jackson Jarvis, Fabiola Jean-Louis, Jeannine Kayembe-Oro, Zsudayka Nzinga, Ada Pinkston, Beverly Price, Faith Ringgold, Noreen Smith, Darlene R. Taylor, Jessica Valoris, Savannah G. M. Wood, and Alisha B. Wormsley.

Pre-orders are OPEN NOW! Catalogues arrive in early December, just in time for holiday gifting. Whether you're looking to enrich your own library or find meaningful holiday gifts for the art and history lovers in your life, this collection offers powerful pieces to treasure for years to come.

🛍️Exclusive Merchandise
Bring a piece of the exhibition home with you! Official She Speaks merchandise is available now for in-museum pick-up:

🖼️ 3 Custom Bookmark Designs featuring the artwork of Zsudayka Nzinga, Ada Pinkston, and Noreen Smith
🖼️ Commemorative Magnets

Pre-order the catalogue and explore merchandise here today: https://baltimorereadaloud.shop/lists/LvGvyOt7HtWs

10/15/2026

Today is National Cherish Black Women Day, and at the Banneker-Douglass-Tubman Museum, honoring Black women is woven into who we are, including our very name. 🤎

When our museum added "Tubman" to its name, it was a tribute to Harriet Tubman, a freedom fighter and daughter of Maryland's Eastern Shore whose courage carried countless people to freedom. Her name now stands alongside Benjamin Banneker and Frederick Douglass, a lasting reminder that Black women have always been at the center of Maryland's story. That legacy continues with Verda Welcome, the first African American woman elected to the Maryland State Senate and the namesake of our Historic Wing.

This celebration continues in our galleries. We invite you to experience 'She Speaks: Black Women Artists and the Power of Historical Memory', a visionary presentation that examines the 250-year history of the United States of America through a Black Feminist lens. Through the work of Black women artists, 'She Speaks' reclaims, reimagines, and reframes the American story in their own voices.

Today and every day, we celebrate the Black women who came before us, those leading now, and those who will carry the work forward. Who is a Black woman you cherish? Tell us in the comments.

Plan your visit: https://bdmuseum.maryland.gov/plan-your-visit/

10/12/2026

The Banneker-Douglass-Tubman Museum will be closed on Tuesday, October 13th for staff's off-site professional development.

The museum will reopen on Wednesday, October 14, 2026. We look forward to welcoming you back to the museum during normal hours.

10/09/2026

10/02/2026

Proud to share that our Executive Director Chanel C. Johnson will take the stage today as part of a panel at the Community College Humanities Association National Convention 2026 to share insights on the state of the humanities. 🙌🏿

10/01/2026

Help preserve the history of Crownsville Hospital. 🕯️

Join the Crownsville Hospital Historic Documentation and Storytelling Project for a free Oral History Training & Workshop at the Banneker-Douglass-Tubman Museum.

Led by Historian and Program Manager Dr. Le Datta Denise Grimes, this workshop will provide participants with foundational oral history skills and help prepare them to conduct research, ask meaningful questions, navigate sensitive topics, and contribute to preserving the stories connected to Crownsville Hospital.

📅 October 10, 2026
⏰ 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM
📍 Banneker-Douglass-Tubman Museum
84 Franklin St, Annapolis, MD 21401

Registration is free. Sign up at aacounty.org/crownsvillehistory or scan the QR code on the graphic.

Join us in preserving history and carrying these important stories forward.



Anne Arundel County Government, County Executive Steuart Pittman, Friends of the Crownsville Patient Cemetery