Annapolis, MD - On Sunday, March 30, 2008, from noon to 5:00 p.m., you can discover Maryland history in your own backyard with family and friends in the Four Rivers Heritage Area. For the first time, Annapolis and southern Anne Arundel County will celebrate Maryland Day 2008 with a free festival highlighting regional history. Local cultural and heritage sites will open their doors to Marylanders and will feature special free activities and tours for the whole family.

Maryland Day commemorates the day weary English colonists disembarked from the ships Ark and Dove at St. Clement's Island in southern Maryland and celebrated their safe arrival in the new world with a service of thanksgiving. In 1916, the Maryland General Assembly authorized Maryland Day as a legal holiday devoted to Maryland history.

Four Rivers and the Historic Annapolis Foundation have partnered with regional heritage organizations and businesses to showcase the area's local history in commemoration of this momentous day. Participants include:

• Annapolis and Anne Arundel County Conference and Visitors Bureau: 26 West Street, Annapolis
   
• Annapolis Maritime Museum: 723 Second Street and Creek View Drive, Eastport
   
• Banneker-Douglass Museum: 84 Franklin Street, Annapolis
   
• Captain Salem Avery House Museum: 1418 East West Shady Side Road, Shady Side
   
• Charles Carroll House: 107 Duke of Gloucester Street, Annapolis
   
• Chesapeake Children’s Museum: 25 Silopanna Road, Annapolis
   
• Galesville Heritage Museum: 988 Main Street, Galesville
   
• Hammond-Harwood House: 19 Maryland Avenue, Annapolis
   
• Historic London Town and Gardens: 839 Londontown Road, Edgewater
   
• HistoryQuest at the St. Clair Wright Center (Historic Annapolis Foundation): 99 Main Street, Annapolis
   
• Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts: 801 Chase Street, Annapolis
   
• Sands House: 130 Prince George Street, Annapolis
   
• State House Visitor Center: State Circle, Annapolis
   
• U.S. Naval Academy Armel-Leftwich Visitors Center: Inside Gate 1, 52 King George Street, Annapolis
   
• William Paca House and Garden (Historic Annapolis Foundation): 186 Prince George Street, Annapolis

Additional participating partners include Capital City Colonials, Discover Annapolis Tours, the Kunta Kinte-Alex Haley Foundation, Lost Towns Archaeology Project, Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, the Terrapin Institute, and Watermark. The event will be sponsored by Bay Weekly, the area's free go-to-guide for entertainment, arts, and services.

Mark your calendars now for a special day devoted to free, fun, and family-friendly activities commemorating Maryland's wonderful history. And take advantage of this terrific opportunity to be a "tourist in your own home town"!

Since 1952, Historic Annapolis Foundation has preserved the distinctive character of Maryland's capital city through public advocacy and guidelines, purchase and renovation, original research, and educational programs. The Foundation manages historic Annapolis properties including the St. Clair Wright Center, William Paca House and Garden, Shiplap House, Museum Store, Waterfront Warehouse, and The Barracks. For more information, please contact the Historic Annapolis Foundation online at www.annapolis.org or call Maria Day at (410) 267-8146.

Four Rivers, one of Maryland's state heritage areas, is a nonprofit organization operating in partnership with the Maryland Heritage Areas Authority, Anne Arundel County, the City of Annapolis, the Town of Highland Beach, and heritage-related organizations and businesses. Its mission is to protect and strengthen the natural, historic, and cultural resources of the heritage area, to nurture their discovery through educational and recreational experiences for visitors and residents, and to promote the region's rich legacy. For more information on the state's award-winning heritage areas program, please visit www.fourriversheritage.org or call Carol Benson at 410-222-1805.