From the Mayor
Thurmont
Mayor John Kinnaird
This year, the United States is celebrating its 250th anniversary. I expect that there will be lots of opportunities to celebrate this milestone accomplishment! Interestingly, here in Thurmont, we are also celebrating a special anniversary. This year will be the 275th anniversary of the founding of our community by settlers from Pennsylvania.
When the first settlers arrived here in 1751, they were attracted by the beautiful mountains, cool streams, and ample land for farms and orchards. As time passed, several mills were built along Hunting Creek to help with the manufacture of grains, tools, hides, shingles, and other products. Our community was incorporated as Mechanicstown in 1831, in recognition of the number of small manufacturing businesses at the time. By 1871, when the Western Maryland Railroad arrived, Mechanicstown was a thriving community. The railroad brought with it new opportunities, improved transportation for goods, and a lot of tourists. With the growth of Western Maryland, they had a problem with several towns having the word Mechanic or a variation in the town’s name. There was a contest in Mechanicstown to come up with a new name. Blue Mountain City was selected, but due to its length, the railroad objected. In the end, the second-place winner, Thurmont, was chosen. The name Thurmont was coined by local businessman and newspaper owner Charles Cassell and means Through the Mountains. The name was officially changed in 1894, after the town residents petitioned the State Legislature. The original petition is on display in the town office. Beginning in the 1940s and 1950s, Thurmont saw an influx of large businesses and residential growth. These new residents and businesses have been welcomed into our community and are now an integral part of our daily lives. Thurmont remains a small town at heart, and we are very proud of our community spirit.
Thurmont has seen several anniversary celebrations over the years. The largest being the 200th anniversary held in 1951. This celebration featured school plays and concerts, a parade, the crowning of a Queen and Court, a souvenir booklet, and many other events, hosted by churches and social organizations. During the 250th anniversary celebrations, there were several souvenir items for sale, a booklet, and a program. One of the parts of the 250th celebration involved gathering old photographs of the buildings in our downtown. Denny Smith and I gathered an amazing collection of photos that we displayed in each of the buildings downtown. This collection of images was the beginning of my collection of Thurmont photographs. You can see several thousand historic images of Thurmont and the surrounding communities at thurmontimages.com. The site also has a collection of images from the 200th anniversary celebration.
We are currently planning a celebration for this year’s 275th Anniversary Celebration. The plans include a poster contest for school kids, several scavenger hunts, a new booklet featuring then and now images of Thurmont, a float in the GHC Parade, t-shirts, artwork, a plein air art program, a fashion show, raffles, games, and culminating with a large community picnic on September 27 at Community Park. Out of respect for our Nation’s 250th anniversary, our celebration events will occur after July 4th. Please be on the lookout for additional information regarding Thurmont’s 275th Anniversary Celebration. And remember, our 300th Anniversary is only 25 years away!
Karen and I hope everyone has a wonderful month of May and that the weather starts leveling out soon. I can be reached at 301-606-9458 or by email at jkinnaird@thurmont.com.
Emmitsburg
Mayor Frank Davis
Warmer weather is here, flowers are blooming, our parks are full of people of all ages, and the smell of fresh-cut grass is filling the air. I hope you get out and take advantage of this wonderful time of year.
One of the things I have learned over the past two and a half years is that nothing is easy in the world of construction. As some of you have noticed, there has been a delay with the North Seton Avenue water line and Green Street project. After 15 months of reviews and comments from state agencies, we thought we were ready to move dirt in the first week of April. Much to our surprise, on March 30, we received a few more changes to the stormwater management part of the contract. To be exact, there were 18 changes, this time by the fifth different reviewer. Frustrated and not sure of what steps to take, I reached out to our delegation in Annapolis, Senator Corderman and Delegates Valentine and Wivell. Within an hour, I received a call from our delegates, offering assistance. Within 24 hours, we were given permission to continue the project, with the condition that we address the new comments. I want to thank our senator and delegates for being there when we needed them the most.
Over the past month, I have had the opportunity to attend several special events, the first being Opening Day for the Thurmont Little League. This year marks their 75th anniversary, which was attended by several hundred players, families, friends, and fans. Thanks to this fine organization, their partnership with our town has brought our ballfield back to life. Thank you, Thurmont Little League.
Thanks to the Seton Shrine and the Daughters of Charity, I was invited to the opening of the America 250 Special Exhibit. “Emmitsburg: From Way Back to Now” is a must-see. Join the Daughters of Charity for their special exhibit on the history of Emmitsburg, the town they have called home since Mother Seton’s arrival in 1809. The exhibit will be open until the holiday season of 2027.
Next month, I will be giving you updates on all the current and upcoming projects that will continue to make Emmitsburg a better place to live, work, and visit. I hope to have some exciting news to share.
In closing, I want to remember two very special friends who we lost during the month of April. Norman Shriver Jr. and Ben Ogle were prominent businessmen who served the Emmitsburg and Thurmont communities with pride. While both had quite different personalities, they both loved their family, friends, and communities with all their hearts. I will personally miss both. On behalf of the Town of Emmitsburg, we offer our prayers and condolences to their families.
As always, if you have any questions or concerns or just want to chat, please give me a call.
Woodsboro
Burgess Heath Barnes
Greetings! I opened the April Woodsboro town meeting by discussing the previous meeting and the way the public comments went. Even though there are personal issues between Mrs. Haines and me outside of town business, I should not have let those come into play at the meeting and let her speak without interruption. I apologized to her at the meeting (she was not there, so I am also doing it here). My apologies for the behavior at the meeting.
We had several items on the agenda at the April meeting. One was a discussion about sewage and water hookup rates for new homes, which are currently $7,500 each for a total of $15,000 per home. This number has been the same for many years. After a discussion, ultimately, the commissioners unanimously voted to raise these amounts to $10,000 each for a total of $20,000 per hookup fee for each new home. This will help with our water and sewer funds, which are so desperately needed. The new rates go into effect immediately.
We also discussed community events. After a conversation following the last Easter Egg Hunt, there isn’t much appetite within the fire department to continue it, and I do not have the desire either, as it is difficult to get help. This year, we had very little help on the day of the event, and it’s just too much. We then discussed the Woodsboro Days. The first four years, I did it on my own with no help at all. Last year, we had a little bit of help, and I appreciate it, but it is still not enough. I personally am not looking to spearhead it this year. I presented it to the council to see if anyone wanted to take it over, and no one did, so the decision was made that there will not be a Woodsboro Days festival in the park this year. It is unfortunate because it is a fun event for all who typically attend it. I highly encourage anyone who wants to use the stage and have events to reach out to Mary and get something in place. It has been getting used for some events, and I love seeing that. It was my desire when I went after that grant to see it being used for the community.
I also discussed social media. I have removed my Burgess Facebook page because it has caused more issues than good. When I was elected, I had a goal to get the availability to elected officials out there, and I truly believe I have been out there giving updates in real time on social media more than any elected official in the history of the town, but it just caused more headaches than good. We have a town office with a full-time town manager who’s there Monday through Friday. If there is a question, that’s where it needs to be asked. I am, as always, available for after-hours emergency questions via my phone number, which is 301-401-7164, and can also be found on the town’s website. We will also make sure that each commissioner’s contact information is on there, along with the departments he/she oversees. Another reminder is that the “Living in Woodsboro” page is NOT a town-run page; it is a community page, so there is no guarantee anyone from the town will answer questions on it, or if the answers being given are even correct.
Going forward, and for the last three years of my term, I will be working hard like I always have to continue going after grants and wherever I can to bring in funds to make the town even better, because everything can always be better. I will be the administrator of the town, overseeing the town staff and assisting them, running the monthly town meetings, representing the town at state and county events, etc. As for anything else, I will be stepping back. If any of the other town council members or anyone from the community would like to form committees for community events, I have all the information and would be happy to hand it off to you and share the contacts you may need to continue them.
Reminder to anyone interested, the budget meeting will be held at our May 12 meeting. This is where the council will discuss the budget to be voted on at the June meeting. As always, it will begin at 7:00 p.m. Also, the annual Memorial Day Parade that is put on by the Woodsboro American Legion will take place on May 24 at 1:30 p.m. down Main Street. They always put on a great event. I encourage you to attend.
As always, I encourage everyone to support Glade Valley Community Services (GVCS) if you have clothes or food donations, as they are always in need of items for members of the community. For more information, please contact GVCS by email at gvcs.inc@verizon.net or by calling 301-845-0213.
If you have any questions, concerns, complaints, or compliments, please feel free to reach out to me at hbarnes@woodsboro.org or by phone at 301-401-7164.
Woodsboro town meetings are held on the second Tuesday of each month at 7:00 p.m. In addition, planning and zoning meetings are at 6:00 p.m. on the first Monday of the month, as needed. If you have an item for the agenda, it needs to be submitted 14 days before the P&Z meeting. The current meeting location is the St. John’s United Church of Christ, located at 8 N. 2nd Street, Woodsboro, MD 21798. The public is always invited to attend.
