Sandy Spring Museum

Established	January 5, 1981; 43 years ago (1981-01-05) [2] [3]
Location	Sandy Spring, Maryland, U.S.
Coordinates	39°08′58″N 77°01′17″W / 39.149577°N 77.021271°W / 39.149577; -77.021271
Type	501(c)(3) nonprofit history museum [1]
Director	Allison Weiss [4]
President	David Hickson [4]
Website	www.sandyspringmuseum.org

Sandy Spring Museum was founded as a local history museum, preserving the history of the surrounding area of Sandy Spring, MD. Today, by supporting community-driven cultural arts and educational programs, they gather community to build a sense of place and belonging. ^[5]

History

An insurance salesman and auctioneer named Delmas Wood started the Sandy Spring Museum in 1981 because he thought Sandy Spring's history was gradually being lost as older residents died. ^{[2] [3]} Wood wanted a place to preserve antique furniture, farm equipment, photographs, paintings, and documents of the Sandy Spring area. ^[6] Florence Virginia Barrett Lehman also helped found the museum. ^[7]

The museum was originally located in the basement of a Sandy Spring National Bank branch in Olney. ^[8] In October 1986, ^[9] it moved to Tall Timbers, a brick four-story Colonial house that had been the home of Gladys Brooke Tumbleson, who had died earlier that year. ^[3] Tumbleson descended from the Brooke family, for which nearby Brookeville was named. ^[3] Tumbleson sold the building to the museum for less than market value. ^[3]

Mary Jane Forman Rice founded the Sandy Spring Museum Garden Club, a group of volunteers who tend to the museum's courtyard garden, in 1992. ^[10]

Helen Bentley, the widow of baseball star Jack Bentley, donated 7.5 acres (30,000 m²) of land on Bentley Road in Sandy Spring to the museum in 1994. ^[6] The Bentleys' ancestors had lived in Sandy Spring since the late 18th century. ^[11] Almost the entire cost of the new location was contributed by local donors. ^[12] The building was designed by local architects Miche Booz and Thomas Bucci. ^{[12] [13]} They based the design local 18th century barns and houses in order to make sure it would blend in with the area. ^[12] The arched walkway was originally planned from the road to the entrance, but it was shortened to save costs. ^[12] The architects gave a distinctive feel to each room of the building, and Booz called the central courtyard the "best room in the museum". ^[12]

The museum's new building on Bentley Road opened in 1997, providing more room for the museum's exhibits. ^[8]

Maryland Historical Trust awarded the Educational Excellence Award to Sandy Spring Museum for its interactive exhibit and web site in 2001. ^[14]

In 2007, a 3,500-square-foot (330 m²) addition opened, providing a research library and a collections storage facility for the museum. ^{[11] [15]}

Exhibits

Sandy Spring Museum's exhibits include a replica of a 19th-century classroom, a replica of a blacksmith's shop, a replica of a general store, and a tractor made from a Model T Ford. ^{[8] [6]} The museum has archived more than 15,000 artifacts and photographs from the area around Sandy Spring. ^[6] Some of its collection dates back to 1650. ^[6]

There are temporary exhibitions that rotate quarterly which often focus on art and history or art and current events. ^[16] The artists featured are frequently but not exclusively local.

A windowed gallery displays art by the faculty of Montgomery College. ^[6]

Two new exhibits were designed by locals in 2014. ^[17] One of the exhibits is about veterans transitioning from life in a combat zone to life as a civilian. ^[17] Another exhibit recreated an existing exhibit about community gathering spaces. ^[17]

References