Our Story
The Howard County Antique Farm Machinery Club was started in 1995 by a group of people looking to preserve the farming heritage of Howard County, Maryland. Howard County is a 253 square mile community located in Central Maryland, with a population of over 300,000. Nestled between Baltimore and Washington, DC, Howard County has a diverse population and rapid growth and development are commonplace. Our geographical area ranges from urban landscapes in the east to rolling farmland in the west.
Our club's mission is to preserve the agricultural way of life that is too quickly disappearing throughout our community. One of the main ways we meet this mission is by being the custodians and curators of the Howard County Living Farm Heritage Museum. We conduct programs and demonstrations as well as develop displays that tell visitors about the way of life in Historic Howard County. Please visit our pages above to learn more about Howard County's Living Farm Heritage Museum and the many programs and exciting activities that continue to educate and preserve.
Conceptual Plan
The museum’s conceptual plan is based primarily on two time components.
The first time component being a “walk through time”, a window of time ranging from the 1600s up through the 1960s and covering what the agricultural and domestic life practices were for residents in our area during those time frames.
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The first time window showcased starts with the domestic and agricultural practices of the Native Americans who lived in this region in the 1600s. The second time window moving into the 1700s showcases the earliest settlers who were considered subsistence farmers.
These early farmers clear just enough land to raise enough crops to sustain themselves throughout each year. The third window is a result of numerous historical benchmarks converging within a window of time around the mid to late 1800s, such as the emancipation of slavery as a result of the end of the Civil War, the construction of the Historic National Road, (our Nation’s first federally funded roadway) and the heyday of our Nation’s industrial age, agricultural and domestic practices developed considerably. Mechanization allowed for the clearing of larger areas of farmland. Better developed road systems provided a more convenient and efficient method of transporting produce to larger commercial markets thus increasing agricultural commerce throughout our region. The fourth and final time window depicted in our “walk through time” at the Living Farm Heritage Museum includes the introduction of electricity to our region from the early 1900s to the 1960s. A case for the introduction of electricity can arguably be made as the one single most significant advancement affecting agricultural and domestic life practices throughout the history of mankind.
Interjected at various locations throughout the Living Farm Heritage Museum, visitors will find examples of many of the types of structures, businesses and services provided as part of the infrastructure of a young and growing community. Examples like a general store, one-room schoolhouse, little country church, blacksmith shop, gristmill, sawmill, barns and sheds are all part of the planned development of the Living Farm Heritage Museum.