State: Maryland
City: Annapolis
When: February 14, 2009
Annapolis is a beautiful town that’s home to the U.S. Naval Academy. It was George Washington who gave Maryland the sobriquet “Old Line State” in recognition of the state’s regular line troops who stood toe-to-toe in grisly fighting with the elite British redcoats during the American Revolution.
Irish Lord George Calvert applied to the British King Charles for permission to form a colony; the new colony was to serve as home to Catholics hoping to avoid religious persecution back home. Parliament would later reverse its policy of tolerance towards Catholics, but for a period Maryland was something of a safe haven for people whom the Anglicans considered dangerous dissidents.
Catholic Firsts in Maryland
* 1st American Catholic Bishop was from Baltimore
* 1st canonized American saint — Elizabeth Seton
* 1st American Catholic university (Georgetown)
* 1st Catholic cathedral in the U.S.
What sports are the Free State known for?
Baseball fans know of Camden Yards, and the Orioles have won three World Series titles (the last one in 1966). Lacrosse is a big deal, but what piques my interest is the choice of official state sport: jousting. Who knew that Maryland was such a hotbed of guys in plate armor on horseback jabbing each other with pointy sticks?
50 Caps 