For the BHHC’s February 16 Presidents’ Day reception, Prince George’s County Historian Doug McElrath will give a presentation about the Battle of Bladensburg, entitled “The War of 1812 in Berwyn Heights – I Didn’t Know That!”

This talk will share some of the fascinating discoveries uncovered by the Bladensburg History Project – a community history collaboration launched as part of the bicentennial of the War of 1812.  The area that is now Berwyn Heights was once considered part of greater Bladensburg, and the people who lived and worked here witnessed a great deal more than a disastrous defeat of the American forces in August 1814.  Come and hear about what was happening “beyond the battle” in greater Bladensburg in the era of the War of 1812.

Doug McElrath is a special collections curator at the University of Maryland Libraries and is the research director for the Bladensburg History Project.  He also is the Chair of Prince George’s Heritage, Inc., a group dedicated to historic preservation in the county.