Teacher Resources
Maryland
Maryland's location between the Northern and Southern colonies made it a crucial logistical hub — and its planter elite chose revolution despite having far more to lose than most.
The Context
Why Teach
Maryland?
Annapolis was home to one of the wealthiest planter classes in British America — men who had much to lose and chose revolution anyway. Baltimore grew rapidly during the war as a supply and manufacturing center, its iron industry feeding the Continental Army's insatiable appetite.
Maryland's "Line" — its Continental regiments — was considered among the finest in the army, and its soldiers were present at some of the war's most desperate moments. Maryland's state constitution of 1776 became a model for republican government, and its location between North and South made it indispensable to the war's logistics. Teaching Maryland means teaching how wealth, geography, and principle combined to make a revolution.
Recommended Sequence
Multi-Town Teaching Sequence
Annapolis → Baltimore
3–4 class periods
Maryland's Two Centers
Annapolis was the colonial capital — home to one of the wealthiest planter classes in British America, men who had much to lose and chose revolution anyway. Baltimore grew explosively during the war as a supply and manufacturing center. Students examine how class, geography, and economic interest shaped who supported the Revolution and why.
Source Standards
Tier 1 Sources Only.
Every source in our Maryland materials is evaluated using a three-tier credibility system. Tier 1 includes primary documents, National Park Service materials, and peer-reviewed scholarship. Teacher narratives contextualize sources — they don't replace them.