banneker-douglass museum

We usually check TA before we leave for any get-away. This museum was highly rated by TA, so we "inked it in" for our visit to Annapolis........SO glad that we did!Yes, it is a small museum, but we both learned SO much about black history & slavery just by looking at the exhibits..........who would have ever known that we had black cowboys???? We always think of Roy Rogers & all those other cowboys......but they were always white!There are changing exhibitions on both the 2nd & 3rd floors. When we visited, the 2nd floor exhibit was "Deep Roots, Changing Waters".....an amazing exhibit that depicted how MD African Americans affected Civil Rights Movements throughout our country. The 3rd floor offered an art exhibit of 12 local black artists, using a variety of mediums, to express their stories & thoughts.As we were leaving the museum, we chatted with the gentleman at the Front Desk for almost an hour. He is an amazing person.........he gave us additional information about the origin of the museum and then proceeded to give us Annapolis dining/touring tips for our stay. We just hope that the museum realizes what a tremendous asset he is. There is no fee to tour this wonderful gem, but I hope that, if you decide to visit Banneker- Douglass, you will leave a donation in their Donation Box. Trust me, it is totally worth it! (I'd allow an hour or so to tour both floors.)

This small museum does not have that much, but nonetheless it is quite interesting. Frederick Douglas gave the sermon when the church was dedicated, Rosa Parks visited the church, and the displays describe the history of numerous famous black people from nearby Maryland including Matthew Henson and Thurgood Marshall, as well as other not quite so famous people. The church is simple, but has very nice stained glass windows. It's great that it was preserved and not torn down like Anne Arundel County wanted to do. The gentleman at the front desk was very nice and gave a good introduction to the museum. It's free and worth the time.

So much I did not know, audio and costumes tell stories of some individuals I never knew played such roles in history.

We came to this museum when we found it on TripAdvisor and glad that we did. We have two tweens and they don't have the attention span for these types of things that we adults do and this museum was just the right size. We all learned a lot about slavery in Maryland, most specifically in the Annapolis/Baltimore region. The gentleman that greeted us and started us on our tour could not have been nicer and more welcoming. This place is a real gem

Another free stop in Annapolis with insight into African American history in Maryland and Annapolis. The AME church portion features an exhibit of Herbert Frisby, the second African American to the North Pole (he was inspired by the story of Alexander Henson, the first to make it with Cdr. Peary). The main museum part featured displays on the fight to save the church where Frederick Douglas once spoke and about the fight for freedom in Maryland with spotlights on key players such as Frederick Douglas and Harriet Tubman. I was impressed by the correspondence between Benjamin Banneker & Thomas Jefferson, the former confronting the latter on his slave holdings. Enlightening, a nice addition to other sites in the city and state.

Among the many times I've visited with my daughter, I had the pleasure of attending a doll making session which was sponsored by a sorority organization which was enlightening and fun. Historical facts were shared about the once great church-turned-museum.

Museum was great and the people were more than helpful to my three daughters. They learned about the adventure of getting to the North Pole with an interactive programmed that kept them interested and exploring the museum for much longer than most!

My family learned a great deal from museum especially about the importance of Herbert Frisbee. The man at the front desk was very informative. Be sure to see the mosaic made from the glass that was saved from the windows that were broken during the civil rights movement.

We felt so welcomed when we visited here and 2 gentlemen at the front desks provided wonderful insight into the history. The glass collage on the 2nd floor was beautiful--they had saved original pieces of glass from the Mt. Mariah AME Church to make this. The pictures & history provided on Herbert M. Frisby was impressive. This should be an inspiration for all of us! Thank you.

This African American history museum is definitely worth a visit. We thought 30 minutes would be enough to get through this museum since it was small and free, but we were pleasantly surprised by the quality of the exhibits. We had to hurry our visit because our parking meter was up, but we will definitely stop by again during our next visit.

this site presents the difficulty faced by our society in melding together diverse populations into Americans and the ongoing struggle for equality in a very interesting and fair manner, I advise every person visit

My husband and I literally just walked by this museum and decided to stop in. It is rich in African American history and definitely worth a stop. Very well done.

A unique experience. Exhibit well designed, special exhibits even more special. Maryland and Annapolis a split city and this tells the background, about its citizens

We are so happy that we visited!! The museum was very welcoming and is very historic. We really enjoyed the photography and scenery. The museum was a great addition to our trip.

This is a small museum that is rich with local African American history. Well worth the time. The staff is very helpful and friendly.