As part of the Springsong Museum Oral History and audio exhibit project, record your memories and thoughts of world-renowned writer and scientist, Rachel Carson, who is considered by many as the "Mother of the Modern Environmental Movement," Carson lived in Silver Spring, Maryland from 1937 until her death in 1964. It was here, steps from the banks of the Northwest Branch of the Anacostia River, that Carson penned her most critical work, Silent Spring.
Carsons house, where she lived from 1957-1964, is a National Historic Landmark currently preserved by the expert and loving care of Diana Post and Cliff Hall, serving as the headquarters of the Rachel Carson Landmark Alliance. While Montgomery County has named 25 miles of trail along the NW Branch and a gorgeous 650-acre park in Brookeville in Carsons honor, no local place consistently open to the public exists with the explicit intention to share Carsons story and ideas. This app begins the museums journey in gathering those stories.
Our proposal is to house the Springsong Museum at a historic county Parks-owned property 2.5 miles downstream from where Carson lived and wrote Silent Spring. Our vision will transform this space into a museum where children and adults, locals and tourists alike, can learn about Carsons ecological philosophy and deep sense of wonder. At the same time, Springsong seeks to share the history of the land at Burnt Mills, including that of its mills and the significance of its filtration ingenuity, the nearby African American communities, and the Nacotchtank/Anacostan history and current Piscataway perspectives, many elements of which predate and align with Carsons focus on interconnection in nature.
Download the app and share your stories of Rachel Carson and her work, which seem more relevant today than ever.