The University of Maryland's Enslavement Acknowledgment was developed by a committee of faculty and staff with input from The 1856 Project. Read it here. 

The University of Maryland’s 1856 Project, part of the Universities Studying Slavery consortium, has been awarded a generous $200,000 grant from the Mellon Foundation Public Knowledge program to establish a two-year research incubator program that will investigate the legacy of slavery at the university and document histories of enslaved individuals, ensuring their stories and contributions are recognized, honored and preserved...Read More.

By Dominique Moody, News4A research project reveals the University of Maryland’s ties to slavery. News4’s Dominique Moody reports on its findings and the school’s connection to historic communities in College Park. Watch video. 

By Liann Herder, Diverse: Issues In Higher EducationThe University of Maryland's (UMD) The 1856 Project has released its first report covering the history of their institution and its intersection with slavery, Reconstructing the Truth. Its goal, stated in the report, is to become a “blue print for a richer understanding of generations of racialized trauma rooted in the institution”...Read More

By John-John Williams IV, The Baltimore BannerA new report shows that the slave economy was deeply entrenched in the origins of the University of Maryland, College Park, including enslaved people living and working on land that forms a large section of the current campus...Read More

By Jimmy Alexander, WTOP NewsA new report examining the University of Maryland’s historical ties to slavery has connected multiple enslavers to the school’s founding. The first research report from the “1856 Project” shows the school’s link to slavery started with the state’s founder...Read More

By Lilly Price, The Baltimore SunThe University of Maryland, College Park this month published a research report on the institution’s connections to slavery, detailing how founder Charles B. Calvert was a descendant of enslavers and owned at least 55 slaves who worked on his Riverside plantation, land that makes up part of UMD’s campus...Read More

By Razak Diallo, The Black ExplosionThe 1856 Project held its first annual research update on Feb. 7. The first part of the report, “Reconstructing the Truth,” details the University of Maryland’s connection to slavery and local African American communities...Read More

By Jackson Hawkins, Stories Beneath the ShellOn Feb. 7, the 1856 Project conducted their first annual research update findings in a report presentation that took place in the special events room in McKeldin Library...Read More

By Sumaya Abdel-Motagaly, The DiamondbackThe University of Maryland used to serve as a shelter for runaway slaves and profited from the finances of slave owners, according to the findings of the 1856 Project presented at its first annual research update on Wednesday...Read More 

By Maryland Today Staff, Maryland TodayA new report from The 1856 Project at the University of Maryland explores the story of an enslaved family that could have lived where the Xfinity Center stands today, as well as the Rossborough Inn’s potential ties to the Underground Railroad...Read More

The 1856 Project welcomes applicants for an internship for the Fall 2023 academic term. As part of The 1856 Project, interns will have the opportunity to do the following:

• Engage in primary research meant to uncover data relevant to enslaved individuals and communities tied to the history of the university and its intersections with the surrounding community.
• Build skills in packaging complex research to large audiences through digital humanities-related work.
• Assist in producing The 1856 Project podcast.
• Provide copy editing support,…
  See More

The 1856 Project is once again collaborating with the BSOS Summer Research Initiative (SRI) and the Summer Research Opportunities Program (SROP) hosted by College of Arts and Humanities to seek rising juniors and seniors to participate in an 8-week (June 5th - July 28th, 2023) research internship. The 1856 Project SRI/SROP scholars will work with the University of Maryland Libraries' Special Collections and University Archives in the historical exploration of the slave economy and how slavery operated in the immediate vicinity of the Maryland Agricultural College (MAC, now…

By Karen Shih, Maryland TodayAt the start of Black History Month, organizers of a University of Maryland initiative probing the institution’s historic intersections with slavery are inviting community members to learn about their research and progress and join their work.Tomorrow, The 1856 Project’s inaugural symposium will bring together UMD researchers and students... Read more

By Hannah Ziegler, The DiamondbackMembers of the University of Maryland community got a first glimpse Monday into the work of this university’s 1856 Project — an initiative that looks to investigate the Black experience at this university and analyze institutional ties to slavery...Read morePhoto by Daryl Perry

By Liam Farrell, Maryland TodayFebruary 21st, 2022From investigating historic connections to the slave economy to examining the experiences of current Black students, the University of Maryland’s ambitious 1856 Project aims to illuminate the past and influence the future of a diverse institution...Photo by John T. Consoli

By Casey Hughes and Sara Ludewig, Terrapin TalesFebruary 25th, 2021In the coming months the 1856 Project, the University of Maryland’s contribution to the Universities Studying Slavery, will be exploring the role that enslaved individuals played in the founding and early history of our institution...Read morePhoto courtesy of Anacostia Community Museum

By Anaya Truss-Williams, The DiamondbackLast week, before visiting a section of an orientation course meant to introduce new students to the University of Maryland, university archivist Lae’l Hughes-Watkins reviewed the slides that had been shown to educate the class about the school’s history.She noticed a few key omissions...Read morePhoto by Julia Nikhinson

As the University of Maryland becomes a member of Universities Studying Slavery in July 2020, the country is witnessing another watershed moment in the aftermath of the ongoing murders of Black people...Read more