Dozen Distinctive Destinations
Annapolis, MD
Year Listed: 2005
Annapolis, Maryland’s colonial capital, has enchanted visitors and locals alike for more than three centuries. Dubbed the “Athens of America,” Annapolis was a favorite haunt of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and other Revolutionary gentry who relished the city’s politics, pubs and vibrant civic life. Today, Annapolis cherishes the proud history embodied in some 1,500 restored historic buildings (including the nation’s oldest state capitol in continuous use) that make up the largest concentration of 18th-century architecture in the United States. Since its beginnings, the city has been defined and sustained by water – first as a tobacco port with direct access to the mighty Chesapeake Bay, later as a working watermen’s town, and more recently as America’s sailing capital, with pleasure craft of all types and sizes crowding the City Dock where oyster shells were once heaped 10 feet high. The city is also famed as the home of the U.S. Naval Academy, established in 1845 and now the scene of impressive pageantry when future Navy officers assemble in formation in front of massive Bancroft Hall each day at noon. Though small in size, Annapolis is big on arts and entertainment. The city celebrates its culture and heritage year-round with fairs and festivals, its own ballet troupe, symphony orchestra and opera company as well as several theaters; and as the lead partner in the Four Rivers Heritage Area. For these reasons, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the country's largest private, nonprofit preservation organization, today named Annapolis to its 2005 list of America’s Dozen Distinctive Destinations, an annual list of unique and lovingly preserved communities in the United States. It was selected from nearly 80 destinations in 44 states that were nominated by individuals, preservation organizations and local communities. “Despite its distinguished history and abundance of Colonial-era structures, Annapolis is no staid museum exhibit,” said Richard Moe, president of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. “It’s a thriving, living community, with a waterside location that fosters boating and yachting, and summertime festivals that attract crowds to the City Dock for crisp salt air and views of sailing vessels. Charming and perennially welcoming, Maryland’s capital is also eminently accessible, less than 30 miles from either Baltimore or Washington, D.C. – great for a daytrip or a journey into the past.”
