On Sunday, May 1, we will observe the church’s 60th Anniversary with a three hour celebration; you can come to any part of the program, but we think you may want to be with us for it all! The program will have something for everyone – stories, interactive activities, songs/singing, movies, testimonies, food and more. I hope your Sunday morning will include UUCA. As we have been making plans for May 1, several unanswered questions (at least, unanswered for me) have been asked. I’d love to know if you have any insight to an answer. If we can come up with something definitive we can share it on May 1. Here goes – there are five:
First, there are two competing stories as to who and why the first members of the Unitarian Fellowship of Annapolis assembled. One is that they were Adlai Stevenson campaign workers (Stevenson was the 1956 Democratic Presidential candidate). He was a Unitarian and it’s been said that area Stevenson supporters became Unitarian once they learned more about this faith. Another story says that area Unitarians were tired of commuting to First Unitarian in Baltimore and decided to create a congregation here. So, which is accurate? Both? Neither?
Second, the congregation wasted no time in calling a minister. In 1956, this was unusual for new start-up Unitarian congregations who often remained without professional ministerial leadership for several years and longer. Why a minister so quickly?
Next question: Three of the first “public” spaces where the new congregation met were in the city (St. John’s campus; then at the corner of Sixth Street & 
Chesapeake in Eastport; finally – and a bit farther away from downtown but still easier to find – was a house across from the Weems Creek Medical building on Ridgeley Avenue which at the time was at the entrance/exit ramp off of highway 50). When the congregation purchased 1.75 acres at our current site, in the woods, off Bestgate Road (Bestgate was a country, two lane little-used street) – when this building was built you either had to know where you were going or be lost in order to find us (it’s a bit easier today, but not much). Why the woods?
Fourth, my predecessor – Rev. Bill Barnett – served UUCA for 19 years; I have shared the ministry with you for 33 years. That is to say, two ministers account for all but four years of the church’s history. In the 20th and 21st centuries, this length of ministry is highly unusual no matter what the faith community. How do we explain this congregation’s embrace of long term ministry?
Finally, and this is a big question for UU/UUCA history enthusiasts: Why did it take so long for a Unitarian or Universalist congregation to be established in Annapolis? Here’s some background: In older, colonial cities (like Annapolis) up and down the eastern seaboard – from Bangor, ME (a ship building city) to Savannah, GA – UU congregations were established in the 18th and 19th centuries. Why not Annapolis? We had all the traditional ingredients: universities, political/cultural hub, metropolitan atmosphere, wealth, a port. It seems to me that there would have been a church here too. What happened? First Unitarian Baltimore was established in 1817.
As we prepare for our 60th Anniversary observance, I’d love to hear from you on any or all of these unanswered questions.
See you soon and take care,
Fred