Providence was settled in 1649 by a group of about 300 non-conformist Puritans. These pioneers came to the shores of Anne Arundel County at the invitation of the Catholic Lord Baltimore. They established their homes and tobacco plantations on the shores of the Severn River and the Chesapeake Bay, a community that would soon transform into the colonial Capital of Maryland: Annapolis. Providence was also the location of the Battle of the Severn in 1655; the only engagement of the English Civil War to occur on North American soil.

So far, the Lost Towns team has investigated seven sites from this early settlement, lending new insights into the colonial Chesapeake. To learn more about the Puritans of Providence and the archaeolgical discoveries, select from the sites below for the full historic and archaeological summary. The Providence settlement has recently been listed on the National Register of Historic Places, an honorific title that demonstrates how important Providence is to both our County and Nation's history. Read the nomination that we prepared to learn more about Providence.

The exciting discovery of a skeleton at Leavy Neck - a body buried in a trash-laden cellar hole - is highlighted in an exhibit running at the Smithsonian called "Written In Bone: Forensic Files of the Seventeenth Century Chesapeake."

Learn More About
THE SITES OF PROVIDENCE

BROADNECK

HOMEWOOD'S LOT

BURLE'S TOWN LAND

SWAN COVE

LEAVY NECK

TANYARD

TOWN NECK