Welcome to the

Ellicott City Restoration Foundation

Howard County, Maryland

Mission Statement

The Ellicott City Restoration Foundation advocates for the improvement of historic Ellicott City by:

1. Providing a forum for information and opinions concerning the diverse communities of interest in historic Ellicott City.

2. Monitoring and providing information on (and to) legislation and zoning.

3. Promoting a high quality of physical, social and economic environment.

4. Assisting the preservation and restoration of historic features by making and receiving grants, gifts, endowments and other resources for the above purpose.

Vision

Historic Ellicott City is an evolving community that is a unique resource. It is a living, dynamic locale of interconnected and interdependent groups including merchants, residents, county government, preservationists, visitors and historians who find the unique nature of Ellicott City's history, physical environment, aesthetics and social setting to be a valuable resource of local, regional and national importance.

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Our historic village invites you to explore our Maryland heritage. Visit our restored log and granite structures, dotted up and down Main Street.

You can still walk or bike the wooded paths that charmed Washington Irving or take in the majestic view of the Patapsco Valley from the pillared portico of the Patapsco Female Institute designed by Robert Carey Long, Jr. For those with a scientific or engineering nature, explore the Ellicott City B&O Railroad Station Museum, the first and the oldest railroad station in America.

We possess one of the largest clusters of antique shops in the greater Baltimore-Washington area. Many of our earliest buildings have been transformed into charming eateries, coffee houses and B&B's or house a variety of antique or specialty shops.

We offer a rich history in abundance with seven museums. You'll find the stories of women, children and the various ethnic and religious cultures that contributed to the town's development. Our seasonal living history programs create a microcosm of Maryland's spiritual, political and industrial culture during the 18th and 19th Centuries.