Jefferson Resident Jessy Schroeder Designs Colonial Exhibit

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Jessy Schroeder sits with Julia King, associate professor of anthropology, and James J. Winn Jr., Governor of the Society for Colonial Wars.

ST. MARY'S CITY, MD (11/10/2011)(readMedia)-- Jefferson resident Jessy Schroeder, a senior at St. Mary's College of Maryland, is getting hands-on anthropology experience this year. With help from Julia King, associate professor of anthropology, Schroeder is creating an exhibit on European and native perspectives on land in early Maryland.

"I'm researching not only how early Marylanders and people of the Chesapeake area viewed the land when they arrived here in the early 17th century, but also how they used it," Schroeder said. Her research has included books from the Historic St. Mary's City archaeology lab and interesting sources such as the journal of Hugh Jones, a surveyor from 17th-century Southern Maryland.

Although she is currently in the research stage, the project has lofty goals. "Professor King and I are hoping to have this exhibit look professional and as if it could fit in a real museum, with the use of silk-screening and borrowing different artifacts to place on display," Schroeder said.

When finished, the exhibit will be housed outside the archaeology lab in Kent Hall, one of the College's academic buildings. The project is made possible by an unsolicited $7,500 donation from the Maryland Society for Colonial Wars and a $6,500 donation from the national branch of the Society for Colonial Wars for developing and maintaining exhibits containing artifacts from Maryland's colonial history. Schroeder's exhibit is the first of many exhibits students will develop.

Schroeder, an anthropology major and museum studies minor, works in the archaeology lab at Historic St. Mary's City. In addition to her museum studies work, she is the co-news editor at the Point News , the College's student-run campus newspaper.

St. Mary's College of Maryland, designated the Maryland state honors college in 1992, is ranked one of the best public liberal arts schools in the nation by U.S. News & World Report. More than 2,000 students attend the college, nestled on the St. Mary's River in Southern Maryland.