The Capital and the Bay: Narratives of Washington and the Chesapeake Bay Region ca. 1600-1925

Go directly to the collection, The Capital and the Bay: Narratives of Washington and the Chesapeake Bay Region ca. 1600-1925, in American Memory, or view a Summary of Resources related to the collection. Arts and humanities topics include:

Descriptive Writing | Letters/Journals | Humorous Poetry | Myths and Legends | Public Speaking | Literary Reviews | Portraiture

Myths and Legends

The Fallen Branch (facing pg. 65, "The Rocks of Deer Creek, Harford County, Maryland")

According to Donna Rosenberg, author of Folklore, Myth and Legends: A World Perspective (New York: McGraw Hill, 1996), "A legend is a story from the past about a subject that was, or is believed to have been, historical. Legends concern people, places, and events. Usually, the subject is a saint, a king, a hero, a famous person, or a war. A legend is always associated with a particular place and a particular time in history."

The Capital and the Bay presents a collection of legends related to a specific location, "The Rocks of Deer Creek, Harford County, Maryland."

• Is it possible to identify the elements of these stories that could be verified and those that could not?
• What do the legends tell readers about the place on which they focus? About the people who tell these stories?
• Does your community have such legends? Do they focus on people, places, and/or events? What do they tell readers about the area? About its people?

Descriptive Writing | Letters/Journals | Humorous Poetry | Myths and Legends | Public Speaking | Literary Reviews | Portraiture