Is It or Isn't It?: In Search of the Early Jesuit Mission at Potopaco
Thu, Apr 16
|La Plata Police Department Community Rm
Archaeological investigations at St. Thomas Manor, a Jesuit plantation, revealed a smattering of early to mid-17th-century artifacts. Taking the form of a whodunit, this presentation invites audience participation to solve this compelling mystery: who were the Jesuits who left behind these traces?
Time & Location
Apr 16, 2026, 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM
La Plata Police Department Community Rm, 101 La Grange Ave, La Plata, MD 20646, USA
About The Event
Is It or Isn't It?: In Search of the Early Jesuit Mission at Potopaco
Join us for a public lecture presented by Dr. Julia King.
It can be hard to recognize Maryland's earliest English settlements, especially those on the far frontier. Archaeological investigations in 2023 and 2024 at St. Thomas Manor, a Jesuit plantation established ca. 1638 along the Port Tobacco River, revealed a smattering of artifacts from the 17th century. Taking the form of a whodunit, this presentation marshals documentary and archaeological evidence and invites audience participation to solve this compelling mystery: who were the Jesuit priests who left behind these ephemeral traces and what does this tell us about the first decades of life on the colonial frontier?
This lecture is sponsored by the Charles County Archeological Society of Maryland Chapter. The lecture is free and open to the public. Additional information https://ccarchsoc.blogspot.com/