Discover Delmarva Arts: Women’s History Month
SALISBURY, Md. — In the heart of Downtown Cambridge sits a mural spanning two walls, honoring women from the past and present who have made their mark on the world, all from the mid-shore. The mural features a dozen of Dorchester County’s remarkable women — from national heroes like Harriet Tubman, to local gems like six-time muskrat skinning champion Dakota Flowers.
Artist Bridget Cimino, a Baltimore native, said she wanted the mural to reflect the county’s rich history, and women’s role in shaping it. Two women who broke barriers — former acting Chief of the U.S. Capitol Police, Yogananda Pittman, and civil rights activist Glorida Richardson Dandridge, sit alongside each other.
Next to honor is Anna Ella Carrol, the only female member of President Abraham Lincoln’s cabinet, serving as his advisor during the Civil War. “They weren’t really allowed to say she was in that. There’s a famous portrait of Abraham Lincoln with all his cabinet members, and there’s a chair with a red shawl draped over it. That’s supposed to represent her because it wouldn’t be proper for a married woman to be hanging out with only men, so they had to be symbolic in the way they depicted her.”
And we can’t forget Harriet Tubman, a renowned abolitionist who escaped slavery, and helped free other enslaved people. On the second wall sits five women whose impact on the Mid-shore still shows today — including Dr. Lida Orem Meredith, the first female doctor in Dorchester County.
“They mentioned that she would give poor people and black people discounted or free healthcare to be charitable, which is pretty cool,” Cimino said.
Others include former Cambridge Mayor Victoria Jackson-Stanley, Chief Donna Wolf Mother Abbot of the Nause-Waiwash Band of Indians, Six-time muskrat skinning champion Dakota Flowers, and Champion crab picker Fronie Jones.
Everything about the mural showcases the rich history of Dorchester County and Eastern Shore culture — even down to the flowers surrounding the women. “The flowers amongst them are all native Maryland flowers to go along with the native Maryland women.”
