Black History Month
Virtual Celebration

The Crisfield Arts & Entertainment District Project is happy to announce that the Maryland State Arts Council has funded a $2,000 Network Technical Assistance grant to raise visibility of the district by expanding the celebration of Black History Month in Crisfield with additional virtual content which can be viewed on our YouTube channel by clicking the link above.

Celebrating the Barkley Family Mural

The first event in this month-long celebration was the live video (above) on Saturday, February 6th at 11 am, accessed at the Crisfield Arts & Entertainment District Facebook page, facebook.com/artsandentertainmentcrisfield, showcasing the family mural at the Barkley’s home.  Mr. Elmer Barkley and Mrs. Josefine Barkley have recently commissioned a unique piece of artwork of their family’s heritage and their ties to the community.

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They entrusted Paul Sketch Boyd III with painting a mural depicting their very personal history on the door of the two-car garage at their home at 28 Asbury Avenue in Crisfield. The artist turned this unique location into a masterpiece. The mural depicts Mr. Barkley’s father and his uncle, sons of Julius Caesar Barkley, a child of slavery.  His uncle, Dr. Winter Barkley, was the first African American physician in Crisfield.

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Thank you to the students of It Takes a Village to Help Our Children, Inc.

for the following videos:  

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Brielle Jones, 1st grade

King Roberts, 3rd grade

Jairus Cleeve, 5th grade

 Samina Douglas, kindergarten

Maya Angelou's Still I Rise

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A Virtual Celebration of Black Gifts and Talents 

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The Crisfield Arts & Entertainment District and It Takes a Village partnered for a celebration of Black History Month in 2020.  This year, the event will be virtual.  

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Black History Month Committee

Elmer Barkley 
Josefine Barkley 

Pastor Cottman

LaVerne Johnson 
Lamont Potter 

Darlene Taylor

Crisfield Arts & Entertainment District Coordination for this event

Jen Merritt