The Accokeek Foundation is hosting “Spark! Places of Innovation,” a Smithsonian traveling exhibition that highlights creativity and invention in rural American communities, from October 11 through November 23, 2025. The free exhibit, open to the public Wednesdays through Sundays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., features stories from more than 30 towns across the nation, showcasing how local leaders, challenges and resources drive advancements in fields like small industries and technology. Visitors can explore through photographs, hands-on interactives, objects and videos at the foundation’s location in Piscataway Park, 3400 Bryan Point Road, Accokeek, Maryland.
The exhibition is part of the Smithsonian Institution’s Museum on Main Street program, a collaboration with state humanities councils and local organizations to bring national-level displays to smaller venues. In Maryland, the Maryland Humanities Council selected six cultural sites to host the tour, including the Accokeek Foundation as the fifth stop, following earlier installations at the College of Southern Maryland’s Velocity Center in Indian Head from May 17 to June 29, 2025, and the Garrett County Museum of Transportation from July 5 to August 17, 2025. The Accokeek hosting runs until November 23, before moving to the Kennard Alumni Association from November 29, 2025, to January 11, 2026. “Spark!” draws inspiration from the Smithsonian’s Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation’s “Places of Invention” exhibit, emphasizing how place-specific factors foster progress in rural settings.
Complementing the national display, the Accokeek Foundation presents “Narratives of the Potomac,” a local companion exhibit drawing on recent research into the region’s history and culture. It features contributions from area veterans, Indigenous narratives, watermen traditions and new educational initiatives linking Piscataway Park to nearby communities. Supported by the National Park Service’s Chesapeake Bay Gateways Network and the Maryland Center for History and Culture, this addition ties into the exhibition’s theme by illustrating innovation in conservation and heritage preservation within Southern Maryland.
To enhance visitor engagement, the foundation offers educational programming from October 14 through November 21, 2025. These include guided experiences lasting 60 to 90 minutes: 30 to 45 minutes in the “Spark!” exhibit followed by discussions on innovation led by staff. Advance registration is required via the foundation’s website https://www.accokeek.org. School groups can schedule Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 10 a.m., while public tours occur Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays at 1 p.m.
“The opening of this exhibit allows us to reflect on the more than two years of research and program development,” said Anjela Barnes, executive director of the Accokeek Foundation. “As we have been reimagining Accokeek, we are lifting up the stories of Southern Maryland—its unique history, culture, and the deep stories of the land and waters as shared through community oral histories. This work has been about honoring the past while inspiring dialogue about our shared future.”
Founded in 1957, the Accokeek Foundation partners with the National Park Service to steward 200 acres within Piscataway Park, focusing on preserving the natural and cultural heritage of the area while promoting sustainability. The park itself, established in 1961, spans about 5,000 acres along six miles of Potomac River shoreline from Piscataway Creek to Marshall Hall, protecting the view from Mount Vernon across the river. This effort began in the 1950s through collaborations involving the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association, local residents like Alice Ferguson and Piscataway Native representatives to safeguard the landscape from development. The foundation’s Reimagining Accokeek initiative continues this legacy by collaborating with the community to reinterpret the site’s significance, incorporating oral histories and modern conservation practices.
Piscataway Park holds deep historical roots as the ancestral homeland of the Piscataway people, with evidence of Native communities inhabiting the area for over 5,000 years. The Accokeek Creek site within the park, designated a National Historic Landmark in 1966, includes the ancient Moyaone village location along Piscataway Creek, offering archaeological insights into pre-colonial life. The foundation’s programs, such as school field trips, self-guided trails and heritage livestock conservation, educate visitors on biodiversity, Indigenous cultural landscapes and agricultural sustainability. These efforts align with broader regional initiatives, like the Southern Maryland National Heritage Area, designated to preserve sites tied to innovation, technology and history, including areas where early Mercury astronauts trained.
Innovation in rural Southern Maryland has historical precedents, such as 19th-century tobacco farmers adapting air-curing techniques and economic strategies to sustain agriculture amid changing markets. More recently, the Southern Maryland Agricultural Development Commission, established following the 1998 tobacco buyout, has supported farm transitions through programs like the Next Generation Farmland Acquisition, aiding young farmers in acquiring land since 2018. Archaeological work at sites like Jefferson Patterson Park and Museum in Calvert County explores early 20th-century rural communities, using grants to document histories through descendant collaborations. The region also recognizes Underground Railroad sites, with five added to the National Park Service’s Network to Freedom in 2025, highlighting paths to freedom in Charles, St. Mary’s and Calvert counties.
The Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service, active for over 70 years, develops such displays to share collections and research beyond Washington, D.C., reaching audiences in everyday settings. For more on the exhibition, visit https://museumonmainstreet.org/spark. The Accokeek Foundation’s site in Piscataway Park remains open year-round, providing trails through forests, meadows and wetlands along nearly three miles of Potomac shoreline.
