Artist Eric Clark Jackson completed a four-panel mural on the restroom building at John V. Baggett Park at Laurel Grove in Mechanicsville, with the project wrapping up on November 25, 2025, after volunteer painting days on October 25 and 26.
The mural, part of the Paint a Park program run by the St. Mary’s County Arts Council in partnership with St. Mary’s County Recreation & Parks, features themes developed from community input sessions starting in August. Stakeholders, including park visitors, arts representatives, and recreation staff, identified key elements reflecting the site’s ecology, history, and usage.
“I’m really interested in community-oriented artworks, and especially creating opportunities which involve people in celebrating the physical place itself – a location’s ecology and the history of the place. This mural started with community listening sessions, involving stakeholders from Recreation and Parks, the art community and especially regular visitors to the park itself. Through those feedback sessions and the additional research into the park area, there were four themes that emerged,” Jackson said.
The themes include cycling and movement, celebrating the park’s role as a major access point for the Three Notch Trail with vibrant colors and round elements evoking motion; enjoying nature, depicting local wildlife like robins, oak leaves, and laurel leaves on the wall facing the parking lot to honor the area’s flora and fauna; and history, referencing the former Southern Maryland Railroad through train imagery, as the trail occupies the old railbed.
Cedar Point Federal Credit Union sponsored the project, with employees participating in painting as a team-building activity. Volunteers also included Susie Glauner, Sam Glauner, Max Stumpf, Sabine Dillingham, Ana Espinoza, Wesley Sawyer, young players Cody, Travis, and a friend who helped after little league games, and children Della and Daisy who assisted between playground visits.
“Cedar Point employees had a great time working on the mural. It was a fantastic morale-building exercise for our staff and their families. We’re excited to have left our mark on the park!” said Kristin Kauffman, CPFCU Chief Marketing Officer.
“Being part of this mural project was an incredible experience. It was amazing to see this design come to life alongside not just my coworkers but also the Arts Council. We were able to transform a blank wall into something vibrant, meaningful, and full of life for the community to enjoy for years to come,” said Brandi Mick, CPFCU Graphic Designer.
John V. Baggett Park at Laurel Grove, located at 26929 Three Notch Road in Mechanicsville, covers 43 acres and provides baseball and softball diamonds, a batting cage, tennis and pickleball courts, a basketball court, an accessible playground, horseshoe pits, a picnic pavilion, and a one-mile nature trail known as Three Bridges that traverses wooded areas with streams and marshes.
The park serves as the southern trailhead for a portion of the Three Notch Trail, a multi-use path converted from railroad right-of-way beginning in 2003. This 10-foot-wide asphalt trail supports walking, cycling, and other non-motorized activities, with interpretive panels detailing railroad history and local ecology. The trail connects northward toward Charlotte Hall, passing rural settings and historical sites, with plans for further southern extensions.
Facilities include seasonal restrooms, parking, and pavilion rentals. The park honors John V. Baggett, a former county commissioner instrumental in trail development. A historical marker at the trailhead notes the rails-to-trails conversion and contributions to the project.
The Paint a Park program facilitates similar community murals at county sites, using professional designs filled in by volunteers. This installation adds visual interest to one of northern St. Mary’s County’s key recreational areas, highlighting connections to trail access, natural features, and historical railroad ties.
