The Herbert T. Tiffany Collection consists of an original set of 24 books, which date from the Ch’ien Lung period, Qing Dynasty (1735-1795). The paintings, done on rice paper and framed in silk ribbon, cover a variety of subjects, including portraits of nobles, tea production, children playing, birds, insects, and flowers.
Professor Chao Ming Chen of Johns Hopkins University determined that the paintings were done during the Ch’ien Lung period from the use of European colors in mineral pigments, which were not available in China until this period. The paintings are primarily executed on rice paper with the exception of the one book that has paintings on Pei leaves. Mr. Chen stated: “the collection is one of the finest he has seen in the U.S. They are paintings that a Chinese emperor may have once treasured.” He asserted that the books that contained portraits of the emperor and personages of the court could have been the original possession only of the emperor or some high official. In addition, he said that he had never seen the equal of these three books anywhere in the U.S. except the congressional library.
The Jack Wickland Fort Ritchie Slide Collection contains color photographic slides created by U.S. Army soldier Jack Wickland while stationed at Fort Ritchie, Maryland, in 1957. Acquired by the Ritchie History Museum, the collection documents military life at the installation during the Cold War, as well as scenes from Wickland's travels throughout Maryland.
The photographs capture a variety of subjects, including military personnel, equipment, buildings, training activities, and everyday life at Fort Ritchie. Located in Cascade, Maryland, near the Pennsylvania border, Fort Ritchie served as a U.S. Army installation and military intelligence training center. It is best known for training the "Ritchie Boys" during World War II and remained an important military post throughout the Cold War.
The Maryland Zoo Collection features photographs from the 1920s through the 1990s that capture the Zoo’s evolution in the care of animals as well as its importance as a social and educational hub. Maryland Zoo was created by an act of the Maryland state legislature on April 7, 1876. Its origins in Druid Hill Park date to the early 1860s, well before its formal founding, when the Park Superintendent first began caring for a small collection of animals donated by local residents.
The history of zoos can be challenging to reflect on. While many practices that are documented in this collection, such as dressing animals in clothing and housing in bare cages, reflect the thinking of their times, they are not considered acceptable today. Modern, accredited facilities like Maryland Zoo have evolved tremendously since their founding–and continue to evolve. As it celebrates 150 years and counting in 2026, Maryland Zoo is proud to acknowledge its transformation and show how far zoos have come.
The Natural History Society of Maryland’s (NHSM) Howard A. Kelly Collection consists of publications, documents, and letters which capture the legacy of the prominent physician’s contributions to the field of natural history in the early 20th century and his support of the NHSM. Howard Atwood Kelly is best known for his work as a gynecologist and obstetrician and one of the “Big Four” founding physicians at Johns Hopkins Hospital and Medical School. Throughout his successful career in medicine, Kelly continued to dedicate himself to the study and support of the natural sciences, with particular interests in herpetology, botany, and mycology.
Included in the collection are letters and documents which record Kelly’s efforts to promote shared knowledge in the natural sciences, such as the annotated draft copy and final printing of Kelly’s “Snakes in Maryland”, numerous correspondences documenting his support of naturalists such as Louis C.C. Krieger and Eleanor C. Allen, and his research promoting the work of under-recognized scientists such as mycologist Mary Elizabeth Banning and astronomer Henrietta Swan Leavitt. The collection also highlights a dynamic and expansive network of relationships between Kelly, scientific institutions, and scientists at NHSM and beyond.