![[photo, State House (from Francis St.), Annapolis, Maryland]](/msa/mdmanual/25ind/images/1198-1-383.jpg)
Chair: Governor Robert L. Ehrlich, Jr, or his designee (designee traditionally has been Lt. Governor)
Ex officio: Thomas V. Mike Miller, Jr., Senate President; Michael E. Busch, House Speaker; J. Rodney Little, designee of Chair, Maryland Historical Trust.
Nonvoting associates: William Voss Elder III; Orwin C. Talbott.
Architectural consultant: Historic American Buildings Survey
Secretary: Edward C. Papenfuse, Ph.D., State Archivist
State House (from Francis St.), Annapolis, Maryland, May 2003. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.
The Maryland State House in Annapolis is the oldest state house in the country still in legislative use. In 1968, it was designated a National Historic Landmark.
From November 26, 1783 to June 3, 1784, when Annapolis served as capital to the newly forming American nation, the Continental Congress met in Annapolis, and important events took place at the State House. Here, George Washington resigned his commission as commander in chief of the Continental Army on December 23, 1783. Here, the Treaty of Paris, ending the Revolutionary War, was ratified by Congress on January 14, 1784.
The State House is administered by the State House Trust. The Trust was created in 1969 to oversee the area inside State Circle in Annapolis, including the State House. This oversight extends to the use of buildings and grounds and any exhibits on display (Chapter 199, Acts of 1969). The Trust supervises all improvements, alterations, additions, landscaping, and repairs within the area.
The Trust consists of four ex officio members (or their designees) who serve as trustees. Members of the Trust may appoint from one to three nonvoting associate members who are qualified by experience and interest in historical preservation. The Trust retains an architect as a consultant (Code State Government Article, secs. 9-501 through 9-506).