St. Clement’s Island, Maryland

(Photo/stmarysmdtourism.blogspot.com)

Destination: Next time you plan a trip near the nation’s capitol, plan a side trip to St. Clement’s Island, Md. While it’s not officially a shrine, the island in the Potomac River is where Catholics from Britain first set foot on a New World spot where they could practice their faith freely.
Masses are not offered on the island, but the nearest church is probably Holy Angels Parish, 21340 Colton Point Road, in Avenue, Md. Drivers on Maryland
Rte. 242, headed toward St. Clement’s Island, will pass through Avenue. Masses at Holy Angels are Saturday at 4:30 p.m., Sunday at 6, 8 and 10:30 a.m., and Monday-Friday at 7:30 a.m.
Why to go:  In 1634, Jesuit Father Andrew White celebrated what is believed to be the first Mass to be said in the original 13 English-speaking colonies. The Mass was on St. Clement’s Island, now a Maryland state park, about 60 miles outside of Washington.
The site of the first Mass, marked by a large cross, can still be visited. Inside the St. Clement’s Island Museum, one can read the firsthand account written by Father White about his voyage and landing on the island with the first colonists of Maryland. He had accompanied Catholics on their voyage from England, where they had been persecuted.
Those Catholics, under the leadership of Leonard Calvert, had traveled in two ships, the Ark and the Dove, to establish a Catholic colony.
George Calvert, the first Lord Baltimore, and father of Leonard Calvert, had secured the charter for a colony in which people would be allowed religious freedom.
Access: The island is accessible only by boat, June through September, on a weekend schedule from the Potomac River Museum. The Maryland Dept. of Natural Resources does not recommend it for people with mobility problems, but people who are traveling with friends may be able to manage a visit.
If you don’t want to make the trek, the St. Clement’s Island Museum is on the mainland at the end of Maryland Rte. 242 onto Bayview Drive. The museum is open March 25 through Sept. 30, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. weekdays, and from Oct. 1 through March 24, Wednesday through Sunday, noon-4 p.m. There is a fee to visit.
(Grand) Kid friendly: As with any state park, children are always welcome.
Info: Address: St. Clements Island State Park, c/o Point Lookout State Park, 11175 Point Lookout Road, Scotland, MD 20687. Phone: 301/872-5688. Web: www.dnr.state.md.us/publiclands/southern/stclements.asp.
Address: St. Clements Island - Potomac River Museum, 38370 Point Breeze Road, Colton’s Point, MD 20626. Phone: 301/769-2222. Web: www.co.saint-marys.md.us/recreate/stclementsisland.asp

- Compiled by Sharon Boehlefeld
Send your Catholic destinations ideas to seasonedobserver@rockforddiocese.org