Passing Through Shady Side

"A fascinating, sensitive, and well-researched book that enhances our
understanding of the history of Shady Side, the history of Maryland, and
the history of America. It's a story that's entertaining, educational, and
important."
--Kenneth T. Walsh, journalist and author of "Family of Freedom:
Presidents and African Americans in the White House"

"A must-read, interesting book. Full of mores of yesterday and today."
-- Mohan Grover, unoffi cial Shady Side mayor; owner of
Renno's Market

"When Ms. Widdifield first approached me about her book-writing
project, I was skeptical. After all, what could a spit of a woman with
dainty eyes and light blond hair who spends her winters in sunny Florida
possibly know about the lives of African Americans? Yet she approached
this project with a passion and confidence that I have not seen in many
seasoned historians. The results of her efforts say it all. Widdifield has
brought the lives and stories of this waterside community alive and, in the
process, has filled avoid in the history books of southern Maryland."
-- Judith A. Cabral, Kunta Kinte-Alex Haley Foundation

"Passing Through Shady Side is a rich, vivid account of a largely untold
story: the history of African American families that have farmed and
worked the waters surrounding the Shady Side peninsula for nearly two
centuries. Ann Widdifield has brought to life the generations that have
given Shady Side its special character, traditions and vitality."
-- Terence Smith, journalist and Shady Side resident