University of Maryland Digitizes Over 300 Maryland State Planning Documents
The University of Maryland Libraries, together with the Internet Archive, has digitized over 300 Maryland State Planning documents as part of their participation in the Lyrasis Mass Digitization Collaborative.
These state documents, which span the 1930s through the 1980s, contain valuable historical data about projects and resources in Maryland. The Maryland General Assembly created the first state planning commission in 1933, to coordinate Depression-era public works programs of the National Resources Planning Board and the Works Projects Administration. During its first ten years, the Commission developed one of the first Capital Improvements Programs in the country, a mapping system covering the state, and a program to provide medical care for the indigent. The first report issued by the Commission was entitled Certain financial aspects of local governments in Maryland (1934), and contains an explanation of the Commission’s purpose. Other interesting titles include Report on men’s clothing industry (1936) and Report on the fertilizer industry (1938).
In 1959, the Commission became State Planning Department, and broadened its area of concern to include the state’s water resources and the protection, development, and maintenance of Assateague Island. Reports from this era include Maryland’s Nursing Home Plan (1959) and a Report on emotionally disturbed children and adolescents (1963). For more information on the history of state planning in Maryland, please see the Maryland Department of Planning website.
These items are all available at the Internet Archive.