PRESERVE YOUR HISTORY
Arts Contest
SUBMISSION DEADLINE:
August 15th, 2025
Contest Details
The Water’s Edge Arts Contest invites you to unleash your creativity by documenting the lives of Historical Black Figures.
Participants may pick up to three of the historic figures provided to immortalize through their creativity!
We accept all artistic forms! Please use whichever artistic medium that inspires you the most. Some possible forms include, but are not limited to:
Paintings
Drawings
Digital media and graphic designs
Music
Poetry
Literature (i.e., essays, narratives, short stories, etc.)
Children and youth of all skill levels are encouraged to share their art!
Contestants will be separated into groups based on their grade level:
Group 1: Kindergarten - 4th grade
Group 2: 5th grade - 8th grade
Group 3: 9th grade - 12th grade
Rules & Details
We accept submissions from K-12 students of all backgrounds!
All submissions must be the student’s original design.
No use of AI is permitted.
Each student may create up to 3 submissions.
Participants may take creative liberties within their storytelling but must accurately reflect the lives of historic figures.
Any submission deemed inappropriate or insensitive by The Water’s Edge Museum staff will not be considered.
For any questions regarding the art contest, feel free to contact us:
Phone: (410) 226-1227
E-mail: watersedgemuseum@gmail.com
PRIZES
Judges will pick first, second, and third place winners from each grade level.
The first-place winner from each level will have the opportunity to receive a cash prize!
Group 1: $50
Group 2: $100
Group 3: $200
All participants will be invited to The Water’s Edge Museum, where we will hold a formal ceremony to display everyone’s submission and announce the winners of the contest.
HISTORICAL FIGURES
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REBECCA PRIMUS
(1836 - 1932)
Occupation: Educator
Place of Origin: Hartford, Connecticut
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DOWNES CURTIS
(1911 - 1996)
Occupation: Sail Maker
Place of Origin: Oxford, MD
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WATERS E. TURPIN
(1910 - 1968)
Occupation: Novelist; Educator
Place of Origin: Oxford, MD
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HARRIET TUBMAN
(1822 - 1913)
Occupation: Abolitionist; Nurse; Spy; Scout
Place of Origin: Dorchester County, Maryland
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FREDERICK DOUGLASS
(1818 - 1895)
Occupation: Abolitionist; Speaker; Writer; Statesman
Place of Origin: Cordova, Maryland
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BENJAMIN BANNEKER
(1731 - 1806)
Occupation: Naturalist; Mathematician; Astronomer; Almanac Author
Place of Origin: Baltimore County, Maryland
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ANNA MURRAY DOUGLASS
(1813 - 1882)
Occupation: Douglass Family Matriarch; Housekeeper; Laundress; Abolitionist; Underground Railroad Conductor/Agent
Place of Origin: Denton, Maryland
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THURGOOD MARSHALL
(1908 - 1993)
Occupation: Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States
Place of Origin: Baltimore, Maryland
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