Turner Station
Witness Trees
Our Community, Our Legacy,
Our Future
This multi-year project aims to make the community more resilient against climate change, provide leadership development opportunities for Turner Station residents and highlight community stories about Turner Station’s past, present and future. Partners on the project include the The Nature Conservancy (TNC), Baltimore County, Greater Baltimore Wilderness Coalition (GBWC), Lyon Homes/Henrietta Lacks Village, Union Baptist Church of Turner Station, and the Turner Station Boy Scout and Girl Scout Troops.
PROJECT GOALS
Preserve Turner Station’s
Rich Cultural History
Celebrate Community
Resiliency
Enhance Climate Adaption,
Environmental + Public Health
Project Timeline
Phase 01
April ’22 – November ‘22
Community Design Workshops
Build Community Trust
Phase 02
Phase 03
October ’23 – December ‘24
Youth Stewardship and Storytelling
Grow Community Power
Turner Station
Story
Growing
Turner Station’s
Community
The steel mills and factories brought on by World Wars I and II attracted many workers to east Baltimore. Racist regulations excluded African American workers from factory housing and as a result many residents in the area grew Turner Station into one of the largest African American communities in Baltimore County.
Environmental Injustice
The steel Turner Station became surrounded by industrial sites and landfills that polluted the air and water. The intentional placement of these sites was no accident, but a symptom of deeply embedded racism. Consequences of many environmental injustices are still endured by the Turner Station community of today.mills and factories brought on by World Wars I and II attracted many workers to east Baltimore. Racist regulations excluded African American workers from factory housing and as a result many residents in the area grew Turner Station into one of the largest African American communities in Baltimore County.
Turner Station,
an Unfolding Legacy
Many prominent folks called Turner Station home, including Henrietta Lacks, Chick Webb, and Kweisi Mfume. The legacies of the many trailblazers in the Turner Station community continues to inspire new generations of dreamers, mold-breakers, and social and environmental leaders.
Locating the Witness Trees
The Witness Trees will tell the many stories of Turner Station. Two Phase 01 sites have been identified for their installation, with a third/future site planned.
HEAR THE VOICES
of Turner Station
Watch and listen to Turner Station residents tell their stories about Family & Community, Nature & Sustainability, Faith & Culture, and Legacy & Resilience in the video interviews.
Faith & Culture
Turner Station is home to a diverse array of churches and other religious congregations that are significant to the culture and community. Music of all kinds, including spiritual, has historically been a common thread that has brought Turner Station residents together.
Family & Community
The bonds of family and community in Turner Station have always been strong, and those who grew up here have spoken of an ethos of everyone looking out for one another, and the togetherness that they felt being from this neighborhood.
Legacy & Resilience
Despite many challenges faced by the residents or perhaps even in defiance of them, Turner Station has always been a place where talent and passions thrive and are supported. The strength and resilience of the community is an undeniable part of the legacy of Turner Station.
Nature & Sustainability
Turner Station’s goals for the future include a re-integration of diverse and vibrant natural plant communities and sustainable solutions to improving the health and well-being of the community. The trees represent one step in the process toward a more healthy, climate resilient environment.
Continue the Turner Station Legacy
SHARE YOUR VOICE!
To ensure that the story to be told by the Witness Trees is a true reflection of your experiences in the Turner Station community, we want your visions for the space and your stories that space speaks to. Below, you can choose your favorite images that resonate with your vision of the Witness Trees project. You can also tell us about your memories and stories of your life in Turner Station by recording them through the website.
We are so thankful to you for taking the time to share with us!
WHAT STORIES WOULD YOU LIKE TO SHARE?
You can tell us about your memories, experiences, and stories your of life in Turner Station by sending us a recording. See instructions below.
HOW TO RECORD YOUR STORY
01.
Click “Record My Story” Below. It will open a new browser tab with the voice recorder. Click the red “Start Recording” button. Your internet browser may ask permission to use you microphone. Make sure to click “Allow.”
02.
You will have 5 minutes to talk. If you need more time when the clock runs out, just continue through the steps to submit your recording and start a new one. Make sure to send both under the same name.
03.
Once you are done talking, click the “stop” button. You can play back your recording to hear what it sounds like. If you hear some things you want to change and would like to record your story again, click the “reset” button. This will delete your current recording and allow you to start over.
04.
Once you are satisfied with your recording, fill out your name and email (optional). If you don’t want to use your name, you can type “Anonymous”
05.
Click the send button and we will be able to listen to your story.
THANK YOU FOR SHARING WITH US!
Your thoughts and stories will help the Witness Trees become powerful voices of the Turner Station community.
Check back to this website for project updates!
OUR PARTNERS
Core Partners
Design Team
Funding graciously provided in party by the Salazar Center for North American Conservation, the Commission for Environmental Cooperation, the Hoffberger Family Philanthropies, The Nature Conservancy Common Ground Fund, Tradepoint Atlantic, and Chesapeake Bay Trust.
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