About
Find information about our Community Centers, Athletic Complex, Nature Center, Historic Sites, Golf Course.
Rental Information
Rent a pavilion, boat, field, court, historic venue, indoor facility, or meeting room or for info on holding a wedding, birthday party or special event.
Weather Information
Please call before going to any location if there is inclement weather. (Some historic sites also close during times of heavy rainfall.)
Public Input Meeting
There will be a meeting about the Ilchester Park and Recreation Center on August 22, 2024 starting at 6:00 pm at Bobbie Branch Middle School.
Community & Nature Centers & Activity Room
Gary J. Arthur Community Center (Cooksville)
2400 MD 97, Cooksville, MD 21723
410-313-4840
North Laurel Community Center (Laurel)
9411 Whiskey Bottom Rd, Laurel, MD 20723
410-313-0390
Roger Carter Community Center (Ellicott City)
3000 Milltowne Dr, Ellicott City, MD 21043
410-313-2764
Robinson Nature Center (Columbia)
6692 Cedar Lane Columbia, MD 21044
410-313-0400
Kiwanis-Wallas Hall (Ellicott City)
3300 Norberts Way, Ellicott City, MD 21042
410-313-2637
Open based on programs.
Perfect for larger events with a banquet capacity of 200 people. Room dividers can partition the facility into three areas.
Rentals
| Facility | Capacity |
Hourly Charge |
Hourly Charge (HC Non-Resident) |
Hourly Charge (HC Non-Profit) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full Facility | 200 | $140 | $150 | $125 |
| Half Facility | 100 | $80 | $90 | $70 |
To inquire about rental availability or for more information, contact Joynel Young, 410-313-2637 or jkyoung@howardcountymd.gov.
Community Center Memberships
Annual Center Membership
The Center Membership gives you access to three community centers including Roger Carter, Gary J. Arthur, and North Laurel Community Center. These memberships provide patrons access to the gymnasium (basketball/volleyball courts) and walking track only. For access to the fitness equipment and/or pool see Fit4U or Go50+ Memberships.
| Membership | Resident Rate | Nonresident Rate |
|---|---|---|
| Annual (3 yrs+) | $40 | $60 |
| Card Replacement Fee | $10 | $10 |
*Ages 15 years and under must be accompanied by an adult over 18 years old at all times; exceptions made during Teen Zone.
Fit4U Memberships (3-49 yrs)
The Fit4U Membership gives you access to three community centers including Roger Carter, Gary J. Arthur, and North Laurel Community Center. These memberships provide patrons access to the fitness and aerobics/dance rooms at open (non-class) times, use of the gymnasiums during open and drop-in programs, access to the game rooms, and access to the pool at Roger Carter. There are also discounts on center activities and events. Receive 5% off of two or more Fit4U memberships of the same length purchased or renewed at the same time.
| Membership (3-12 yrs)* | Resident Rate | Nonresident Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 12 Months | $105 | $130 |
| 6 Months | $70 | $90 |
| 3 Months | $45 | $55 |
| 1 Month | $20 | $25 |
| Membership (13-49 yrs)** | Resident Rate | Nonresident Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 12 Months | $375 | $450 |
| 6 Months | $225 | $280 |
| 3 Months | $130 | $170 |
| 1 Month | $50 | $65 |
*Permitted use of pool, gymnasium and walking track. Must be accompanied by an adult over 18 years old at all times; exceptions made during Teen Zone.
**Members ages 13-15 years old must first complete a mandatory orientation with the fitness coordinator and must be accompanied by an adult over 18 years old at all times; exceptions made during Teen Zone.
Go50+ Memberships (50 yrs+)
The Go50+ membership packages are designed to enhance the quality of life for the 50+ adult population that lives, works and plays in Howard County. Howard County Recreation & Parks and Office on Aging partnered together to provide packages that are designed to give individuals access to meet their health and wellness needs.
| Package | Resident Rate | Nonresident Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 50+ Centers* | FREE | FREE |
| Go50+ Fitness** | $89/year starting Jan 1, 2024 | $125/year starting Jan 1, 2024 |
| Go50+ Pool*** | $210/year starting Jan 1, 2024 | $270/year starting Jan 1, 2024 |
*Access to game rooms, gymnasiums, walking tracks, and wellness programs at Gary J. Arthur and N. Laurel Community Centers and all Howard County 50+ Centers.
**Access to all 50+ Center package benefits and fitness and dance/aerobics rooms at all three community centers and 50+ centers.
***Access to all 50+ Center and Fitness package benefits and access to the pool during open swim hours.
Historic Sites
Baltimore & Ohio Ellicott City Station Museum (Ellicott City)
3711 Maryland Avenue, Ellicott City, MD 21043
410-313-1945
The Baltimore and Ohio Ellicott City Station Museum is the oldest railroad station in America!
The B&O Ellicott City Station Museum is the terminus of the first 13 miles of Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. Named for its point of origin, Baltimore, and its intended destination, the Ohio River, the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was founded in 1827 as the first common carrier railroad in the United States.
Passenger services to Ellicott City (then Ellicott’s Mills) began in May 1830. Originally, horse-drawn rail cars were used to travel between Baltimore and Ellicott’s Mills. In August 1830, the B&O demonstrated the first American-built steam locomotive, known as the Tom Thumb, at Ellicott's Mills.
Built in 1831, The Ellicott City station was originally designed as a freight depot. In 1857, the station was renovated to accommodate passengers. Although passenger service to Ellicott City ended in 1949, freight service continued until 1972. The station was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1968.
Following its closure in 1972, the station was restored by Historic Ellicott City, Inc. Today, the Ellicott City Station Museum is managed by the Historic and Cultural Resources Section of the Howard County Department of Recreation and Parks.
Belmont Manor & Historic Park (Elkridge)
6555 Belmont Woods Road, Elkridge, MD 21075
410-313-0200
Belmont Manor and Historic Park now hosts an array of events. These include weddings, rehearsals dinners, business meetings, holiday parties, anniversary parties, retirement parties, quinceaneras, bat/bar mitzvahs, retreats and bridal showers. Create your perfect event or take advantage of our special events and recreational programs.
Please note that prices are increasing on July 1, 2023. Listed below is a PDF with those new prices.
Bollman Truss Bridge (Savage)
Ellicott City Colored School, Restored (Ellicott City)
8683 Frederick Road, Ellicott City, MD 21043
410-313-0422
Tours are available from 1-4pm on Saturdays and Sundays from May through mid November. It closes the week before Thanksgiving each year.
Opened in 1880, the Ellicott City Colored School fulfilled an 1879 Maryland State law requiring that counties provide educational facilities for African American children. The school — the first to be built with county funds — operated until 1953, before the landmark Supreme Court Case Brown vs. Board of Education called for the integration of public schools.
In stark contrast with the lavish Patapsco Female Institute, the one-room structure lacked running water, electricity or central heating. In 1950, after 14 years of parents petitioning the school board, a well was dug and a water pump installed outside of the building.
The Ellicott City Colored School closed its doors in 1953. The next school year, students attended the newly constructed Fells Lane Elementary School, which operated until the end of school segregation in 1965.
The school house went largely unused except as storage for Roger Carter's Bus Service. By 1989 the building was neglected and overgrown with vines and branches, sitting largely forgotten and hidden on the hillside. When researcher Beulah "Meach" Buckner was searching for African American graves for a project with the Central Maryland Chapter Afro-American Historical and Geneaological Society, she came across the ruins of the school. After researching the building, she strongly felt the site needed to be restored and successfully campaigned for its restoration. In 1995, the Department of Recreation and Parks purchased the property and began the preservation process.
The renovated building was dedicated as a museum in 2002 and currently is furnished to represent an early 1900s rural classroom. Exhibits highlighting other segregated schools in Howard County and the history of local African Americans can be seen.
Firehouse Museum (Ellicott City)
3829 Church Road, Ellicott City, MD 21043
410-313-0422
Closed until for renovations until further notice.
Located in the heart of the historic district, the Firehouse Museum explores the unique challenges of fighting fire in late 19th and early 20th century Ellicott City. The city’s topography and architecture — steep, sloping streets tightly lined with adjoined wooden buildings — provided prime conditions for the spread of fire while inhibiting the transport of water. In 1889, a group of volunteers constructed the firehouse at a cost of $500 dollars. Conveniently situated on a small, triangular lot, the original building was simply designed to house the hand-drawn and horse-drawn fire equipment. It operated until 1924, when the firehouse relocated to 8320 Main Street, and moved again in 1937 to the building known today as the Wine Bin. In 1995, the station moved to its current location on Route 103.
The building served as municipal office and a meeting hall from 1906-1935 and later as a reading room for the Howard County Library. With decline in use, the library was closed November 15, 1988.
The exterior has since been restored to its original design, and the interior refurbished. This was accomplished through the cooperative efforts of former County Executive Elizabeth Bobo, the Howard County Employment and Training Center, and the Home Builders Association of Maryland. The site was dedicated as a museum in 1991.
Harriet Tubman Cultural Center (Columbia)
8045 Harriet Tubman Ln, Columbia, MD 21044
410-313-0860
Patapsco Female Institute Historic Park (Ellicott City)
3655 Church Road, Ellicott City, MD 21043
410-313-0422
The Patapsco Female Institute is open to the public on Saturdays and Sundays from 1-4pm, from May through mid November, weather permitting.
Perched at Ellicott City’s highest point, the Patapsco Female Institute offered a revolutionary curriculum to young women from 1837-1891. The school earned a national reputation for its inclusion of botany, chemistry, and mathematics.
Since the school’s closure circa 1891, the site lived other lives as a summer resort hotel, a private residence, the Hilltop Theatre (Maryland's first summer stock theater), and a nursing home first known as the Brennan Convalescent Home and later Highland Manor. A long period of vacancy with an absentee owner led to the building's gradual deterioration. The Friends of the Patapsco Female Institute formed in 1965 as a grassroots organization to save the site from further decay. Thanks to their efforts and partnership with Howard County, the ruins of this grand example of Greek-revival architecture were stabilized and restored in 1995.
Pfeiffer’s Corner Schoolhouse (Elkridge)
6109 Rockburn Branch Park Road, Elkridge, MD 21227
410-313-4682
How to rent: Call 410-313-4682, 8am-4:30pm, M-F
Thomas Isaac Log Cabin (Ellicott City)
8394 Main Street, Ellicott City, MD 21043
410-313-0422
The Thomas Isaac Log Cabin is open to the public on Saturdays and Sundays from 1-4pm May through mid November, weather permitting. Open during the first Friday of December each year (in the evening) for the annual Midnight Madness event.
Recent scholarship conducted by the local nonprofit Howard County Lynching Truth and Reconciliation, Inc., has revealed the log home was likely built by Levi Gillis in 1851. The structure was originally located on Merryman St., an African American neighborhood at the time. Thomas Isaac purchased the home from Gillis in 1860.
In the 1980s, the cabin was dismantled and rebuilt at the intersection of Main Street and Ellicott Mills Drive. After the 2018 flash flood, the cabin was temporarily moved to Parking Lot F. After the construction of a new foundation, the cabin has been returned to its previous location at the intersection of Main Street and Ellicott Mills Drive.
Waverly Mansion (Marriottsville)
2300 Waverly Mansion Drive, Marriottsville, MD 21104
410-313-0200
Waverly is now available for the 2024 and 2025 Rental Season! Call 410 313 0200 or email WaverlyMD@howardcountymd.gov for more details.
Bringing field trips to your classroom!
The Historic Cultural Recourses is bringing our field trips to your classroom!
We have optimized our popular on-site field trip for the classroom! Heritage program staff will visit your classroom and take students on a tour of Ellicott City with hands-on activities. Handle artifacts from the Patapsco Female Institute and learn about life during the Victorian era, and take a virtual tour of Main Street to the Thomas Isaac Log Cabin, the Firehouse Museum, and the B&O Ellicott City Station Museum! Please contact Kelly Palich for pricing and more information: 410-313-0423 or kpalich@howardcountymd.gov.
Athletic Complex
Meadowbrook Athletic Complex (Ellicott City)
5001 Meadowbrook Lane, Ellicott City, MD 21043
Pre-K Drop In sessions are Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 9:30am-12:00pm through March 31.
410-313-1161 (general information)
410-313-4452 (recorded information/inclement weather and general announcements about the complex)
410-313-1163 (rentals)
The Meadowbrook Athletic Complex (MAC) is a destination for indoor basketball, volleyball, field hockey, badminton, jump rope and much more! The facility houses 35,000 square feet of unobstructed gymnasium space designed to serve all ages and all levels of play. Meadowbrook Athletic Complex is available for rentals during operating hours. All applicants must be at least 21 years of age. Email or call Matthew Knoerlein at 410-313-1163 for details and reservation information.
Rentals
| Facility | Capacity |
Hourly Charge |
Hourly Charge (HC Non-Resident) |
Hourly Charge (HC Non-Profit) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gym (per court) | 170 | $90 | $100 | $80 |
| Multipurpose Room | 63 | $50 | $60 | $40 |
| Entire Facility | $1,900/6hr | $2,200/6hr | $1,700/6hr |
Adventure Shack and Boat Rentals
Centennial Park (Ellicott City)
10000 Route 108, Ellicott City, MD 21042
410-313-7303
Seasonal/weather dependent
Kayaks, paddleboats, and canoe rentals at Centennial Park open annually in late spring. Call the recorded line for the most current information: 410-313-7303.
Golf Course
Timbers at Troy Golf Course (Elkridge)
6100 Marshalee Drive, Elkridge, MD 21075
410-313-4653
Multi-Purpose Room
Schooley Mill Park in Highland
12975 Hall Shop Road, Highland, MD 20777
Inclement Weather/Program Status Information: 410-313-4451
How to rent: Call 410-313-4682, 8am-4:30pm, M-F or online.