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Uncle Tom's Cabin is getting a makeover.
The 18th-century Bethesda home described in the memoirs of Josiah Henson became the inspiration for Harriet Beecher Stowe's landmark novel about the evils of slavery.
The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission purchased the property in 2006.
On Wednesday, the state Board of Public Works unanimously approved a $50,000 grant for the planning and design phase of a multiyear effort to preserve the structure.
The grant will go toward providing a historic structure report and interpretive plan for the historic preservation. The report will detail historical background and archaeological findings from the site and will summarize laws and costs associated with the preservation.
Treasurer Nancy K. Kopp (D) said she hopes preservation of the house will make it a place for visitors to learn about Maryland history.
"It has never been a great tourist Mecca because it was privately owned," Kopp said.
The house is one of several historic sites in the Washington, D.C., suburbs that recalls Maryland's place in American history, from slavery to westward expansion, she said.
The historical sites provide a good opportunity for the "stay-cations" families might be looking for in this struggling economy, Kopp said.
"People who might go far afield, in fact, find that there is much more in their state of Maryland than they might've anticipated or realized," she said.
The board also approved money for several other projects, including:
$750,000 in matching funds for the Easter Seals Intergenerational Center in Silver Spring. The $11.3 million construction project comprises three buildings totaling 41,000 square feet to serve seniors, adults and children with disabilities.
$100,000 for the repair, stabilization and reconstruction of the Historic Laurel Mill ruins. The grist mill and dam led to the economic development of Laurel in the early 1800s.
$20,000 in matching funds for construction, repairs and renovations to the Pointer Ridge Swim and Racquet Club in Bowie.
$2.2 million for the renovation of medical/surgical nursing units at Prince George's Hospital Center.
$166,723 toward the purchase by Housing Unlimited Inc. of two homes in Germantown for chronically mentally ill adults.
The board also unanimously approved the appointment of Larry E. Jennings Jr. as the first black person to advise the $38.8 billion State Retirement and Pension System.
Jennings, co-founder and senior managing director of investment adviser TouchStone Partners LLC, had withdrawn from consideration for the public member slot on the Investment Committee of the pension system's board of directors in July after The Baltimore Sun reported that some board members had raised questions about Jennings' connection to a federal bribery case.
Jennings was never charged in the case, which centered on his father, who was convicted in 1994 of bribing a Baltimore housing official.
Comptroller Peter V.R. Franchot (D), who nominated Jennings, called him "a highly qualified, exceptionally accomplished professional whose record of success and pragmatic investment philosophy will serve us quite well."
