MPT 50th Anniversary Traveling Exhibit visits Aspen Hill Library

Maryland Public Television (MPT) is displaying its MPT 50th Anniversary Traveling Exhibit at the Montgomery County Public Libraries’ Aspen Hill Library in September. The exhibit is being presented at libraries across the state in celebration of the statewide public broadcasting network’s 50 years of service to the citizens of Maryland.

The MPT 50th Anniversary Traveling Exhibit explores the network’s origins, signature programs, familiar faces, and evolution – all fulfilling MPT’s mission to enrich lives and strengthen communities through the power of media. Maryland’s public TV network first went on the air October 5, 1969.

The exhibit features 10 display panels guiding visitors chronologically through MPT’s five decades of service and includes a station where viewers of all ages can color their favorite PBS characters or submit a note of congratulations to be displayed later this year on MPT’s virtual Birthday Wish Wall at mpt.org/50th.

The Aspen Hill Library is open Monday through Thursday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., Fridays and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Sundays from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. It is located at 4407 Aspen Hill Road in Rockville. The exhibit will be on display at the location from Mon., Sept. 9 until Mon., Sept. 30.

MPT produced two sets of the traveling exhibit to expand the display’s accessibility to communities across the state. The Aspen Hill Branch of the Montgomery County Public Library will also host the exhibit this month. The schedule, to date, of traveling exhibit appearances is available at mpt.org/about/50th_exhibit/.

In addition to the traveling exhibit, MPT’s 50th anniversary commemorations include the two-hour documentary Made Possible By Viewers Like You: 50 Years of Maryland Public Television and an 82-page history book “Made Possible By Viewers Like You: The History of Maryland Public Television, 1969-2019.” The documentary is currently being offered as a pledge gift and the history book is available for sale at the MPT Online Store: https://bit.ly/339fyai.

In October, MPT will also formally unveil the yearlong museum-quality exhibit now on display at the University of Maryland’s Hornbake Library in College Park. Information about the Hornbake Library exhibit is available on the University of Maryland’s University Libraries website at lib.umd.edu/mpt-turns-50.

More information about MPT’s 50th anniversary activities and observances may be found at mpt.org/50th.

The MPT 50th Anniversary Traveling Exhibit is made possible in part by the City of Hagerstown, the Hagerstown-Washington County Convention and Visitors Bureau, Leaders of Tomorrow Youth Center, the Maryland State Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, and the Institute of Museum and Library Services.