Anacostia Trails Heritage Area
Anacostia Trails Heritage Area is a Certified Maryland Heritage Area located in Northern Prince George's County, Maryland. The mission of the Anacostia Trails Heritage Area is to preserve and promote the historical, artistic, cultural, and natural resources of the Certified Heritage Area. The Anacostia Trails Heritage Area is one of thirteen Heritage Areas certified by the State of Maryland under the Maryland Heritage Areas Authority and administered by the Maryland Historical Trust. Certified in 2001, Anacostia Trails Heritage Area encompasses over 100 square miles of Northern Prince George's County. The Heritage Area is bordered  by Washington, D.C. to the south, Montgomery County to the west, Howard and Anne Arundel Counties to the north and encompasses portions of Bowie, Glenn Dale, and Cheverly to the East. This boundary was expanded in 2017 to include Bowie, Glenn Dale, and Cheverly. The Heritage Area is managed by Anacostia Trails Heritage Area, Inc., a 501(c)3 organization that took full operation of the heritage area from the Redevelopment Authority of Prince George's County in 2010. Aaron Marcavitch served as Executive Director of the Heritage Area from 2010 to 2021. As of April 2021, Meagan Baco is the Executive  Director of Anacostia Trails Heritage Area. The organization has a managing board of directors and a governing board of directors who serve voluntarily. Additionally, the organization's work is guided by the Approved Anacostia Trails Heritage Area Management Plan authored by The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission and the Prince George's County Planning Department in September 2001. Anacostia Trails Heritage Area has earned a Gold Seal of Transparency from GuideStar. In 2012, Anacostia Trails Heritage Area established a tourism brand called Maryland Milestones to highlight the historic firsts and unique moments which have occurred through time in  the region. The Maryland Milestones program provided information and programming to the public and makes connections between the history, culture, and nature of the region. Additionally, the Maryland Milestones brand emphasizes the importance travel, trade, and communication have played in the region – through turnpikes, highways, parkways, aviation, streetcars, telegraphs, and train travel. Specifically, the program includes researching and updating interpretive signs and wayfinding, enhancing and promoting multi-modal trails, hosting educational and recreational events, and operating the Annelie & Soren Ebbeler Maryland Milestones Heritage Center in Hyattsville, Maryland.