Business Unusual on Campus

The following “Business Unusual” account is part of our new initiative, Collecting in Quarantine. With current mandates for all non-essential businesses to close, business is anything but usual in Maryland. In the Business Unusual series, MdHS is asking business employees, owners, customers, passers-by and neighborhood residents to visually share their experiences during the COVID-19 crisis.

Monday, May 15, 2020 – On this day, Ginger Harwerth from Laurel shared the photos below along with the following dispatch:

These photos were taken by our company, Xanadu Botanicals & Design, when we went to the College Park campus to care for their plants. It’s very eerie because usually this time of year the campus is teeming with students. Empty classrooms, hallways, foyers and sidewalks. You can see that the students just left everything as is – bicycles are everywhere. They probably didn’t expect to be gone for the rest of the semester.

Entrance to dormitory building — Photo courtesy of Ginger Harwerth

Full bike racks — Photo courtesy of Ginger Harwerth

Dormitory lobby — Photo courtesy of Ginger Harwerth

empty courtyard — Photo courtesy of Ginger Harwerth

Please note: The views, information, and opinions expressed and shared on the underbelly through the Collecting in Quarantine project do not necessarily represent those of the Maryland Historical Society. Our staff does not verify for accuracy the information contained within these submissions. We also do not edit the content beyond minor modifications for formatting or to remove personally identifying information, if applicable. The primary purpose of this series, with the permission of contributors, is to share and collect the experiences of Marylanders living through quarantine at this moment in time.

To learn more about the Collecting in Quarantine project and how to share a story and/or photos of your own, click here.