In a little-known local connection, a Heisman Trophy winner and former Baltimore Raven is supporting the Annapolis Maritime Museum (AMM) with a $10,000 matched grant to preserve the history of Eastport tradesmen and boatbuilders.
The Heisman Trust grant, matched by retired NFL player Ricky Williams and his wife Linnea Miron along with other members of the Miron family, supports the preservation of AMM’s Michael F. Miron Collection.
The late Michael Miron was an Eastport amateur historian and contributor to AMM’s predecessor, the Eastport HIstorical Committee. Among other things, Miron’s collection includes “over 135 interviews of Eastport locals, with a focus on the stories of trade workers and boatbuilders and residents of Eastport.” The funding will allow AMM to fully digitize the collection and create a search tool so it will be available to researchers and the public.
“Through this gift, AMM believes it will propel these stories and images into the mainstream … This project will preserve and share the long-standing maritime heritage and history of Annapolis and Eastport for many years to come,” museum leaders say.
Ricky Williams, Michael Miron’s son-in-law, was the 1998 Heisman Trophy winner. The running back played in the NFL for 11 seasons, on the New Orleans Saints, Miami Dolphins, and ending his career in 2011 with the Baltimore Ravens.
The Heisman Trust is “dedicated to fostering a sense of community through servicing youth,” and AMM says receiving the grant will allow it to further “educate youth to cherish our maritime heritage.”
Portions of the Michael Miron collection are already available with both audio and visual transcripts online at amaritime.org.
–Meg Walburn Viviano
