As SFS undergrads and alumni will know, Maps of the Modern World is an iconic class that’s integral to the first-year SFS experience. But there are far too many maps to cover in one course, and each carries a unique story about the political and cultural forces that have shaped our world. So, we’re bringing some of our most unusual maps to social media!
In this episode of Maps with Mark, SFS Professor and Maps of the Modern World instructor Mark Giordano explores a map of Maryland in Africa—a short-lived country on the West African coast that became part of Liberia.
This map tells the little-known story of freed Black Americans who relocated to West Africa in the nineteenth century, reflecting the complex intersections of abolition, colonization and nation-building. It reveals how different groups—Freedmen, U.S. colonists and religious leaders—viewed the future of Black emancipation and how their decisions had lasting consequences for Liberia, from cultural clashes to political struggles that shaped its modern history.
Watch the full episode to learn how Maryland in Africa connects to U.S. history, the Haitian Revolution and the long-term effects of planned migration.