The Restorers of Mount Carmel in Maryland
When the Nuns moved from Port Tobacco to Baltimore in 1830 the Mount Carmel property was sold to a local farmer, Edward Sanders. The site of the first monastery was still very dear to every American Carmelite throughout the next century. The Nuns in Baltimore increased in numbers, but in the meantime those in the Port Tobacco area never forgot them.
History of the Restorers
In 1933, a dedicated group of laypersons purchased the original property of Mount Carmel. They established an organization whose express purpose was to save the only two remaining buildings of the original Carmel, create a Catholic shrine, and work for the reestablishment of the Carmelite nuns at their original site in Port Tobacco. The organization called themselves “The Restorers of Mount Carmel in Maryland, Inc.”. By means of pilgrimages and fund-raising efforts, they completed the restoration of the original buildings, and erected the Pilgrims’ Chapel and a meeting hall over the foundations of the monastery where the nuns had lived and prayed.
Finally, thanks to the Restorers, a group of Carmelite Nuns returned to the original site of Port Tobacco in 1976. Now, the Restorers’ volunteers serve as a support for the nuns and maintain the old monastery buildings.
(This link takes you the website of generous supporters of the Carmel of Port Tobacco)
Become a member of The Restorers of Mount Carmel
You can be a valued member of this historic charitable organization. Since its founding in 1935, The Restorers of Mt. Carmel in Maryland – with ongoing support of its members - has met its mission to preserve the past, protect the present, and prepare for the future.
The “Old Monastery” building is on the National Register of Historic Sites. Your membership in The Restorers of Mt. Carmel in Maryland will ensure that this hallowed ground, and the Carmelite nuns who reside here, will be provided for and protected.
Members are remembered in the daily Masses held in Our Lady’s Chapel.
Types of Membership (Individual or Family)
• Annual (Individual): $50
• Annual (Family): $75
• Perpetual (Individual): $300
• Perpetual (Family): $500
To become a member of The Restorers of Mt. Carmel in Maryland:
(This link takes you the website of generous supporters of the Carmel of Port Tobacco)
“Silence is precious; by keeping silence and knowing how to listen to God, the soul grows in wisdom and God teaches it what it cannot learn from men.”