Members of Scotland AME Zion Church have wanted to restore the church founded in 1924 off Seven Locks Road in Potomac for decades. They thought it might be the end in 2019. A flood wiped out the foundation and left the building unusable for services. But three years later, the congregation is raising money to start the Second Century Project, restoring the historic church and building a new worship facility on site that will serve the wider community as well.

This project is more than the reconstruction of a building. The area around the church, known as Scotland, is the cite of a historic African American community. The land was purchased by former slaves, later share croppers. Title passed down to their families until the 1960s. While Montgomery County developed around them, Scotland remained without utilities like running water. Economic and governmental forces retitled the land owned by the descendants of those first owners. The Scotland Church alone stands as testament to the determination and dignity of that community.

The Second Century Project is a joint effort of Scotland and its neighbors to revitalize and rejuvenate. The church is on the Maryland historical registry site, so it will be preserved. The project will move the building over onto the parking lot, do all this landscaping, fill in the basement, and raise the ground up 4 feet so it is above Seven Locks Road.

Come learn more about this community, its history and its future. As important, come meet your neighbors. Let us extend our hands to one another forming enduring bonds of friendship.

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