2018 marks 280 years since the first documented house was built in the wilderness where the town of Keedysville, Maryland would eventually emerge. We cannot be 100% sure who built that tiny log cabin or even who lived in it, but thanks to the records of the Maryland Archives, we can definitely be sure it was there. This book is the culmination of several years of targeted research to uncover Keedysville's past. Unlike chronicles of small towns which often rely heavily on oral history and heirloom stories, this volume depends primarily on written records. Land grants, State and county records, deeds, cemetery and newspaper records and court minutes. The past we thought we knew so well as it turns out, still has surprises to be discovered. Keedysville Maryland, prehistory to the 21th century, explores the story of this little community from before Europeans arrived until the present, mostly by looking at the single factor that made it all possible, the people. Not an all-inclusive history, but rather a peek at those who made it a home and the random factors in their lives resulting in the actions that wrought an enduring community from a convenient spot along a wilderness trail. The people, more than anything else are what have made and preserved Keedysville. It is the people this book celebrates, including perhaps the first published look at the contribution of an almost forgotten African American presence in Keedysville's storied past.