Forgotten history of Ellicott City & Howard County MD: Art on Main Street

Tuesday, May 5, 2026

Art on Main Street - OEC

A variety of art include two large murals on the buildings next to the visitors center (part of the Yates mural, left), inside the old Post Office are two New Deal Murals, sculptures of an eggplant and peach on upper Main, mill wheel and water sculpture on side of a building, tile entryways to some of the stores, faux painting of bricks and rocks for the Times building, faux painting on plywood window covers after flooding, Christmas art on store windows...

Click to enlarge each photo

Mural of Ellicott City on side of Yates building painted by Wiley Purkey from Ellicott City. Sanborn Fire map on bottom half and upper is a painting of buildings. Rack to hold business cards, now chunks of wood. HERE

Selling and repairing cars. Ellicott City Garage. (Ford dealer, then Reedy Electric) 8289 Main St. (brick) HABS HERE. In 2020 Antonia Ramis Miguel of Ellicott City painted the mural. [Baltimore Sun article HERE]

Petro Paul de Anna painted the two New Deal Murals inside the old Post Office in 1940. One, a "mural of Ellicott City, while the southeast end has a mural depicting early settlement and building in the region." [HABS] Go inside to see both murals. One mural segment depicts the flour mill silos and the train station (the oldest in America) across the river.

Also on upper Main St is the mural painted canvas on the alley side of the Phoenix building. Article about Gordon Ramsey, mural and Tim O'Brien's string lighting. HERE

A smaller painting of a frog on the third building from the end of lower Main St. on south side. 8095 Main St. Shoemaker Country (in Rosenstock Building) now up hill at 8334 Main St.

"Waterwheel" by David Hess. Ellicott Theatre 8225 Main St. Art (mill wheel and water sculpture), 2022. Fund for Art in EC. on Old Columbia Pike side

Two sculptures by Jan Kirsh - Peach 2025 at Georgia Grace Cafe 8329 & 8333 Main St

Aubergine by Jan Kirsh 2018 at Wine Bin, 8390 Main St. was the Third Firehouse

Backwater Books & Bibliopub in the Ellicott City Times/Howard County Times newspaper 8156 Main St. built between 1890-1924, has clever painting outside and in.

Faux painted bricks and stones - with grasshoppers (or crickets) and a lizard.

Go inside and check out the stairs painted as bookcase and murals on the walls.

The south stone foundation wall of the yellow first firehouse has donated items imbedded in the newer laid section (by pipe) - key, Masonic pin 2006, marbles and more in the east end of wall.

Click to enlarge objects

Shoemaker building 8095 Main St (Lower Main) window displays. Momentos. Mosaic.

Tile entrance floor "Yates". Yates Market, Hardware 8249 Main (South side).

Entrance floor tiles and clear stained glass above entrance & windows white 8173 Main (South side).

Mark Russo in 2023 painted some bright vibrant paintings on the plywood of Great Panes and Phoenix on lower Main Street, before they were demolished. He cleverly made the two art pieces look like stained glass, on the building (Great Panes) which used to make and sell stained glass. Likewise the painting for the Phoenix includes an imaginative version of the brick wall breaking apart, and the phoenix (bird) rising. Blog post HERE

Christmas art on store windows, different each year, also by Mark Russo.

Art after the 2016 and 2018 floods.

Faux art in the windows, 2016. 8109-8111 Main.(green) and 8113 Main St.

Article about 6 stores with faux painted plywood in 2017 after the flood. HERE

Caplan's (8125 Main Street) large front windows went through a variety of painted designs. wings (people would stand in middle of wings for photos) 2018?

Caplan's faux front windows and door

Macy's of Columbia Mall store employees volunteered to clean the windows, facades and paint the plywood white. In 92 degree temps, they were so cheerful and actually happy to be working to help EC. They had special T-shirts with "Volunteering is always in fashion Macys" on back. Plus Macy's donated almost $40,000 to Ellicott City Partnership. August 2018