1. In 1632, King Charles I of England granted a charter for the establishment of the Maryland colony to Sir George Calvert, the first Lord Baltimore. This charter marked the beginning of Maryland's colonial history and laid the foundation for the state's unique blend of Catholic and Protestant influences.

2. On May 30, 1735, the trial of John Peter Zenger began in Annapolis, Maryland. Zenger, a newspaper publisher, was charged with seditious libel for criticizing the colonial governor in his publication. The trial ultimately established the principle of freedom of the press in the United States.

3. In 1816, the University of Maryland School of Medicine was founded in Baltimore. The school is one of the oldest medical schools in the country and has trained countless physicians and researchers over the past two centuries.

4. Marylanders played a key role in the Civil War, and on May 30, 1868, the first official observance of Memorial Day took place in Baltimore. The holiday was originally called Decoration Day, and it was created to honor the Union soldiers who had died in the Civil War.

5. In 1972, the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel, a 17.6-mile-long structure that connects Virginia Beach to Maryland's Eastern Shore, officially opened to traffic. The bridge-tunnel is one of the largest engineering feats of the 20th century and has had a significant impact on the regional economy and tourism industry.