George Washington’s Headquarters
George Washington’s Headquarters is a historic log cabin in Cumberland. What may seem unimpressive is the actual living quarters and office George Washington used between 1755 and 1758 during the […]
Evitts Creek Aqueduct
The Evitts Creek Aqueduct is the last of the 11 aqueducts on the Canal, and is made of “Fossilferous Tonoloway Limestone” quarried upstream and shipped to the aqueduct via a […]
Patterson Creek
Here sit stone abutments on both sides of the river – the remnants of the Patterson Creek bridge that crossed the river to the town of Patterson Creek. The bridge […]
Thomas Cresap Gravesite and Ginevan House
Thomas Cresap died in 1787 and was buried here, overlooking Lock 70. This land was later owned by the Ginevan family, who built an impressive Victorian home on the land, […]
Michael Cresap House
Built in 1762, Thomas Cresap with his 20-year-old son Michael built this house. Michael died 13 years later, but Thomas lived into his nineties. The house is one of the […]
Fort Dawson
Fort Dawson, at the mouth of the Cacapon River, was one of many forts Washington’s soldiers built.
Hancock Tollhouse
The Hancock Tollhouse is one of the last of its kind. It sits on both the National Road – which runs from Cumberland to Wheeling, WV – and the Bank […]
Round Top Cement Mill
When the channel for the C&O Canal was being dug in 1837, argillomagenisian limestone was discovered – material well suited for hydraulic cement. Having the ability to manufacture cement close […]
Fort Tonoloway State Park
Fort Tonoloway, located not far up the creek from the Little Tonoloway Recreation Area, was a small frontier fort built in the summer of 1755. It was protected by 15 […]
Fort Frederick State Park
Bordering the Potomac River and surrounding parts of the C&O Canal is Fort Frederick State Park. A 585-acre park in the Cumberland Valley of Maryland, it is named after Fort […]
Green Spring Run/Furnace
Green Spring Run provided waterpower for one of the largest furnace operations on the Potomac: Green Spring Furnace. In 1768-1769, Lancelot Jacques and Thomas Johnson built the Green Spring Furnace […]
School House
From 1877 to 1943, the School House at mile marker 109 taught thirty children in eight grades. With no heat, electricity, or indoor plumbing, the School House is a stark […]
Mule Barn
At mile marker 109, two hundred feet upstream on the berm side, sits a mule barn used to house mules during the winter months when the canal was closed. The […]
Watch House
The only Watch House left standing on the Canal is on the upstream berm side at the end of Lock 50. This house allowed a safe-haven from weather for lock […]
Middlekauff’s Dam/Labor Riot
Upstream from the bridge over Little Conococheauge Creek is a stone dam providing a head of water for Middlekauff’s Mill. Near the dam is a hill where an ‘Irish Civil […]
Springfield Barn and Museum
Wander down Potomac Street onto Springfield Lane to see a wide-open view that will take you back in time. Built circa 1755 by Williamsport’s founder Otho Holland Williams, the Springfield […]
Conococheague Aqueduct
The Conococheague Aqueduct is a watered and fully operational aqueduct in Williamsport. It has three 60 -foot arches and is 196 feet long, making it the second longest aqueduct on […]
Bollman Bridge
Patapsco Bridge and Iron Works built the present road bridge crossing, Bollman Bridge, with Wendall Bollman as their chief, in 1879. Bollman was a self-taught engineer who started at the […]
Doubleday Hill/River View Cemetery
The long hill along the raised bank of the canal is known as Battery Hill or Doubleday Hill. Legend has it that General Abner Doubleday occupied the hill and played […]
Williamsport
Centrally located along the C&O Canal, Williamsport, Maryland is a thriving small town and bustling area for locals and tourists alike. It also has a rich history. The town’s location […]
Falling Waters
Falling Waters, West Virginia got its name from a cascading stream near the Potomac. A convenient river crossing, its most famous crossing came in the summer of 1863. After the […]
Heart of the Civil War Visitors Center
Located approximately half a mile east of Sharpsburg along Maryland Route 34 on the western edge of the Antietam Creek sits the historic Newcomer House at Antietam National Battlefield – […]
Historic Shepherdstown Museum
The interesting thing about the Historic Shepherdstown Museum is that the building that houses it is quite historic itself. Built in the early 1800s, it operated as a hotel until […]
James Rumsey Monument and Park
James Rumsey Monument overlooks the Potomac, the very river on which Rumsey pioneered the first steamboat. Shepherdstonians began discussing a monument in the 1830s – undoubtedly to overshadow Robert Fulton, […]
Elmwood Cemetery
Though cemeteries usually illicit thoughts of notable (albeit spooky) history, not many compare to the rich history you’ll find in Elmwood Cemetery. In 1780, Abraham Shepherd gave the Shepherdstown Presbyterian […]
Shepherdstown
The oldest town in West Virginia, Shepherdstown pre-dates the Revolutionary War. It is a quaint town filled with artisanal shops and eateries and is home to Shepherd University, which adds […]
Thomas Swearingen Ferry & James Rumsey Bridge
In 1755, the Virginia General Assembly recognized the need for a proper river crossing, and Thomas Swearingen was authorized to operate a ferry on the Potomac River between the Maryland […]
Ferry Hill Plantation
The river crossing at Packhorse Ford, located about a mile downstream from Shepherdstown, could not meet the needs of a growing population. Thomas Van Swearingen began operating a ferry in […]
Bridgeport
If you needed a place to stay or a warm meal while traveling through Ferry Hill in the early nineteenth century, you were out of luck. But by the 1830s […]
James Rumsey Steamboat
What is a “canoe powered by a teakettle?” A steamboat, of course! The eccentric inventor James Rumsey shocked Shepherdstown during a December 3, 1787 demonstration when his boat – without […]
Potomac Bridge, Henry Kyd Douglas, and John Brown
The Potomac Bridge may not have held much historical significance save for the events that happened here on a rainy day in 1859. Henry Kyd Douglas grew up in a […]
Boteler’s Mill/Potomac Mill
Dating back to 1826, Boteler’s Mill, also known as Potomac Mill, is on the shore of the Potomac River in eastern Jefferson County, West Virginia, half a mile below Shepherdstown. […]
Antietam Battlefield
The single bloodiest day of any American war was recorded just up the road from the C&O Canal in Sharpsburg, MD. After a rousing victory at the Battle of Second […]
Antietam Ironworks
Industry got an early start on Antietam Creek. Its first settler, Israel Friend, built a gristmill there by the early 1730s. Friend also owned an Ore bank, which was purchased […]
Antietam Village
Many workers and supervisors who made a living at the mills and ironworks near Antietam Creek lived nearby in Antietam Village. The remnants of this once thriving industrial region are […]
House Falls and Cow Ring Sluice
About 4 1/2 miles below its confluence with Antietam Creek, the Potomac River rumbles through House Falls, named after a family that owned land along the river and a Potomac […]
Shinham Limestone Kilns
At this point along the Canal, you can observe brick-lined arches in a concrete facing. These are the remains of several limestone kilns that were used to create fertilizer, plaster […]
Fort Duncan
“The view from the top of the mountain is magnificent and will well repay any lover of the grand and beautiful in nature for the exertion necessary to climb to […]
Maryland Heights Trail
Both hikers and history buffs will tell you the 1,200 foot climb to the overlook at Maryland Heights is well worth the trip. The green-blazed trail leads you to a […]
Jefferson Rock
This is your opportunity to walk in the footsteps of our third president. Climb the stone steps from the lower town and follow the cliff overlook trail to several large […]