News – Page 2 – Historic Shepherdstown

Speaker Series – Historic National Road. Tiffany Ahalt, September 4.

The 2024 Historic Shepherdstown Speaker Series will feature Tiffany Ahalt on September 4 at 6:45 pm in the auditorium of the Shepherd University Robert C. Byrd Center for Congressional History and Education, talking about the history, preservation and promotion of the historic National Road. The program is free and open to the public.

With thirty years of experience in the hospitality and tourism industry, Tiffany Ahalt has held leadership roles with the National Road Heritage Foundation, C&O Canal Association, Howard County (MD) Tourism Council and Maryland National Road Association. A promoter of Washington County as a visitor destination, she also recently chaired Frederick County’s Rural and Scenic Roads Advisory Committee which was instrumental in creating an official commission overseeing the designation and protection of the County’s most historic, scenic and unaltered rural roads.

The National Road was the first major federally funded highway built by the US government. Built between 1811 and 1837, the original 620 mile road was a major transport path to the West for thousands of settlers and also stimulated the earliest forms of travel-related tourism. Often nicknamed the Main Street of America, in the 20^th century with the advent of the automobile the National Road was connected with other historic routes to California with much of it aligned with U.S. Route 40. Ms. Ahalt will explore this history and how national and state programs are paving the way to preserve and promote the landscapes and main streets along the National Road and other scenic byways.

The talk will be preceded by a short Annual Business Meeting for Historic Shepherdstown Commission, which will feature the presentation of the 2024 Historic Preservation Awards.

Born of Rebellion: West Virginia Statehood and the Civil War exhibit at the Byrd Center

Born of Rebellion: West Virginia Statehood and the Civil War exhibit is now at the Byrd Center at Shepherd University until September 27th. The West Virginia Humanities Council, the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), created the exhibit dealing with the legal question of statehood of West Virginia and a kaleidoscope of state wide perspectives. This comprehensive, large-scale experience covers sectional tensions within Virginia preceding the Civil War, the violence and chaos of the war surrounding West Virginia’s formation, and the difficult aftermath as the new state struggled to forge its destiny during Reconstruction.

Born of Rebellion explores this tumultuous and complex era from a wide range of perspectives, including politicians, common soldiers, women, and African Americans, along with the diary of Upshur County teenager Sirene Bunten, who was only 16 when West Virginia achieved statehood in 1863 and her observations as a girl who loses two brothers to the war.

For more information see Born of Rebellion

Paranormal events at museum, July 26 and 27 – postponed until October

This event has been postponed until October. Hope to see you then.

A ghost tour of the historic Entler hotel will be led by Dana Mitchell from the Ghosts of Shepherdstown, and the psychic Angel Fisher. Click on links below to purchase tickets.

Renovation of the Entler Hotel Garden, Historic Shepherdstown Museum

The work party

Several members of the Shenandoah Garden Club, Peggy Bowers (the project’s landscape architect), and several members of the Historic Shepherdstown Commission (HSC) showed up, armed with trowels, garden gloves, bug spray, and lots of enthusiasm. As Sue Guay of the Shenandoah Garden Club described it – It was Planting Day! And they were there to put into their new home nearly one hundred perennial plants which had been purchased in a joint project between the garden club and HSC. Hydrangea, hosta, amsonia, polygonatum (Solomon’s Seal), iris, clematis, astilbe, Lenten rose, cone flower, and ferns, as well a few large shrubs, will bloom and grace these newly-refurbished gardens.

In 2008, Shenandoah Garden Club had received a $9,000 grant from the Shenandoah-Potomac Garden Council to renovate this same space at the Entler. The funding for the original project was generated by the sale of tickets to the annual House and Garden Tour that year. This generous gift made possible the renovation of the Entler Hotel flower beds; the installation of landscaping including boxwoods, ferns, fothergilla; and the enlargement of the flagstone patio. Using this grant the Historic Shepherdstown Commission was able to have the yard graded, replace plant material, define the beds, and enlarge the flagstone patio.

Many of those plants installed sixteen years ago have grown and flourished and have become a bit unruly; many have run their course and have died. The large flower bed, the centerpiece of the Entler’s patio area, now consisted of a large bed of…mulch!

The Entler Hotel needed help.

The Shenandoah Garden Club needed a “Small Project.”

The Shenandoah-Potomac Garden Council needed garden clubs to apply for an annual grant, called “Small Project Awards,” which uses funds generated from the annual House and Garden Tour to fund community beautification projects.

It was a three-way match, and luckily Shenandoah Garden Club Vice President Mary O’Hara knew about all three organizations. She contacted Susan Guay, Chair of the Club’s Project Committee, and the ball began to roll. Mary is also a member of Historic Shepherdstown and a docent at the museum. She contacted Dave Pugh, the Vice President of HSC, who was delighted to learn that the Entler was being considered for the grant. Ms O’Hara then called Peggy Bowers to request assistance with this project, and Ms Bowers agreed to participate. She donated a landscape plan, developed a plant list, and even drove to Pennsylvania to pick up the plants.

Meanwhile, Ms Guay waded through pages of grant application, made phone calls, wrote, re-wrote, changed, modified, and edited the paperwork. She was thrilled to find out that the application had been approved by the Council, and the project was awarded $1,000, which was matched by Historic Shepherdstown Commission. That $2,000 purchased nearly one hundred perennial plants and shrubs.

The newly-planted perennials are now flourishing in their new, spacious beds. Next time you are on German Street, look through the wrought iron fence next to the Entler into the garden, or better yet, visit the museum at the weekend and come in and enjoy it up close. Historic Shepherdstown is most grateful to the Shenandoah Garden Club, in particular Mary O’Hara and Sue Guay and to Peggy Bowers for her inspired design work and plant knowledge.

Speaker series – Where the Rivers Join: Native American Cultures of The Potomac and Shenandoah Valleys. Carole Nash, May 15

May 15 Presentation on “Where the Rivers Join: Native American Cultures of The Potomac and Shenandoah Valleys” is now online.

Dr. Carole Nash, James Madison University Professor, presented the second of our 2024 Speaker Series, “Where the Rivers Join: Native American Cultures of The Potomac and Shenandoah Valleys.” Dr. Nash’s talk was held on Wednesday, May 15 at 7 pm at the Robert C. Byrd Center for Congressional History and Education at Shepherd University.

During the period of A.D. 1200-1600, just prior to European settlement, the Potomac/Shenandoah region was occupied by a variety of indigenous Native American cultures. This presentation was be an opportunity to gain important insights about the often overlooked pre-European history of our region.

Carole Nash, Ph.D., RPA, is Professor in the School of Integrated Sciences at James Madison University where she has taught for 35 years. Her research focuses on the Blue Ridge and Shenandoah Valley, specializing in First Peoples archaeology and historical ecology. She is the author of many technical reports, scholarly papers, and publications, including co-author of Foundations of Archaeology in the Middle Atlantic. She is President of Mountain Valley Archaeology which partners with descendant communities on archaeological and historical research in western Virginia. She directs the Virginia Archaeological Certification Program, a citizen science initiative that partners professional and avocational archaeologists.

Recording of Addison Reese’s talk about Black Burial grounds now available

Historic Cemeteries

Speaker Series – “Black Burial Grounds of Jefferson County, West Virginia: Restoring Lost History through Cemetery Preservation”

Addison Reese, cemetery caretaker, advocate, local historian, and educator, presented “Black Burial Grounds of Jefferson County, West Virginia: Restoring Lost History through Cemetery Preservation.” Ms. Reese’s talk was held on Wednesday, April 17 at 7pm at the Robert C. Byrd Center for Congressional History and Education at Shepherd University.

Addison Reese currently works at the Shepherdstown Public Library where she has conducted genealogy and local history research workshops. She serves on the Jefferson County Historic Landmarks Commission for the past three years with a focus on cemetery preservation, documentation, and restoration.

Museum is open for the 2024 season !

The Historic Shepherdstown Museum is open! Hours through October will be Saturdays 11 – 5 and Sunday 1 – 4. Come and see the Samuel Humrickhouse baptismal font from the Christ Reformed Church of Christ, “Aunt Sallie’s” quilt , and an 1830s German-made doll given to Virginia Helen Blackford when she was a child, as well as the model of the Rumsey steam powered boat and the first rural delivery mail cart. Come, visit and join us to preserve and enjoy Shepherdstown’s history.

Museum reopening April 20, 2024

The Museum will open on April 20. Hours through October will be Saturdays 11 – 5 and Sunday 1-4. Come visit our three floors of history and items crafted by or owned by the people of Shepherdstown, from samplers to Sheetz rifles. The Entler Hotel is a fitting location for the museum. In 1786 Philip Adam Entler, Jr. built a residence on the west side of the property. In following years, others built substantial brick buildings on the lot extending eastward from Entler’s residence to Princess Street. By 1809 Daniel Bedinger owned all of the property that became the Entler Hotel and leased it to others. For more than a century the Entler thrived. In 1912, the Entler residence on the west side of the property burned. During the 20th century the Entler briefly took the name Rumsey Hotel and then became Rumsey Hall, a college dormitory. It housed students, World War II Navy and Air Force cadets, and college faculty. This is now the 40th year of the building being the location of the Historic Shepherdstown museum.

Shepherdstown history available 24/7

The museum may be closed until spring, but you can learn about the town from this website. Check Digital exhibits for Artifacts, Books, Events, Landmarks, Maps and People, watch the recordings of the previous speaker series at Speaker Series, learn important dates at Shepherdstown Town Documents and for a unique view of the Who’s Who of the town, Shepherdstown 250 Parade

Historic Shepherdstown Museum – virtual video tour

Have you ever wondered what artifacts are housed in the Historic Shepherdstown Museum and how it tells the story of Shepherdstown? Or, have you visited the Museum and wished you could show it off to friends who don’t live in the area? Now, you have a chance. You can preview the Museum via YouTube.

During the summer of 2022, Jessie Ramchurran, a Communication Arts major from Hood College who interned with Historic Shepherdstown Commission, completed a three-part video tour of the Museum. The tour gives an overview of each floor of the Museum, and it also highlights artifacts from several of the rooms. The tour is now available on Historic Shepherdstown YouTube channel

The museum is housed in the historic Entler Hotel. The first floor is set up to resemble the parlor and dining area of a 19th century inn. Highlights include three tall clocks; Col. John Francis Hamtramck’s sword and West Point commission; and furniture made by Adam Link, James Shepherd and Thomas Hopkins. Visitors are then invited to tour the garden and the James Rumsey Steamboat Museum, which houses a working half-size replica of Rumsey’s steamboat. Rumsey conducted the first successful steamboat demonstration on the Potomac River at Shepherdstown on December 3, 1787. The first-floor video can be found at HSM – First Floor Video Tour

Chronologically, the next video to watch features the third floor of the Museum, which focuses on the early-Colonial era through the late 19th century. Highlights of this floor include a 1760s plat map of Mechlenburgh (now Shepherdstown); Shepherdstown samplers, Sheetz rifles and Schindler kettles; a room dedicated to the impact of the Civil War on Shepherdstown; the importance of the Potomac River and the railroad; and maps of Shepherdstown and Jefferson County. The third-floor video can be found at HSM – Third Floor Video Tour

Finally, view the video of the second floor of the Museum, which is mostly dedicated to the 20th century. The Traveler’s Room (purported to be the most haunted room in the Museum) features rope beds and a 19th century bathtub. Other highlights include the Small Town America room, which is dominated by an early Rural Free Delivery horse-drawn mail cart; the 20th century room which features posters from Morgan’s Grove agricultural fairs and circuses, and pictures from the Israeli-Syrian Peace Talks that were held in Shepherdstown in 2000; and the African American room, which houses exhibits related to the educational opportunities for and leisure activities of the area’s Black community. The second-floor video can be found at HSM – Second Floor Video Tour

We hope the virtual tour will inspire you to take a trip to Shepherdstown and visit the Historic Shepherdstown Museum in person. The Museum is open Saturdays from noon to 4 p.m., and Sundays from 1 to 3 p.m., from April through October and during Christmas in Shepherdstown. For more information about our museum, hours and artifacts, visit our Facebook page Historic Shepherdstown Museum Facebook or check out the digital exhibits section of this website.