West of Frederick, the raw natural beauty along Route 340 is often veiled in thin mist but nonetheless present for those in search of history and adventure.
Photographers scramble to get the perfect shot approaching Harpers Ferry, W. Va. — water, mountains and a town nestled in storybook fashion on a little triangle of land formed by the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers. It sits cradled by the Blue Ridge Mountains, looking today much like the thousands of photographs taken over the decades.
But, as the saying goes, still waters run deep.
The historic community of Harpers Ferry (one can barely call it a town with a population of only 380, according to the last census) is unique in the annals of American history, having made its mark one October day in 1859.
“Harpers Ferry got on the map because of John Brown’s aborted raid,” said Wally Hicks, senior information specialist of the Jefferson County Visitors Bureau. “There were 16 months between his raid and the war.”
Indeed, it was here in this quiet hamlet, where abolitionist Brown staged his raid on the U.S. Arsenal there setting off a chain of events that resulted in the Civil War.
Hicks alludes to the actual community of Harpers Ferry (“If you blink, you’ll miss it; it’s only a block long”) as a separate entity from the National Park site, also located in the town — 4,000 acres that are spread across the states of West Virginia, Virginia and Maryland.
The Harpers Ferry National Historical Park with its own welcome center is also located in town and is actually a collection of many small museums created within original buildings. Additionally, it is part of the Civil War Trail with many hiking paths incorporated into the Appalachian Trail.
“The Cavalier Heights Visitors Center is the main welcome center for Harpers Ferry National Historic Park,” said Marsha Wassel, a public information officer there. “We do orientation talks and help prepare visitors for the park.”
Within 25 museums, multiple exhibits, videos and the John Brown Museum, several historical themes are explored, including African-American history, John Brown’s raid, and the saga of the B&O Railroad and the C&O Canal competition within the area.
The National Park offers a schedule of events all year long, and costumed interpreters will be on hand for weekend tours all through the fall.
“Everyone comes to the park for a different reason — history, beauty, hiking, photography [and] to get away from the city,” Wassel said. “The list is as varied as our visitors.”
If you go
- Where: Harpers Ferry (W. Va.) National Historical Park
- Distance: 70 miles from Baltimore; 50-55 miles from D.C.
- Info: 1-304-535-6298; www.nps.gov/hafe
- Special event: Mr. Lincoln Returns to Harpers Ferry, Oct. 4 (1 p.m. and 3 p.m.)
