Ferry Hill Marker

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near Sharpsburg in Washington County, Maryland — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)

Ferry Hill
Farm, Ferry and Freedom

Ferry Hill Marker Photo, Click for full size

By Mike Stroud, July 28, 2012

1. Ferry Hill Marker

Inscription. The brick home in front of you (Picture included) once stood at the heart of a Western Maryland plantation called "Ferry Hill." Built between 1812 and 1820, the plantation consisted of nearly 700 acres of land, a tavern, and a ferry. An enslaved workforce of 18 people ensured the farm's success. Ferry Hill's builder, John Blackford, was an advocate of building the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal which crosses the lower part of the property along the Potomac River.

Ferry Hill overlooks a strategic crossroads of the Potomac, the canal, and a series of river crossings. These routes carried farm produce and coal, as well as immigrants and freedom seekers. During the Civil War, Union and Confederate forces occupied the home and grounds at various times. Henry Kyd Douglas, a resident of Ferry Hill, wrote the memoir, "I Rode with Stonewall," about his experiences as a Confederate officer.
(Picture included: John Blackford and Henry Kyd Douglas)

Erected by National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior.

Location. 39° 26.289′ N, 77° 47.887′ W. Marker is in near Sharpsburg, Maryland, in Washington County. Marker is on Shepherdstown Pike (Maryland Route 34). Click for map. Located on the grounds of a Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Park Administrative area, on the opposite side of the road from the intersection between Shepherdstown Pike and Canal Road. Marker is in this post office area: Sharpsburg MD 21782, United States of America.

John Blackford and Henry Kyd Douglas Photo, Click for full size

By Ferry Hill Marker, `

2. John Blackford and Henry Kyd Douglas

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Ferry Hill Place (here, next to this marker); a different marker also named Ferry Hill Place (about 400 feet away, in a direct line); Swearingen’s Ferry and Pack Horse Ford (about 400 feet away); Blackford’s Ford (about 400 feet away); The James Rumsey Bridge / The Battle of Antietam or Sharpsburg (about 400 feet away); A View into the Past (about 600 feet away); Shepherdstown (approx. 0.2 miles away); River Crossing (approx. 0.3 miles away in West Virginia).

Also see . . . Ferry Hill Plantation, National Park Service. Ferry Hill Plantation stood on the bluffs above the canal across the Potomac from Shepherdstown, West Virginia. (Submitted on August 11, 2012, by Mike Stroud of Bluffton, South Carolina.)

Ferry Hill Marker, overlooks the Potomac River Photo, Click for full size

By Mike Stroud, July 28, 2012

3. Ferry Hill Marker, overlooks the Potomac River

Ferry Hill, southside Photo, Click for full size

By Mike Stroud, July 28, 2012

4. Ferry Hill, southside

By Mike Stroud, July 28, 2012

5. Ferry Hill

Ferry Hill, eastside Photo, Click for full size

By Mike Stroud, July 28, 2012

6. Ferry Hill, eastside

Credits. This page originally submitted on August 10, 2012, by Mike Stroud of Bluffton, South Carolina. This page has been viewed 102 times since then. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on August 11, 2012, by Mike Stroud of Bluffton, South Carolina.