Military Museum [Frederick MD]…read more We had some time on our last day in MD before heading to the airport... from Linthicum Heights we drove some 50 miles to Frederick. We found a spot on a metered street parking in front of the museum. Admission is $9.50/adult. The museum is dedicated to telling the medical story of the Civil War. There are a lot to see... and learn. The exhibits were great and educational. We learned how the creation of Civil War medicine impacted the present day. Each gallery offered different exhibits following through the footsteps of the soldiers and surgeons and the harsh conditions and personal sacrifices they went through. I can't even imagine how they evacuate the wounded... an "ambulance" then was a wagon pulled by two horses and carted off to a medical facility. Or how about how they did amputations, amputations were the most common surgical operation during the conflict with more than 60,000 being performed. The wounded soldiers suffered different mortality rates depending on where the amputation took place on the body. There are two floors of exhibits. Stairs and an elevator are accessible to the top floor. There are bathrooms on both levels. I am not in the medical field and found the museum very interesting and educational. We didn't expect to stay as long as we did. We even got a parking ticket when we got back to our car ¯\_('~')_/¯ Review #3674

Two floors of exquisitely curated North and South artifacts. Plan on spending at least 90 minutes…read morehere. Public parking lot around the corner, very convenient; also street parking with meters. Charming, safe neighborhood.

The Antietam National Battlefield in Maryland is where the Battle of Antietam took place on…read moreSeptember 17, 1862. This is considered to be the bloodiest single day in American history with over 23,000 casualties. The site includes lots of landmarks and monuments. Today, it is preserved as a peaceful park where visitors can learn about the battle by walking or driving around the sites. It had a pivotal role in leading to the Emancipation Proclamation. We took the driving tour which had numerous sites where you could see monuments and buildings that describe key parts of the battle. More than one person had suggested that we should go and see the cemetery. I will tell you I am very glad that we did. It was hard for us to find as I missed a turn on the driving tour of the battlefields. It is relatively easy to find as it is on the south side of Main street just on the east side of the city of Sharpsburg. It is located on the south side of the majority of the antietam battlefield sites and memorials. There is parking right along the street and entrance is right off the street. There is a church with restrooms right inside the gate. The restrooms were open but the church was not when we visited. It is not very large for the amount of civil war soldiers that died during the battle. You can walk it fairly quickly but I would suggest taking a little time here to honor the fallen. I particularly liked the sayings that equal a poem when put together. It's mostly well kept with the grounds well maintained except for a pavilion that looked a little overgrown. There is a walkway that circles a statue called the Private Soldier Monument. This is a large granite statue of a Union infantryman facing north toward the battlefields. Overall, I found the visit a very moving place for the fact that a lot of those buried are unknown soldiers and I definitely recommend it for anyone visiting the area to learn about the battle and the civil war history.

I need someone to explain why this park has only three parking spaces. That's just nuts…read more Fortunately, there were only two other people here when I visited or I'd have had to park illegally and we can't have that. The centerpiece of Rumsey Park is the 75 foot tall white granite monument, a tribute to the man who invented, designed and engineered the steamboat in 1783 and overlooks the spot on the Potomac where it first sailed. This was the first successful application of steam to aid with navigation and in 1787 demonstrated it here at Shepherdstown Virginia. Though impressive, the commercial feasibility of the technology was widely questioned, and investors were hard to come by. Five years after his first successful demonstration, Rumsey died while pitching to a group of investors in England, his dream of commercial steamboats never fully realized. Of course, the park has a fab view of the Rumsey bridge and this curve of the Potomac River. Quite scenic just not enough parking. [Review 15607 overall - 59 in West Virginia - 1111 of 2021.]

[Coronavirus review] This is a small park, with an irksomely…read moresmall number of parking spaces (some metered parking is available on the street outside the gate). There were only three parking spaces, plus one handicap spot, and a loop that some people tried to park alongside of but which really didn't work well for that. It's a scenic overlook that gets you a view of both the road bridge and a rail bridge, as well as some massive columns for yet more bridges that no longer exist. The monument itself is apparently to the inventor of the steamboat. What's notable about the space these days is that it has a few picnic tables with a view, and all restaurants are takeout right now. Other people arrived at the park carrying the same taco takeout bags that I did. It's a good spot to eat in a pinch.

North of Berkeley Springs but before the Maryland border, this marker on the west side of the…read morehighway points out some of the earliest colonial history of this area. The marker reads, "Lovers' Leap. Beautiful panorama of West Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Maryland. It overlooks the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal which was started by George Washington and associates in order to improve communication with the West." Unfortunately, there does not appear to be any long term parking here and the brush towards the Potomac River appears to be private property. [Review 15548 overall, 1052 of 2021, number 46 in West Virginia.]

This marker near the Potomac River and the line between Maryland and West Virginia points out the…read morehistory of a local who grew up here and the house that provided some history in the Civil War. The marker reads, "Ferry Hill Place. Built in 1812. The boyhood home of Colonel Henry Kyd Douglas, a member of Stonewall Jackson's staff. September 18, 1862, federal troops occupied these premises and confined the Douglas family, June 18, 1863. Headquarters of Confederate Major General Edward Johnson, en route to Pennsylvania." The house itself is not open to the public though the grounds are. It is managed by the National Park Service. "Ferry Hill Place has stood for two centuries above the Potomac River and the Chesapeake & Ohio Canal, participating in and watching history pass by. In the 18th and early 19th century German settlers migrated from Pennsylvania south into Virginia's Shenandoah Valley, where they then farmed the rich soil. These settlers crossed the Potomac using Packhorse Ford and later Blackford's Ferry below Ferry Hill. Come the 1830s the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal crossed this north/south route, tapping the river waters to provide a controlled water transportation route into western Maryland." [Review 15603 overall - 648 in Maryland - 1107 of 2021.]

We are visiting the area and, staying about 30 minutes away, decided to make a trip to Discovery…read moreStation based on the website's description, which presents it as an engaging, interactive experience. Unfortunately, we found the visit quite underwhelming. The space itself is very basic, with limited exhibits and minimal interactivity. Much of what was on display felt dated and sparse, and it did not hold our attention for long. For a destination marketed as a hands-on discovery center, we expected a more immersive and thoughtfully curated experience. While this may be suitable for a very brief stop or for locals looking for something close by, it did not feel worth the drive for us as visitors. Overall, the experience did not align with the expectations set by the website, and we left feeling disappointed.

This is NOT the Discovery station building you see online or read about in the below reviews. They…read morehad a location change summer 2025 and the new space is quite lacking. Possibly good for 4 and under but we had been members for the last 4 years and as of right now are strongly considering not renewing. Some creative thinking and hard volunteer work could definitely improve the current space but it's not even 1/3 of what the old space was. **If the new space ups their game and adds value and better exhibits/ play spaces, I will remove or edit this review but I have ALOT of friends that have had the same lacking experiance and will also not renew the membership.

This roadside marker on US-11 (Winchester Avenue) stands in front of the John Evans property and…read morecommemorates an event from the Colonial era when this part of West Virginia was still known as Virginia. The 400 acre property was purchased by Evans (a Welsh Baptist) from William Penn who had originally purchased the land from Lenni Lenapes in 1683. The marker reads, "Fort Evans, built here, 1755, was attacked by Indians, 1756. The men were absent but Polly Evans, whose husband, John, had built the fort, led the women in its defense. The Big Spring here was noted camping ground of both armies, 1861-1865." There is little information online about the attack though an extensive history of the property, its defense from a proposed mill and damage from arson are on https://friendsofpawccp-org.doodlekit.com/home/john-evans-house. [Review 15120 overall, 622 of 2021, number 39 in West Virginia.]

Antietam Battlefield is a National Park with free a self-driving or walking tour, with a fee if you…read morewant their map and the museum tour (free with a National Parks membership). The driving tour took us around half an hour, plus more time for stops at the many scenic views, historical monuments, and informative plaques. And we encountered a number of people walking the tour. I'm not a dedicated student of history, but i wrote this just to say this well-mapped tour is worth the time to get a real sense of the landscape and the extent of the battlefields.

I love the National park service and this is part of it... battlefield is well maintained and staff…read morewere plentiful and informative. Gift shop had a good selection of shirts and sizes. It was a nice way to spend an afternoon