Explore This Park

Ferry Hill Plantation

Ferry Hill Visitor Center opens Memorial Day weekend!

Ferry Hill is staffed on Saturdays and Sundays, from 11:30 am to 3:30 pm, from Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day weekend.  There is a gift shop and a knowledgable volunteer to tell you all about Ferry Hill! 

 

Ferry Hill has seen many visitors throughout its history.

NPS photo

Address: 16500 Shepherdstown Pike, Sharpsburg MD, 301-582-0813

Hours:

Ferry Hill Visitor Center is open on Saturdays and Sundays from Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day weekend, 11:30-3:30.

Come see exhibits depicting the history of the house, Henry Kyd Douglas, and the impact the families had on the C&O Canal as well as the surrounding communities. Hands-on area for children as well as models of the house help visitors experience the past.

Ferry Hill sitting above the crossroads of the Potomac River, Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, and the "great road" has been and continues to be a place of change and adaptation. In 1775 Van Swearingen had constructed a "Ferry Inn" at the ferry landing on the Maryland side of the river. The community that grew as a result of the ferry became known as Bridgeport.

John Blackford acquired interest in the ferry and adjoining acres through an inheritance from the Van Swearingen family when he married Sara van Swearingen in 1812. Looking for an ideal location to build a home and start his family he decided to build the house high on the bluff overlooking the Potomac River.

Ferry Hill has gone through many transformations: Home, restaurant, C&O Canal Headquarters, and today is a visitor center.

| Brunswick | Cumberland | Ferry Hill | Georgetown | Great Falls Tavern | Hancock | Williamsport

 

Directions

From Martinsburg: Exit 16E Queen Street. Turn right onto WV 45E/Martinsburg Pkwy/E Moler Avenue. Turn left onto WV 480/N Duke Street. Cross the bridge over the Potomac River (MD 34E). First left after the bridge.

From Hagerstown I-70: Exit 29 MD 65 South toward Sharpsburg. Turn left onto MD 65/Sharpsburg Pike. Turn right onto MD 34. House on the right just before crossing the bridge over the Potomac River.

From Hagerstown I-81: Exit 26 to I-70 West toward Frederick. Exit 29 MD 65 South toward Sharpsburg. Turn left onto MD 65/Sharpsburg Pike. Turn right onto MD 34. House on the right just before crossing the bridge over the Potomac River.