Information Panel: Harper Cemetery

When Harper died, there were only three houses in the town, but he set aside this 4 acre cemetery.

NPS/ Claire Hassler

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Historical/Interpretive Information/Exhibits, Scenic View/Photo Spot

Passing through this region in 1747, Robert Harper - a Pennsylvania architect contracted to build a Quaker church in the Shenandoah Valley - was so impressed by the beauty of this place and the water-power potential of the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers that he settled here and founded Harpers Ferry.

When Harper died in 1782, there were only three houses in town. Optimistic about the community's potential for growth, however, Harper had set aside this 4-acre cemetery. Childless, Harper left most of his estate to his niece, Sarah, who subsequently married a Wager. As you wander around the cemetery, you'll find the grave markers of some of Sarah Wager's descendants as well as stones of Irish and German immigrants who settled in this area during the 1830s.