Information Panel: Close Quarters

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Historical/Interpretive Information/Exhibits

Search for clues to how people lived in this 1800s boomtown. Look for drill holes in the cliffs, left behind when builders blasted new lots out of the rock. Discover how a home-owner in 1844 cut out part of his own wall to keep his neighbor's view. Examine ruins behind these buildings, and see how the National Park Service preserves these historic buildings for you - and future generations - to enjoy.
Photo Caption: This shared wall and bricked-in window (below) illustrate how two neighbors adapted to Harpers Ferry's limited housing space.
Photo Caption: Archeologists theorize that the ruin, located behind this building at the top of the stairs, might have been a kitchen, smokehouse, or baker's oven. In 2009 stone masons added steel beams to help stabilize and preserve the fragile outbuilding.
Photo Caption: To create new building lots, workers drilled holes in the cliff, packed gunpowder in the holes (left) and blasted away the rock.