Interpretive Panel: Edgewood

James Gambrill did not build this house until 8 years after the Battle of Monocacy.

J. Fitzgerald

Quick Facts

Location:

Frederick, Maryland

Significance:

Battle of Monocacy and Architecture

Designation:

National Battlefield, National Register of Historic Places, National Historic Landmark

Amenities

7 listed

Audio Description, Cellular Signal, Historical/Interpretive Information/Exhibits, Parking - Auto, Picnic Table, Scenic View/Photo Spot, Trailhead

This Gambrill House wayside provides information about the history of the house that is in the view on the incline above the wayside beyond a line of trees. It also describes the current use of the house as the headquarters for the Historic Preservation Training Center. 

The Gambrill House wayside is located on the Gambrill Farm on the grass ten feet inside the left fork on the service road to the right of the Gambrill Mill. There is a parking lot at the bottom of the hill before the service road goes past the mill and up the hill to the fork.   

The panel has an image of the Gambrill House, circa 1870s with an inset text and an image about the Historic Preservation Training Center. 

The text below the image of the Gambrill House: 

“The success of miller James H. Gambrill became apparent when he built Edgewood, the grand house on the hill. When it was constructed around 1872, the brick, three-story Second Empire-style house was one of the largest single-family residences in Frederick County. With 17 rooms and seven fireplaces. The house was richly finished with Italian marble mantles and features a three-story central hall with a grand staircase. Other sophisticated innovations for the time included a coal-burning furnace, a cooking range, gas lamps, and hot and cold running water. Unfortunately, to avoid financial ruin, Gambrill was forced to sell Edgewood and the mill in 1897.” 

On the right of the wayside is information about the current use of the house as the headquarters for the Historic Preservation Training Center with an image of men working on a piece of historic artillery. 

Above the picture: 

“Today the Gambrill House is home to the administrative headquarters of the National Park Service’s Historic Preservation Training Center. Founded in 1977, the center is tasked with developing the craft skills of National Park Service employees who preserve and maintain the thousands of historic structures in the National Park System, including Jefferson Memorial, Abraham Lincoln’s Boyhood Home, C&O Canal, Fort McHenry, and the USS Cairo ironclad gunboat (below).” 

Below the picture: 

“Historic Preservation Training Center Exhibit Specialists carefully guide an original Cairo cannon tube into place on a new reconstructed gun carriage on the USS Cairo exhibit at Vicksburg National Military Park.”