MD -- Cumberland:
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- Specific picture descriptions: Photos above with "i" icons next to the bracketed sequence numbers (e.g. "[1] ") are described as follows:
- CUMB_170802_01.JPG: Cumberland
The Queen City of Maryland
- CUMB_170802_21.JPG: Civil War in Allegany County
Strategic Location
During the Civil War, thousands of United States soldiers were stationed here in Cumberland and Allegany County to guard against raids and incursions by Confederate forces. Located only about 130 miles from the capital at Washington D.C., and a short march from Winchester, Virginia, and Romney, West Virginia, at the lower end of the Shenandoah Valley, this area was strategically important to both sides in the conflict. Here in Cumberland was the western terminus of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal. The National Road, a principal east-west thoroughfare, also ran through the area. Most significantly, Cumberland was a major stop on the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, an artery used for the rapid transportation of Federal troops, supplies, and equipment. The protection of this vital lifeline between Wheeling, West Virginia, and Washington was concentrated in Cumberland. Because of its importance to the Union war effort, the railroad in Allegany County became a prime target for Confederate raiders. Allegany County also became home to a large United States military hospital complex, where thousands of sick, injured, and wounded soldiers received medical care. After the war ended, Cumberland became a major demobilization base.
Please enjoy your Maryland Civil War Trails tour and drive carefully. We hope you learn a great deal about the important role our community played in the conduct and outcome of the Civil War.
- CUMB_170802_27.JPG: Cumberland became the Union nerve center to keep the B&O Railroad operational during the Civil War.
- CUMB_170802_29.JPG: Determined Unionists hung a large United States flag across this street shortly after the outbreak of the Civil War.
- CUMB_170802_31.JPG: Gettysburg Campaign
Invasion & Retreat
After stunning victories at Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville, Virginia, early in May 1863, Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee carried the war through Maryland, across the Mason and Dixon Line and into Pennsylvania. His infantry marched north through the Shenandoah Valley and western Maryland as his cavalry, led by Gen. J.E.B. Stuart, harassed Union supply lines to the east. Union Gen. Joseph Hooker, replaced on June 28 by Gen. George G. Meade, led the Army of the Potomac from the Washington defenses in pursuit. The Federals collided with Lee's Army of Northern Virginia at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, on July 1, starting a battle neither side had intended to fight there. Three days later, the defeated Confederates began retreating through Maryland, retracing their steps to the Potomac River and crossing into Virginia on July 14.
To follow in their footsteps and to discover their stories, stop by any Welcome Center or local Visitor Center to pick up a Gettysburg: Invasion & Retreat Civil War Trail map-guide. Please drive carefully as you enjoy the history and beauty of Maryland Civil War Trails.
- Description of Subject Matter: The town of Cumberland is located on the western edge of Maryland and marks the union of Will's Creek into the Potomac River. In 1755, Fort Cumberland was established here. It was here that George Washington received his first commission. (His headquarters building from that time is still preserved here.) Years later, he would don his military uniform for the last time here as he instructed federal troops under Henry "Lighthorse" Lee on their orders for suppressing the Whiskey Rebellion in Pennsylvania.
Cumberland's importance in the 1800's, however, was due to it being the terminus of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal. The canal, started in Georgetown in 1828, would reach 184.5 miles in length. Its ditch and towpath would require 74 lift locks, 7 dams, 11 aqueducts, and a 3,118-foot tunnel near Paw Paw. The canal reached Harpers Ferry in 1833, Hancock in 1839, and then stalled because of the tunnel and labor troubles.
The competing Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, however, which began the same day, continued without major problems. It reached Cumberland in 1842. The National Road had reached here before. The canal company had planned to keep going beyond Cumberland (its name was because it planned to get as far as the Ohio Valley) but financial problems and the railroad's success caused it to drop these plans. Finally, in 1850, the canal made it to Cumberland. It wasn't profitable until the 1870's however. In 1889, a devastating flood destroyed the canal. Bankrupted, the canal company was bought by the B&O Railroad which tried to resume the canal business. Another massive flood in 1924 killed it for good though. In 1971, the canal became the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historic Park and is preserved forever.
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