Shepherdstown Historic District

The Shepherdstown Historic District comprises the historic core of Shepherdstown, West Virginia. The town is the oldest in West Virginia, founded in 1762 as Mecklenburg. No structures are known to exist from the time before the town became known as Shepherdstown. The historic district is concentrated along German Street, the main street, with 386 contributing resources and 69 non-contributing elements. The chief representative period is the late 18th century, with many Federal style brick houses. German Street is also furnished with 19th-century "street furniture" such as metal fences, mounting blocks, wooden pumps and mature trees.The town has a significant place in American history. James Rumsey made a public demonstration of a steamboat in 1787 on the nearby Potomac River. Shepherdstown was proposed as the National Capital in 1790, losing to Alexandria, Virginia, and Georgetown, Maryland, at the tidal headwaters of the Potomac. During the Civil War, Shepherdstown was in a pivotal position, with Confederate forces burning the covered bridge over the Potomac in 1861, then using nearby Pack Horse Ford to and from the Battle of Antietam. The entire town became a field hospital following this action. Later, Union troops occupied the town to preserve the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad link to the west.