Page 36 - Garrett County 2024/2025 Visitors Guide

PHOTO BY TIMOTHY JACOBSEN
history
TRACE THE COURSE
OF OUR
Garrett County’s name derives from
John Work Garrett, who was president of the Baltimore and Ohio (B&O) Railroad when the county was established. This is a testament to how significant the B&O railroad was to the area’s development and economic growth during the second half of the 19th century.
Today you can retrace the influence the B&O railroad had on Garrett County, as a center of commerce and a vacation destination,
at the free Oakland B&O Museum (oaklandbandomuseum.org)! Trains stopped coming to Oakland in 1971, but
the 1884 station has undergone a complete, historically accurate restoration. Our depot, one of the most distinguished in the country, is on the National Register of Historic Places. Check the museum’s Facebook page for seasonal events.
Another key stop for those interested in studying this period of history is Mountain Lake Park’s newly restored Ticket Office Museum. The exhibits there shed light on the vacationers, speakers and performers who arrived by the thousands during the
resort community’s Victorian heyday. (For more on the museum, turn to page 14.)
Our area’s history goes back much further then Victorian times. Prior to European settlement, Garrett County had been a source of natural bounty for several Native American tribes for more than 4,000 years. The natives hunted and fished during the summer months and returned home to the areas west of Ohio and East of the Potomac’s tributaries in the winter.
The Garrett County Historical Museum (garrettcountymuseums.com), located in Oakland, houses a treasure trove of exhibits related to the founding of Garrett County. Here you can learn about the history of the land and the way of life in Garrett County by citizens from years past. The museum is affiliated with the Garrett County Historical Society, which also runs these two other museums:
• The Garrett County Museum of Transportation in Oakland features carriages, sleighs, buggies, automobiles and even fire department memorabilia. You can also find a representation of A.D. Naylor’s Blacksmith Shop, which was
one of the earliest and most prominent businesses in Oakland. On the second floor, called the Deep Creek Gallery, you’ll find a variety of exhibits of documenting the history of Deep Creek Lake along with other nearby state parks.
• The Grantsville Museum, in Grantsville, is a small community museum dedicated to preserving the photographic legacy of Leo Beachy. A resident of Garrett County, he was a poet and photographer collecting local history from 1905-1927.
The French and Indian War marked a major milestone for Garrett County. An Indian trail in the Grantsville area had been widened in 1755 to accommodate General Braddock’s army. Between 1811 and 1819, the old National Road was built over that same Indian trail.
As people passed through the area, some of them liked the area and stayed, eventually forming the town of Grantsville.
While you are out, stop and see the Drane House in Accident. Built in the late 1700s,
the Drane House is one of the few remaining original frontier plantation homes in the region and is also believed to be the oldest standing structure in Garrett County.
Today U.S. 40 follows much the same route as the historic National Road. You can retrace the route, which passes through Garrett County on its way to Vincennes, IL, by following the Historic National Road Scenic Byway. Learn more at: visitmaryland.org/scenic-byways/ historic-national-road.
Built around the same time as the National Road was the Casselman River Bridge. Spanning 80 feet, this was the longest single- arch stone bridge in America at the time. The bridge is still open to pedestrians and
is located in the smallest of Maryland’s state parks. Grab your fishing pole and a picnic basket for some fly fishing on the Casselman River! (Note that at the time of printing, Casselman River Bridge State Park was closed due to repair work. Check dnr.maryland.gov/ publiclands/pages/western/casselman.aspx for updates on a reopening date.)
While you are discovering Garrett County’s history, don’t forget to explore our sprawling farmlands and scenic byways, which will lead you past more than 40 barn quilts (garrettbarnquilts.org) Each barn quilt has a unique design. Or visit one of our many working farms and get hands-on with our agricultural history and future (garrettfarms. org/visit-farms.html).
With so much to do and see, you’ll find something for everyone to experience in Garrett County.
34 The Deep Creek Experience