ALLEGANY
MUSEUM
the crossroads of american histORy
George Washington’s 1794 troop review
at Fort Cumberland
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The Canal Place organizations combine historical preservation, recreation, and education with economic development strategies. These organizations include George
Washington’s Headquarters, National Road Monument,
C&O Canal National Historical Park and Visitor’s Museum, Western Maryland Railroad Station and Scenic Railroad, and The Great Allegheny Passage.
Showcasing the power of our nation’s history
As a transportation crossroads between the East Coast
and the West, Allegany County has an inseparable link to
innovation in manufacturing and transportation. The Allegany Museum provides visitors with an overview of the
region and weaves together particular stories that illustrate
the region’s significant contributions to the national story.
The Allegany Museum
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The leading cultural institution in Western Maryland
Our nation’s transportation history is rooted in Cumberland, a unique city in Western Maryland.
Cumberland’s foundation is tied to its geographic
importance as a key route linking the East Coast with the
great American West through the Ohio and Mississippi
watersheds.
The Allegany Museum is the leading cultural institution in Western Maryland. Our mission is to convey the
region’s unique heritage and contribution to our nation’s
development.
Located in downtown Cumberland in a spectacular
building that once served as the Federal Court House and
Post Office during the early 20th century, the Allegany
Museum is at the heart of Canal Place, Maryland’s first
certified heritage area.
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History
General George Washington
The Allegany Museum’s new first floor exhibit hall,
opening in 2014, highlights George Washington’s role in
our region. It includes a large, scale model of Fort Cumberland and other Washington memorabilia from the 1750s.
Washington traveled to Allegany County five times and
spent significant time at Fort Cumberland. He first traveled to Allegany County in 1748 in search of the origin of
the Potomac River.
In his early twenties he became an aid to General Braddock, a well-known figure of the French and Indian War.
Washington was with Braddock during a disastrous rout
delivered by the French and was forced to organize the
British forces to retreat after Braddock’s death.
Washington returned a fifth and final time in 1794 as
President and Commander in Chief in response to the
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George Washington’s
map of the position
of Fort Cumberland
(left) is one of the
earliest known maps
of this region. The
museum owns a scale
model of the fort
(above). Opposite:
The cabin that was
Washington’s headquarters.
Whiskey Rebellion. This is the only time a U.S. President
led troops into the field.
The footprint of Fort Cumberland, including the fort’s
old tunnels, sits just steps away from the museum on a hill
overlooking the city. The cabin that served as Washington’s
headquarters, the only building to survive from the fort,
can be seen in a nearby park.
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Transportation and Engineering
Cumberland was founded along an ancient American Indian trail linking the coast with America’s vast interior.
It is no wonder that it became a vital transportation and
manufacturing hub as Colonial America matured into a
great nation.
The National Road
George Washington and Thomas Jefferson believed that
a trans-Appalachian road was necessary for unifying the
young country and allowing westward expansion. Government officials feared that without this road western settlers would turn to the Spanish or to the British in Canada.
Construction of the Cumberland Road (later renamed
the National Road) began in downtown Cumberland in
1811 and eventually extended to Vandalia, Illinois. It was
the first Federally funded highway.
The museum’s new exhibition space will highlight the
evolution of the National Road. It will begin with its Native American roots. The exhibit includes an authentic
Conestoga wagon and fascinating early automobiles.
A collection of artifacts found in Cumberland shows that
Native Americans were the first to call the area home.
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The thrasher Collection has stunning
examples of carriages (above) that used
to travel the streets of Cumberland and
the National Road. A signpost from the
National Road (left) told travelers they
were close to the city.
The rare and extensive Thrasher Carriage collection
supports the National Road story. This collection of horsedrawn vehicles dating to the late 1800s and early 1900s is
unsurpassed in its breadth and depth and includes
everything from milkman carts to luxurious sleighs used
by the Vanderbilt family. It also includes funeral hearses
and the inaugural coach used by Teddy Roosevelt.
The carriages are showcased in a satellite facility of the
Allegany Museum located in Frostburg at the terminus
of the Western Maryland Scenic Railroad. It is a stopping
place on the Great Allegheny Passage.
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C&O Canal
George Washington was the chief advocate of using waterways to connect the Eastern Seaboard to the Great Lakes
and the Ohio River. President Monroe signed a bill chartering the construction of the C&O canal in 1825.
Using mostly imported indentured laborers from Ireland and Germany, construction was completed in 1850.
The canal operated until a great flood in 1924 sealed its
already declining fate. When operating, the canal transported regional resources like timber and coal that fueled
America’s industrialization. Museum exhibitions highlight
the economy and lifeways that developed with the canal.
A model of one of Cumberland’s famous landmarks, the
Queen City Hotel, is on display at the Allegany Museum.
B&O Railroad
The C&O Canal cuts through mountains in Allegany County
before it ends at Cumberland. Inset: a model canal boat.
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Charles Carroll, the last surviving signer of the Declaration of Independence, broke ground for the Baltimore &
Ohio railroad with great celebration on July 4, 1828. The
railroad reached Cumberland eight years before the C&O
canal was completed. An intricate system of railroads began crisscrossing the hills of Allegany County’s western
coal country, funneling big vein coal toward Cumberland.
By the 1940s, the peak of the rail era, Cumberland was a
major railroad hub connecting the East and West.
This rail heyday is exemplified in our railroad exhibit.
Besides models of trains, the museum features a model
of the Queen City Hotel and railroad station. Opened in
1872, it was the flagship of a group of hotels built by the
B&O Railroad after the Civil War. It featured 174 rooms, a
400-seat dining room that doubled as a ballroom, a restaurant, a billiards room, tennis courts, and formal gardens.
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Glass making
Cumberland’s booming economy made for a bustling
downtown retail and entertainment district.
Cumberland was an ideal location for glass making because of its proximity to rich coal deposits needed for fuel
and silica sandstone, the raw material of glass. After 1880,
the city became a center of glass manufacturing. Local factories obtained patents for many inventions.
Glass factories were dangerous places to work and commonly burned to the ground. One of the earliest and most
prominent glass companies, Wellington Glass Company,
was completely destroyed by fire in 1920. After 1930, glass
making played a greatly diminished role in the local economy.
Manufacturing and Technology
Cumberland became a boom-town by the end of the
1800s. Its thriving transportation system opened the door
to a period of unprecedented wealth and importance. The
first quarter of the 20th century saw Cumberland triple in
size and become Maryland’s second largest city.
Transportation and coal created robust employment.
These assets also encouraged industries, especially lumber, tire manufacturing, glass making, and America’s first
synthetic fiber making plant. Cumberland’s Washington
Street is filled with impressive Victorian mansions built by
railroad barons, bankers, politicians and retail princes.
The Allegany Museum collects objects and information
that document our region’s role in America’s post-Civil
War industrial boom. Its two key stories about the rise
and decline of products “Made in America” are glassware
and tire production.
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Cumberland’s glass manufacturing industry was among the best
in America. The Allegany Museum features displays concerning
glass-making and collections of
the area’s finest glassware.
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Tire manufacturing
The Kelly-Springfield Tire Company story is a story of in­
novation and adaptation to emerging markets. It began
in 1894 as a manufacturer of rubber tires for carriages,
patenting a process of placing a solid rubber tire in a rim
channel. The tires were quickly adapted to the expanding automobile industry and the company thrived. Kelly-Springfield, America’s oldest operating tire company,
kept a plant in Cumberland from 1921 until 1987.
The history of tires is told through a complete set of examples manufactured in Cumberland (above). The museum
also exhibits a delightful set of transportation-related
antique toys (below).
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The Allegany Museum’s rich
manufacturing and transportation collection makes
it a natural starting point to
promote STEM education.
Shown here is a child 3D
printing in a maker space.
Educating our community
America’s position as a global leader is threatened by a
growing lack of expertise in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM)—and by an inadequate pipeline of teachers skilled in those subjects. Our
town has historically contributed to the nation’s economy
through the ingenuity and hard work of its citizens. Our
region has been particularly hard hit, however, by the decline of traditional manufacturing. We need to find ways
to create a workforce ready for 21st century jobs.
To address this problem, the museum is planning to in13
stall a “maker space” learning center. This center will have
traditional tools as well as high tech equipment, such as
laser scanners and 3D printers. The museum will provide
educational programs that allow K-12 children to design,
prototype, and produce objects. Providing our children
with these skills will help create the skilled workforce
needed to support job creation in our area.
The Allegany Museum is dedicated to promoting history, art and STEM education to our underserved constituency. That is why we are committed to securing funding
for the maker space. There is currently no such venue in
our region. We believe that our effort will promote education, encourage innovation, and contribute to the economic re-birth of this region. It is a direct investment in
our children—the future of Maryland and America.
The museum’s
exhibits include
transportation
icons like this
Ford Model T.
Creating economic strategies
that benefit the community
The Allegany Museum is more than an educational organization. We are a critical catalyst for the economic revitalization of Allegany County. We are a “go to” place for
heritage tourists and visitors who come to enjoy our rails
to trails recreation areas. The Great Allegheny Passage and
the C&O Canal towpath trail create a continuous path for
hikers and bikers from Pittsburgh to Washington, D.C..
Putting Cumberland on the map as a vibrant tourist
destination needs to be a joint effort with other historical
organizations in the area. To this end, we are partnering
with a consortium of local historical organizations called
the Western Maryland Heritage Association that includes:
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Allegany Arts Council
Allegany Historical Society
C&O Canal Museum
C. William Gilchrist Museum of the Arts
F. Brooke Whiting House
Frostburg Museum
Garrett County Historical Museum
Garrett County Transportation Museum
Gordon-Roberts House
Grantsville Community Museum
Oakland B&O Museum
Springs Museum
Vietnam Veterans Museum
Williams Community Museum
The Western Maryland Heritage Association coordinates to expand public outreach. The organization has
used grants to develop a heritage group tour web site
(www.cumberlandhistorytours.com).
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ALLEGANY MUSEUM
the crossroads of american histORy
Prehistory
Nemacolin’s Path
Ancient Native American
trail through Cumberland
1755
Braddock’s Road
Started from Cumberland
1811
First National Road
Originated in Cumberland
1828
America’s first railroad
The B&O was started.
Arrived in Cumberland 1842.
1828
C&O Canal
The canal was started.
Arrived in Cumberland 1850.
Allegany Museum
3 Pershing Street, Cumberland, MD 21502
[email protected] 301-777-7200
Design by Chris Sloan / Science Visualization, Cumberland, MD
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Credits: Pg. 2, Lance Bell. Pg. 10, Charles Amos. Pg. 13, SciViz. Pg. 14, Lance Bell.
All other photos, John Bone/Allegany Museum.