Hughesville Tobacco Warehouses
THE PROBLEM
Tobacco warehouses are a critical part of the heritage of tobacco agriculture in Southern Maryland. They are threatened, however, by a lack of recognition, obsolescence, underuse and the unique challenges of adaptive reuse of historic warehouses.
THE FIX
Preservation Maryland will support the adaptive reuse of this significant site and assist with crafting appropriate architectural upgrades as well as helping to recruit prospective tenants. The goal is to adaptively reuse these historic building in a manner that honors its agricultural heritage and supports sustainable agriculture into the future.
HISTORY & SIGNIFICANCE
The village of Hughesville is significant for its concentration of mid-twentieth century commercial and industrial buildings, including a notable row of tobacco warehouses. The opening of loose-leaf tobacco auctions in 1939 spurred rapid development in the village, and within a decade the north end of Hughesville along Old Leonardtown Road and east of the railroad tracks was lined with warehouses and packing plants. During each selling season, typically spanning four months, farmers and buyers would flood the district. The loose-leaf market thrived during the middle decades of the twentieth century, but sales waned as tobacco production declined at the end of the century. The tobacco auction houses and warehouses in Hughesville are some of the last remaining physical structures associated with Maryland’s rich and momentous tobacco industry and remain the best cohesive collection of structures related to tobacco sales, storage, and processing in the state.
THREATS & GOALS
With the last auction held in 2006, many of the warehouses sit vacant while others have been repurposed. They are threatened by a lack of recognition, obsolescence, underuse and the unique challenges of adaptive reuse of historic warehouses. Hughesville overall but, especially the warehouses’ corridor, faces two options as it transforms in the twenty-first century: Demolition of the existing buildings and replacement with a contemporary suburban design or careful redevelopment that honors its agricultural legacy and inspires reuse in unique and interesting ways.
Updates
DECEMBER 2019
The Charles County Department of Planning and Growth Management seeks proposals to undertake a market feasibility study for future uses of the historic Winstead Company Packing Plant in Hughesville, Maryland. Proposals should be submitted to Cathy Thompson, Community Planning Program Manager, Charles County Department of Planning and Growth Management at thompca@charlescountymd.gov by December 16, 2019.
2019
The Warehouse District: The Rise and Fall of Hughesville’s Loose-Leaf Tobacco Markets
Preservation Matters Magazine, Charles County Government, Department of Planning & Growth Management
2019
Hughesville: A Commercial and Tobacco Marketing Center
Preservation Matters Magazine, Charles County Government, Department of Planning & Growth Management
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Preservation Maryland isn’t just preserving the past – we’re investing in our future. In just the past year we’ve invested heavily in our work and refused to accept the mounting challenges as a reason to retreat or hold our position. You are making it all possible.