The Heart of the Civil War Heritage Area received a Heritage Fund grant to craft a visitor experience plan for the historic Newcomer House on Antietam Battlefield. The historic 18th-century home served as a makeshift hospital during the battle and is now a visitor center for tourists exploring Western Maryland’s history and scenery.
The National Park Service is undertaking a major restoration of its Battlefield Visitors Center that dates to the Mission 66-era of intense Park Service development and is now in need of updating. During the renovations, the Park Service, the Hagerstown-Washington County Convention and Visitor’s Bureau, and the Heritage Area will direct visitors to the Newcomer House.
In preparation for increased visitorship and usage, the Heritage Area sought funding for a modern visitor experience plan and to create and fabricate new exhibits. Preservation Maryland and the Maryland Historical Trust awarded the project $8000 from the Heritage Fund grant program. Additional funding for the over $75,000 project was provided by the Delaplaine Foundation, Rural Maryland Council, Visit Hagerstown, Antietam National Battlefield, and the National Park Service, among others.
To celebrate the completion of the planning document and installation of new exhibits panels, the Heart of the Civil War Heritage Area hosted a special event early this September. Preservation Maryland’s Preservation Initiatives Manager, Jessica Feldt, and Maryland Historical Trust’s Chief of the Office of Planning, Education and Outreach, Nell Ziehl, presented a Heritage Fund check to the Director of the Heritage Area, Liz Shatto, and President of their Board of Directors.