Adaptive reuse has long been a way to preserve historic buildings and use them for today’s needs. In Shepherdstown, we have had many such projects, including the iconic Fireman’s Hall at the corner of New and King streets. Construction began in 1912, the same year of a massive fire in ...
On November 5 the Jefferson County Planning Commission rejected a proposal from Sidewinder LLC, which proposes to build a water bottling plant near the historic village of Middleway, to settle Sidewinder’s lawsuit against the Planning Commission. Commissioner Cara Keys moved to refuse to ...
On October 26, I ran the Marine Corps Marathon — 26.2 miles through Washington, D.C., surrounded by 30,000 runners and thousands more cheering from the sidelines. I went into it thinking it was about strength and endurance. What I learned instead was about trust, flexibility, and the power of ...
On a recent evening, Kameron Turner and Lynn Membreno sat in the cozy sitting area of their log home at 306 West German Street to watch previous owner (1923-45), Shepherdstown native and former Hollywood character actress Laura Treadwell, in the 1941 Three Stooges film, “Time Out For ...
West Virginia is a major producer of natural gas, and produces some oil as well. A byproduct of this industry is several thousand abandoned wells that have not been closed (“plugged” is the term of art). A couple of weeks ago Governor Patrick Morrisey announced a deal with Diversified ...
The ghost story of Wizard’s Clip is one of the most enduring tales of early America. At its heart is Adam Livingston, a German immigrant whose home in Middleway became the site of strange disturbances in the 1790s. Clothes were mysteriously cut into crescent shapes, livestock died and fires ...
Since this column featuring Shepherdstown’s historic homes began, the focus has been on 18th and 19th century structures that make up what many consider the town’s historic identity – but our history continued to evolve in the 20th century. Techniques that increased automobile production ...
The Jefferson County Commission recently took up a proposal to eliminate the requirement that a “concept plan” be required for commercial development under our county’s zoning ordinance. Many spoke against this proposal. It would seriously gut the zoning ordinance, as the concept plan is ...
When my children were growing up, I didn’t keep candy in the house. They never had soda, and sugar cereal was reserved for one day a year — on their birthday, when they could pick out one box and a pack of fruit roll-ups. It was my way of teaching them early that sugar isn’t meant to be ...
One of the more popular drive-by historic homes in Shepherdstown is at 207 East German Street – the one with the elaborate Halloween and Christmas decorations. A gauge of the decorations’ popularity is the official count (a hand held counter is used) of trick-or-treaters that reached 854 ...
