The Strider Farm was intimately involved in events concerning the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

near

Harpers Ferry, West Virginia Harpers Ferry is a historic town in Jefferson County, West Virginia. It is located in the lower Shenandoah Valley. The population was 285 at the 2020 census. Situated at the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers, where the U.S. stat ...

. Located on a small hill just south of the

Baltimore and Ohio Railroad The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was the first common carrier railroad and the oldest railroad in the United States, with its first section opening in 1830. Merchants from Baltimore, which had benefited to some extent from the construction of ...

line from

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

and

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

Martinsburg, West Virginia Martinsburg is a city in and the seat of Berkeley County, West Virginia, in the tip of the state's Eastern Panhandle region in the lower Shenandoah Valley. Its population was 18,835 in the 2021 census estimate, making it the largest city in the E ...

, the Strider farm was a strategic location for the control of this vital link. The main house, built ''circa'' 1790 is a -story

Federal style Federal-style architecture is the name for the classicizing architecture built in the newly founded United States between 1780 and 1830, and particularly from 1785 to 1815, which was heavily based on the works of Andrea Palladio with several inn ...

in stone masonry. It was enlarged in 1880 with a shallow addition, also in stone. A barn also dates to 1880. The main house was built by Philip Strider, whose descendants appear frequently in the later history of Jefferson County. During the Civil War, the property was the scene of frequent fighting. On September 13–17, 1862,

Confederate Confederacy or confederate may refer to: States or communities * Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities * Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between 1 ...

artillery fired on Federal troops from a position near the front yard of the house. Later, in 1864, the house was the headquarters of Federal Major General

Horatio G. Wright Horatio Gouverneur Wright (March 6, 1820 – July 2, 1899) was an engineer and general in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He took command of the VI Corps in May 1864 following the death of General John Sedgwick. In this capacity, he ...

References

American Civil War sites Farms on the National Register of Historic Places in West Virginia Federal architecture in West Virginia Harpers Ferry, West Virginia Houses completed in 1790 Houses in Jefferson County, West Virginia Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in West Virginia Jefferson County, West Virginia in the American Civil War National Register of Historic Places in Jefferson County, West Virginia {{AmericanCivilWar-stub