Ongoing Projects
On the Horizon | In Progress | Completed
On the Horizon
Projects you can look forward to:
Zeigler Log House Rehabilitation & Interpretation
Josiah Henson Site (formerly called Riley Farm/"Uncle Tom's Cabin")
Darby Store Stabilization
Zeigler Log House Rehabilitation & Interpretation
Members of the Park Planning and Stewardship Division have moved their offices into the historic Zeigler Log House within Little Bennett Park. The house will be open for public interpretive tours seasonally (four times a year) and will feature a permanent exhibit about the Zeigler family and their farming and milling activities.
The Zeigler House is a log and frame structure that was the home of David A. Zeigler, a miller and farmer of 300 acres. The house was built in two campaigns. The rear section, constructed of logs, is the earliest part of the house. The Greek Revival/Italianate front section dates from the mid-19th century. The family’s saw and bone mill once stood at the bottom of the nearby hill on Prescott Road. Zeigler and his wife Eleanor Hyatt married in 1835 and raised ten children in the house. In an 1850 census, Zeigler was also listed as an ‘Innkeeper.’ The property also contains a frame bank barn and a concrete-block dairy barn.
Josiah Henson Site (formerly called Riley Farm/"Uncle Tom's Cabin")
The Josiah Henson Site is a Montgomery County landmark of international repute. It is the only standing structure in the United States associated with the life of Josiah Henson, the former slave whose autobiography was the inspiration for Harriet Beecher Stowe’s seminal novel,Uncle Tom’s Cabin. The Maryland-National Park and Planning Commission has commissioned a Historic Structures Report on this highly significant property. A team of architects, historians, scholars on African-American history, dendrochronologists, archaeologists, paint experts and others have begun to unravel all the details of the house and grounds.
The final report includes information about the site’s history and significance, the biographical history of Josiah Henson and the Riley family, archaeology, tree ring analysis of the logs, and landscape history. You can read the report on the Josiah Henson site page. The public will be engaged in a series of meetings and through our website to help plan for the permanent opening of this heritage site. In the meantime, the property will be open on special occasions.
Darby Store Stabilization
The Darby Store and its neighboring house, located in Beallsville, represents the prominence of the local merchant in a rural turn-of-the-century farming community. Although stores such as the Darby Store were once found throughout Montgomery County, few remain today.
M-NCPPC is developing stabilization plans for the store which is currently in poor repair. An RFP to stabilize and move the building back from the intersection will be issued in Spring 2010.
In Progress
Coming soon: updates on:
Brainard Warner House, Kensington
Woodlawn Barn Visitor's Center, Sandy Springs
Completed
Seneca Stone Barn Stabilization
The Department of Parks issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) in November 2007 to stabilize this historic structure located in Woodstock Equestrian Park. Work to stabilize the structure was completed in Summer 2009.
The barn will feature interpretive signs. Hikers and equestrians can stop by and learn more about the area’s agricultural and equestrian heritage.
Date of last update: February 25, 2010
Montgomery County Department of Parks