Long Marsh Run Rural Historic District, Historic district in Clarke County, US.
Long Marsh Run Rural Historic District spreads across a rural section of Clarke County and includes hundreds of historic farms, churches, schools, mills, and cemeteries from different periods. These buildings and structures sit visible from public roads and show how people settled this land between West Virginia and Route 7.
Settlement started in the 1770s when early colonists including Warner Washington, a relative of George Washington, established large plantations with stone houses that still stand today. This first wave of settlement shaped the farming pattern and family land holdings that define the district.
Three African American communities still have their original churches and schools standing in the district, showing how different groups built lives alongside each other in this rural area.
Most buildings and structures can be seen from public roads, scattered across open farmland, making car travel the best way to explore the district. Walking is possible on some roads, but distances between sites are long, so plan to drive if you want to see multiple locations.
Several family homes built in the 1770s were constructed with carefully fitted limestone blocks, showing the skilled stonework of early settlers in this valley. The stone likely came from local quarries near Long Marsh Run creek and was shaped and placed by hand.
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