In western Maryland about an hour’s drive from both Washington, D.C. and Baltimore is the charming historic town of Frederick, Maryland. Centered around the Carroll Creek and full of colorful old homes and Civil War history, this walkable downtown is great to visit for all interests.
What I found most surprising about Frederick is that despite it being a tourist destination, its primary downtown district is not saturated with hotels. There are plenty of accommodations on the outskirts of the city with an easy drive into town – I stayed at the Best Western Historic Frederick which was a 5-10 minute drive from the center of town. Once you are in downtown Frederick, it’s a very walkable city so you can park your car and leave it while you explore. There are five 24-hour public parking garages in the town, but if you park at the East All Saints Street garage, you are able to get three hours of free parking by getting your ticket validated at the Frederick Visitor Center across the street (only during their business hours). Otherwise, the garages are an affordable $1 per hour rate. The Frederick Visitor Center was my first stop when I arrived into town, and I was able to pick up a map of the city’s self-guided walking tour, a great way to familiarize myself with the city and see all the key sites.
I couldn’t get enough of Carroll Creek Park in Frederick. The Carroll Creek runs through the heart of Frederick and is gorgeously paved on both sides, creating a scenic pedestrian walkway lined with shops and restaurants (it almost reminded me a bit of the River Walk in San Antonio). There are beautiful bridges crossing the creek covered in art – representative of Frederick’s eclectic and artsy culture. In spring and summer, the creek is covered in lily pads, which I didn’t get to see visiting in mid-November, but the fall foliage was arguably just as beautiful. To my delight – the easternmost end of the park is home to a cluster of craft breweries all within a minute’s walk of each other.
The westernmost end connects to Baker Park with its picturesque pond and carillon. On the way here you also see the Barbara Fritchie House. Fritchie was immortalized in a poem by John Greenleaf Whittier for waving her Union flag and insulting Confederate troops as they marched into Frederick.
In the heart of Frederick, wandering Church Street, you’ll see the “clustered spires” of Frederick mentioned in Whittier’s poem that make up the skyline of Frederick, and other historic and architecturally stunning buildings like City Hall.
The intersection of Patrick Street and Market Street is the intersection of Frederick’s two main arteries and a great place to start if you are looking for dining or shopping. I enjoyed lunch at Brewer’s Alley, the city’s first brewpub that happens to also be a stop on the self-guided walking tour as the historic site where a ransom was paid to Confederate General Jubal Early to prevent the destruction of Frederick.
After lunch I paid a visit to the National Museum of Civil War Medicine, an intriguing museum that walks you through battlefield conditions and how doctors and nurses tended to those wounded in battle. I found the museum fascinating and very eye-opening to the horrors of battle – it is not for the faint of heart.
The next day before leaving town I visited Mount Olivet Cemetery on the south end of downtown. Right inside the entrance is the cemetery’s most notable burial – Francis Scott Key, writer of our country’s national anthem. Key was born in Frederick County and is recognized with an impressive monument. Barbara Fritchie and other notable Frederick County natives are also buried in this gorgeous cemetery with mountain views.
Frederick was a very pleasant and enjoyable town, and a great stop on a Civil War history road trip. From Frederick, I drove 40 minutes west through gorgeous rural valleys to Antietam National Battlefield, and continued into West Virginia to explore the historic little mountain towns of the eastern panhandle region. Also nearby 40 minutes to the north is Gettysburg, PA – there is much to see in this beautiful and historically significant corner of the country!
Read more about the rest of the stops in my road trip:
- Antietam National Battlefield (Coming Soon!)
- Harper’s Ferry, WV
- Charles Town, WV
- Martinsburg, WV
- Berkeley Springs, WV
C to Shining C 