The Jefferson County Historic Landmarks Commission (HLC) is charged with aiding the county government and its citizens in the protection and preservation of local historic resources. Consisting of five appointed members, it preserves historic sites, structures and rural landscapes in the unincorporated areas of the county. It also educates the public about the county’s heritage.

The HLC and the Land Trust have worked together to protect permanently key portions of the Shepherdstown Battlefield. This is where Union and Confederate forces clashed as the latter were retreating from the 1862 Battle of Antietam. The HLC has acquired the 18 acres along the Potomac River which were the heart of the battle with the assistance of the National Park Service’s American Battlefield Protection Program and the non-profit American Battlefield Trust. A condition of that funding was placement of a conservation easement on that key property. This easement is held by the Land Trust of the Eastern Panhandle. The HLC also owns another 24 acres in the battlefield, similarly covered by a conservation easement held by the Land Trust. The Land Trust holds conservation easements protecting yet another 59 acres in the battlefield.

In the future, the Land Trusts looks forward to collaborations with the HLC to protect even more of the battlefield as well as other historic properties in Jefferson County.

The HLC website: https://www.jeffersoncountyhlc.org/