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AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY SITES
From escaped slaves traveling the C&O Canal
Towpath into the Fort Cumberland tunnels on their
path to freedom to stories of significant Black
individuals within our communities, explore the sites
and monuments representing the courage,
triumphs, and significance of African American
history and culture in Mountain Maryland.
EMMANUEL EPISCOPAL CHURCH
CUMBERLAND, MD
The Emmanuel Episcopal Church sits on the site of
the original Fort Cumberland, which served as a
military outpost during the French and Indian War.
When the church was constructed around 1850, the
tunnels of the original fort were kept intact
underground to use as a steam line that connected
the church with the Allegany Academy and the
church’s rectory along a 200 yard line. Oral history
tells us that escaping slaves would arrive on the
C&O Canal and hide out in ‘Shanty Town,’ a section
of Cumberland where free Black community
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