WCHS Bus Tours 2024: Historic Houses of Worship

Join the Washington County Historical Society on Saturday, May 18 for our Historic Houses of Worship Bus Tour, where we’ll journey to Dahlgren Chapel, the Newcomer House, Tolson's Chapel, St. Mark's Episcopal Church, and St James.

WCHS Executive Director Andy Stout will serve as your guide and we’ll meet up with local religious leaders and local community members along the way. It will also be the perfect time to enjoy the end of Spring before the heat of the Summer!

We'll start off by meeting at the JC Penney parking lot at the Valley Mall where we'll depart Hagerstown from this location by bus at 9:00 AM. Guests should plan to arrive 15 minutes prior to departure.

After a brief bus ride, we’ll arrive at our first stop, Dahlgren Chapel, constructed in 1881, and sitting atop South Mountain. The chapel was commissioned by Mrs. Dahlgren, author of the hauntingly supernatural book “South Mountain Magic.”

Next we’ll ride to the Newcomer House at Antietam National Battlefield, the home of the Heart of the Civil War Heritage Area visitor center. Then only five minutes up the road is Tolson's Chapel in Sharpsburg. While no longer a functioning church, we’ll learn how local historical organizations and town residents are pitching in to preserve and save this historic building and adjoining cemetery.

Our next stop will be St. Marks Episcopal Church, where the hospitality committee will provide lunch at 12:30 PM. After lunch, it's back on the bus to our final stop for the day, St. James School, where you’ll learn about the history of the former Men’s College, now private high school. We’ll depart St. James and head back home to Hagerstown. Guests will arrive back at the JC Penney parking lot at the Valley Mall by 3:30 PM.

Price per guest is $50 for WCHS members and $65 for non-members. As a special thank you if you purchase a non-member ticket we'll include a complementary WCHS individual membership. Contact us at 301-797-8782 or email us at [email protected] to make your reservation.

We have more WCHS Bus Tours planned for 2024. Stay tuned to our eventbrite and washcohistory.org/events/ for announcements of destinations and dates!

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

JCPenney, 17301 Valley Mall Road, Hagerstown, United States