Evening star., 1936-06-07
Harpers Ferry Tempting Spot for Auto Tourists
Resort Offers One of Finest
Views Within 100 Miles
of City.
Trip Traverses Some of Ma.
tons Best Stock Farm.
ing Country.
By James Nevin Miller.

By James Nevin Miller.
| ~OOL mountain breezes and
marvellous scenery invite local
motorists to visit Harpers
Ferry, w. Va. The historic
town offers perhaps the finest views
within q l00-mile radius of Washing
ton, for 1t is situated in the heart of
the famed Blue Ridge Mountains, on
narrow strip Of land, at the con-
fluence of the Potomac and Shenan-
doah Rivers. Maryland, Virginia
and West Virginia are here separated
only by the rivers and their tribu-
tarieS.
Make this motor trip a leisurely
one You can reach your delightful
destination in little over two hours
without fast driving. And don't be
annoyed by well-meaning alarmists
who warn you not to go by way Of
Maryland, because the bridge Cfor
passenger cars) connecting Maryland
and West Virginia was washed away
by the recent floods.
True enough. the bridge Is down to-
day and shows no signs of being re-
built soon. However, there's a pleas
ant way Of circling about-not far
from Rockville, Md.-that will take
you to Harpers Ferry with no annoy
ance and no appreciable delay. But
more about this later.
First of all, head onto Wisconsin
avenue and go through Bethesda.
You'll find yourself on route 240.
Stay on it until you reach Rockville.
Be sure to follow Commerce street,
which soon makes a sharp turn to
the left, instead of continuing along
the main highway. 1t might pay to
ask some looking pedestrian
whether you're pointing toward the
stretch of dirt road that goes to
Whites Ferry.
Once on that you're we'll launched
on your trip. This road, trifie rough
in spots, ought to be travelled with
considerable care and less than me-
dium speed. However, it extends only
about miles, stopping at a broad
bend In the Potomac River.
HERE you have a novel experience.
There's no bridge, but the queer
est kind Of ferry imaginable. An
chored at the end Of the road is a
fat-bottomed boat, large enough to
hold about five autos. You drive your
int fhiS nj
in the bushes a poker-faced youth ap-
pears. He doesn't say a word, but
leaps deftly into a tiny motor boat
connected with the boat, and starts
the engine. Pretty soon you notice
that his beat, in turn, is attached to
cable that stretches scross the river
to the Virginia side. The cable is
used merely as guide. The motor
boat is peculiarly made. Its engine
and steering wheel have been adopted
from an ancient automobile.
While the old engine wheezes along
at the rate Of about miles an hour,
you look across the river and get a
grand view of Balls Bluff, on the Vir-
ginia side. This, you later learn, was
the scene of a stirring Civil War bat
tie on october 81, 1851. A Union
force which had crossed the river at
this point was driven back by the
Confederates. A small marker close
by the main highway, on the other
side, marks the site and serves as a
memorial to the battlefield.
Now you're in Virginia and find
yourself on a continuation of the
dirt road. Only about a mile more
of it and you reach the Leesburg-
Point of Rocks pike. To your right
is marker that reads:
Potomac Crossings. Here Lee
turned east to the Potomac, crossing
Whites Ford, September 6, 1862, in
his invasion Of Maryland. Jubal A.
Early, returning on his Washington
raid, crossed the river at Whites Ford,
July IA, 1854"
You're about az miles north Of
Leesburg. A half-minuteis ride down
the highway and you pass the country
estate Of Elliott Roosevelt, one of the
Presidents sons. You can't really
make out the style of the residence,
so deep does it nestle into the thick
foliage. Close by, in much palmer
view. is Spring Road, the lovely
Colonial home belonging to s. S.
Lutz, whose family was among the
earliest settlers of Loudoun County.
Everywhere you see signs of the re-
cent flood, such as enormous logs
perched atop lofty barns, and on all
sides are lovely flower gardens. we'll
kept lawns and fields thick with
wheat which is green this
time Of the year.
Next you pass Goose Creek Chapel.
According to a road sign: 1T was
built by the vestry of Truro Parish in
1736. Augustine Washington, Georges
father, was member of the vestry
at the time. This was the first
church built on the soil of Loudoun
County"
A couple of minutes more and