Harpers Ferry National Historical Park Harpers Ferry National Historical Park is located at the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers in and around Harpers Ferry , West Virginia . The park includes land in Jefferson County , West Virginia ; Washington County , Maryland and Loudoun County , Virginia . The park is managed by the National Park Service , an agency of the U . S . Department of the Interior . Originally designated as a National Monument in 1944 , the park was declared a National Historical Park by the U . S . Congress in 1963 . The park includes the historic town of Harpers Ferry , notable as a center of 19th century industry and as the scene of John Brown ' s abolitionist uprising . Consisting of almost , the landmarks the site on which Thomas Jefferson once said , " The passage of the Potomac through the Blue Ridge is perhaps one of the most stupendous scenes in Nature " after visiting the area in 1783 . Due to a mixture of historical events and ample recreational opportunities , all within 50 miles ( 80 km ) of Washington , D . C . , the park was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 15 , 1966 . Early history . Native American history in the region dates back to at least 8 , 000 years ago . The Tuscarora Indians were the last native peoples known to inhabit the area in large numbers , essentially vanishing due to disease and conflict with European settlers in the early 18th century . One of these European immigrants , Robert Harper , obtained a patent for the land from the Virginia legislature in 1751 . Note that prior to 1863 , West Virginia was still a part of Virginia . The town was originally known as Shenandoah Falls at Mr . Harper ' s Ferry ( 1763 ) due to the ferry business Robert Harper managed and operated . Today , the original house built by Robert Harper is the oldest remaining structure in the lower part of the park . Though it is believed that George Washington visited the area earlier , his trip to the rivers ' confluence in 1785 , searching for a waterway to ship goods westward , is his earliest mention of the area . Later , Washington began the construction of the federal Harpers Ferry Armory on the site , utilizing waterpower from the rivers for manufacturing purposes . Meriwether Lewis , under government contract , procured most of the weaponry and associated hardware that would be needed for the Lewis and Clark Expedition at the armory in Harpers Ferry . Blacksmiths also built a collapsible iron boat frame for the expedition . Between the years 1820 to 1840 , John H . Hall worked to perfect the manufacturing of interchangeable parts at the armory . Utilizing precision molds and jigs , this was one of the birthplaces of precision manufacturing so that armaments and related mechanical equipment could be standardized and parts would be interchangeable . Subsequently , the development of the modern bullet to replace the round lead slug was achieved by James H . Burton and this improvement was adopted by the U . S . Army in 1855 . Employing at times up to 400 workers , the armory produced over half a million musket s and rifle s between 1801 and 1860 . John Brown ' s Raid and the American Civil War . Abolitionist John Brown led an armed group in the capture of the armory in 1859 . Brown had hoped he would be able to arm the slaves and lead them against U . S . forces in a rebellion to overthrow slavery . After his capture in the armory by a group of Marines ( led by U . S . Army Colonel Robert E . Lee ) , Brown was hanged , predicting in his last words that civil war was looming on the horizon , a prediction that came true less than two years later . The most important building remaining from John Brown ' s raid is the firehouse , now called John Brown ' s Fort where he resisted the Marines . The American Civil War ( 1861 – 1865 ) found Harpers Ferry right on the boundary between the Union and Confederate forces . The strategic position along this border and the valuable manufacturing base was a coveted strategic goal for both sides , but particularly the South due to its lack of manufacturing centers . Consequently , the town exchanged hands no less than eight times during the course of the war . Union forces abandoned the town immediately after the state of Virginia seceded from the Union , burning the armory and seizing 15 , 000 rifles . Colonel Thomas J . Jackson , who would later become known as " Stonewall " , secured the region for the Confederates a week later and shipped most of the manufacturing implements south . Jackson spent the next two months preparing his troops and building fortifications , but was ordered to withdraw south and east to assist P . G . T . Beauregard at the First Battle of Bull Run . Union troops returned in force , occupying the town and began to rebuild parts of the armory . Stonewall Jackson , now a major general , returned in September 1862 under orders from Robert E . Lee to retake the arsenal and then to join Lee ' s army north in Maryland . Jackson ' s assault on the Federal forces there , during the Battle of Harpers Ferry led to the capitulation of 12 , 500 Union troops , which was the largest number of Union prisoners taken at one time during the war . The town exchanged hands several more times over the next two years . Storer College . Storer College was built in Harpers Ferry as one of the first integrated schools in the U . S . Frederick Douglass served as a trustee of the college , and delivered a memorable oration on the subject of John Brown there in 1881 . Subsequent rulings known as Jim Crow Laws led other African American leaders such as Dr . W . E . B . Du Bois to hold the second Niagara Movement ( an early form of the NAACP ) conference at the school in 1906 to discuss ways to peacefully combat legalized discrimination and segregation . After the end of school segregation in 1954 , Storer College closed the following year . What remains of the Storer College campus is now administered by the National Park Service , as part of Harpers Ferry National Historical Park , Harpers Ferry Center , and the Stephen T . Mather Training Center . The park today . Several historical museums now occupy restored 19th century buildings in the Lower Town Historic District of Harpers Ferry . Nearly half a million people visit the park each year . ( In comparison , 15 million people visit Washington , DC , each year . ) North of the park and across the Potomac from Harpers Ferry is the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park . The canal , which operated from 1828 to 1924 , provided a vital waterway link with areas up and downstream prior to and during the early years after the arrival of the railroad . Today , the canal towpath and park , which provide access to the Maryland Heights section of the Harpers Ferry N . H . P . , can be accessed by foot from Harpers Ferry via a footbridge constructed by the National Park Service alongside tracks on the railroad bridge over the Potomac , or via car by traveling east from Harpers Ferry on U . S . Highway 340 to access points near Sandy Hook , Maryland . Aside from the extensive historical interests of the park , recreational opportunities include fishing , boating , and whitewater rafting as well as hiking , with the Appalachian Trail passing right through the park . The park adjoins the Harpers Ferry Historic District , as well as two other National Register of Historic Places locations : St . Peter ' s Roman Catholic Church and the B & O Railroad Potomac River Crossing . Lower town sites . The Lower Town points of interest are clustered where the Shenandoah River meets the Potomac River , and run along Shenandoah Street , Potomac Street and High Street .