Wills Creek Museum

09/03/2025

The Wills Creek Museum will be open for Heritage Days, September 13-14. The entrance is at the rear of the building at 28 Washington Street.

08/08/2025

It is with a heavy heart that we share that a decision has been made to close the Wills Creek Museum, located at 28 Washington Street. Staffing changes combined with the time of great change in which we are living dictated a comprehensive review of how Emmanuel Parish can best share its history and heritage within the City of Cumberland. As donors and grantors have acknowledged, “it’s a difficult decision for you all,” and “we understand the pressure you face.”
Emmanuel and its campus have always been a central focus point in the City since the completion and consecration of the Church in 1851. At that time, it became commonly referred to as “the church on the hill.”
We continue to look forward as we focus on the best way to share our rich history. The Emmanuel Church family remains dedicated to our faith mission, our community, and will be continuing our stewardship of a uniquely historic campus. We will continue to strive to find the best path forward that enables us to continue that legacy, most recently highlighted in the August 2025 issue of “Best of Baltimore 50th Anniversary Edition.”
Our plan is to be open for Heritage Days, September 13-14.

06/19/2025

Ground penetrating radar study in process! Dr. Tim Horsley showing Al Feldstein the location of the old well in the Emmanuel parking lot, and some of his equipment.
Come Saturday at 10 to hear preliminary results - Emmanuel’s Upper Parish Hall, coffee and donuts too!

06/06/2025

The Wills Creek Museum will be open for Museum Week on June 14-15 and 21-22 from 12-4. In addition to the Avirett Gallery displays on the French and Indian War, we will feature “Creating Home”, an exhibit on the indigenous peoples of the region that’s is on loan from Darden Mills in Elkins WV. This exhibit is made possible by the generosity of the Appalachian Forest National Heritage Area.

06/03/2025

News Release – June 2, 2025
Exploratory Archaeology to take place at the site of Ft. Cumberland

It has just been confirmed that ground penetrating radar survey (GPR) is scheduled to take place June 17 – 21, 2025 (during Allegany Co. Museum Week) in open areas under lawns, parking lots, sidewalks, and roads on and near the Emmanuel Episcopal Church property. Such survey work will hopefully document subsurface archaeological features to Fort Cumberland, as well as subsequent use of this site.

GPR is a non-invasive geophysical technique used in exploratory archaeology to image subsurface features and artifacts (similar to that of an x-ray). It works by transmitting electromagnetic waves into the ground and analyzing the reflected signals to create a detailed image of the subsurface. This method allows archaeologists to locate buried structures and/or artifacts without damaging them, providing crucial information for planning excavations and understanding site history.

Dr. Tim Horsley will be conducting the GPR survey. He obtained his training in archaeological geophysics at the Department of Archaeological Sciences, University of Bradford, UK. Since moving to the United States, he has conducted more than 140 surveys throughout the Midwest, New England, and Mid-Atlantic States. One of his most impressive discoveries in Maryland was locating the original St. Mary’s Fort, built by the first Maryland colonists in 1634. The fort, erected in 1634, was just the fourth English colony in the country, after Jamestown (1607), Plymouth (1620), and Massachusetts Bay (1630).

The Maryland Historical Trust (MHT) is providing funding this project. Emmanuel Episcopal Church, Wills Creek Museum and the City of Cumberland Historic Preservation Department is coordinating with MHT on this project.

A talk about the work and findings on the Emmanuel campus will, be given by Dr. Tim Horsley on Saturday, June 21, 2025, from 10am – 12pm, in the social hall of the church.

If you have any questions please contact Ruth Davis – Rogers at (301)759-6431

09/05/2024

Visit Wills Creek Museum on September 14 & 15 during Heritage Days Festival for tours of historic Cumberland and programs on Indigenous food and art by Chef Lorinda John. Chef Lorinda gave a great presentation at our "Creating Home" exhibit opening earlier this summer. View our calendar of Indigenous Appalachia events at https://www.appalachianforestnha.org/indigenous-appalachia

06/04/2024

The Wills Creek Museum, in partnership with Emmanuel Episcopal Church, will be open noon to 4:00 on Saturday and Sunday - June 8 and 9 as well as June 15 and 16.
Come to the WCM to experience the Fort Cumberland/French and Indian exhibits, then accompany your docent to see three centuries of history at Emmanuel!

05/18/2024

Saturday and Sunday hours 12-4 during Museum Week.

04/24/2024

Announcing the Oral History Project -
Ruth Davis-Rogers, the Historic Preservation Planner for the City of Cumberland, is planning to collect memories of residents whose families have lived in the Cumberland area for a long time. To that end, there will be 8 - 10 oral history interviews at the Wills Creek Museum on Saturday, April 27, between 10:00 am and 2:00 pm. These interviews will be conducted by a professional videographer with experience in oral history interviewing.
These sessions will be conversational - the interviewer will ask questions to focus the session on the interviewee's experiences and memories from their life in Cumberland. This should be a fun and relaxed event - the interviewee is free not to answer questions, take a break, or end the interview. All participants will get a final digital copy of the interview once it has been edited.
If you are interested in participating or have suggestions about possible interviewees, please contact Ruth Davis-Rogers at the City of Cumberland at [email protected] or leave a message at 301-759-6431 to reserve a 30-45 minute recording session. You can also just show up at the event, but there are no guarantees that a session will be available.

04/24/2024

This weekend, April 26-28, marks the grand opening of the ground floor of the Wills Creek Museum. Saturday will be family day with family-friendly tours, crafts, and food provided by the Community Cafe.
Also on Saturday, two guided walking tours of Prospect Square and a portion of Washington Street will take place at 11:00 am and 1:00 pm. Tours will begin from the front of the Museum, located at 28 Washington Street, Cumberland. The tours will take approximately 45 minutes - we recommend a good pair of walking shoes! Free water will be provided.
These tours are sponsored and provided by the City of Cumberland Historic Preservation Commission.
Hope to see you there!!!

04/17/2024