Washington Grove Historic District

The first designation of the Washington Grove Historic District occurred in 1980, an effort undertaken by a group of Town volunteers. In 2017, the Historic Preservation Commission decided that the original Historic District listing, now nearly 40 years old, needed to be updated and its boundaries expanded. A consulting firm hired by the Town, Robinson and Associates, worked closely with the HPC to prepare a new nomination document. By the fall of 2020, the nomination had been enthusiastically approved and endorsed by the staff of the Maryland Historical Trust and by the National Park Service. The Maryland Historical Trust noted that Washington Grove’s updating of its Historic District was “outstanding” and would become “a model for other Districts to follow.” The official NRHP listing of the Washington Grove Historic District’s updating was announced by the National Park Service on October 2, 2020.

Washington Grove’s new 241-acre Historic District exceeds the original 1980 Historic District to encompass nearly everything lying within the Town’s municipal limits along with some resources adjoining the edges of the Town’s boundaries. The Historic District’s period of significance also has been expanded. The original nomination focused upon what most of us think of as “The Camp Meeting Era,” i.e. dating from Washington Grove’s founding in 1873 to the Town’s incorporation as an independent municipality in 1937. Because the threshold for listing on the NRHP is fifty years, the Historic District’s period of significance has now been redefined to be from 1873 to 1969. Where resources seen as contributing to the District’s historic significance were originally confined to the Town’s distinctive architecture, additional contributing resources now include many elements of our historic landscape, including parks, woods, the Conservation Meadow and views and view sheds. Another important addition is the Town’s unique streetscape. This includes not only its alternating streets (roads) and walkways (avenues) but also the entire radial layout of the Circle and its immediate environs. Three water features are also included—Maple Lake, Maple Spring and Whetstone Spring—along with “small-scale features,” defined as historic components of the Town’s infrastructure.

Readers who wish to learn more about the Updated and Expanded 2020 Washington Grove Historic District pdf are encouraged to consult this actual nomination document. Readers will enjoy the many photographs and historic maps as well as the comprehensive and thoroughly researched history of the Town from its founding to the present. A Table of Contents has been provided to help guide the reader through this very detailed document.