Adam Stephen House
Adam Stephen built this impressive home of locally quarried limestone in 1774 on a hill overlooking Tuscarora Creek where a few years earlier he had acquired a tract of land. He also built a mill, distillery and armory. When Berkeley County was formed in 1772, Stephen managed to wrest the courthouse location away from Leetown to his site, which he would establish as the town of Martinsburg in 1778. He was the new county’s largest landowner and was appointed its first sheriff.
Stephen was born in Scotland. He was trained as a physician in Edinburg but functioned best as a soldier beginning with the Virginia militia. During the French and Indian War, he served as a colonel and second in command to George Washington. He was at Fort Necessity when Washington was forced to surrender. In 1761, he ran against his former commander for a seat in the Virginia House of Burgesses. Washington won the election by a wide margin.
During the Revolutionary War he was promoted to general for his part in the Battle of Trenton. In one of his most notable achievements, he forced the retreat of British General Dunmore from Norfolk, Virginia. Stephen was eventually court martialed for unbecoming of an officer-like behavior.
In 1788, Stephen along with Gen. William Darke, also of Berkeley County, voted for ratification of the United States Constitution. Stephen died in 1791 and is buried with family members at a small plot in the 600 block of South Queen Street. The site distinguished by a stone monument crowned with cannon balls.
In 1959, William Evers donated the house to the city of Martinsburg. The Adam Stephen Memorial Association was formed to restore and furnish the building. The structure is a fine example of late colonial stone architecture. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, it has been restored and furnished to the 1780-1820 period.
On the basement level there is an entrance to one of the many caves beneath Martinsburg. A second cave nearby is being explored. It is believed that the basement cave gave protection to inhabitants of the house in case of attack.
If you go: Located at 309 East John Street, Martinsburg, WV; For Hours of Operation, Tour Info and more: 304-267-4434 • www.travelwv.com
Adam Stephen Gravesite
Cannon ball-topped monument on small lot along 600 block of South Queen Street marks the burial site of Gen. Adam Stephen, the founder of Martinsburg and first sheriff of Berkeley County.
Stephen is buried with other family members, including his brother, Robert, at the monument, which is next to the Martinsburg South Middle School campus.
Erected by the Berkeley County Court through the efforts of the William Henshaw Chapter of Daughters of the American Revolution.
Stephen, who achieved the rank of major general under George Washington during the Revolutionary War, voted for ratification of the U.S. Constitution while a member of the Virginia Ratifying Convention.
Stephen died in 1791.
If you go: Located at 627 South Queen Street, Martinsburg; More information: 304-264-8801 • www.travelwv.com
