Glen Burnie

Glen Burnie, a historic Shenandoah Valley home, was the homestead of Col. James Wood, who founded Winchester on part of his land in 1744. Wood’s son Robert began the present house in 1794, and the estate was home to the Wood-Glass families from the 1730s to the 1990s. During the Civil War, Winchester changed hands many times as Union and Confederate forces occupied, fought over, and won or lost possession of the town. Both sides occupied Glen Burnie several times because it stood near the North Western Turnpike, present-day U.S. Rte. 50, between Winchester and Romney, now West Virginia, and had good water from springs there. In June 1861, Southern-minded Marylanders encamped there and formed the 1st Maryland Infantry, C.S.A. They later fought the 1st Maryland Infantry, U.S.A. at the Battle of Front Royal on May 23rd, 1862. Blue and gray forces swept across the hills and fields of Glen Burnie during all three major battles for Winchester in 1862, 1863, and 1864. Combat damage and occupation reduced the farm’s agricultural productivity and value as livestock, farm buildings, fences, and timber were taken or destroyed. After the war, family members went west to begin new lives, homes, and fortunes, and eventually left Glen Burnie as a legacy to the Winchester community.

Winchester, Virginia · United States