Rediscovering America_ Exploring the Small Towns of Virginia & Maryland - Bill Burnham [123]
Attractions
The National Shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton consists of the original buildings of the Sisters of Charity community, a visitor center, Mortuary Chapel and cemetery. The Basilica was built in 1965 to venerate the remains of Ann Seton, the first American-born person to be canonized (in 1975). The visitor center has a museum, religious gift shop, and shows a 12-minute video on the half hour. There’s a self-guided walking tour of the 1750 Stone House where Seton established the religious community in 1809, the White House (1810), which served as the nation’s first parochial school, and the cemetery where hundreds of sisters are buried. Hours are 10 am to 4:30 pm Tuesday-Sunday. Closed the last two weeks in January (333 S. Seton Avenue, tel. 301-447-6606, www.setonshrine.org)
Mount Saint Mary’s College is the oldest private independent Catholic college in the country, established in 1808, and the second oldest seminary. The co-ed institution has about 1,400 undergraduates. The National Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes behind the college is a replica of the famed Grotto of Lourdes in France where a peasant girl saw visions of the Virgin Mary. A million pilgrims visit the shrine, the oldest of its kind in America, each year. (tel. 301-447-6122, www.msmary.edu)
The National Emergency Training Center is where 15,000 emergency personnel receive training each year. It’s the site for the National Fire Academy and Emergency Management Institute, and the Fallen Firefighters’ Memorial, dedicated in 1981. Each year the names of professional and volunteer firefighters who have lost their lives in service are added to the national memorial. (South Seton Avenue, tel. 301-447-6771, www.usfa.fema.gov/nfa)
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania is only 10 miles north of Emmitsburg, and many Union troops passed through Emmitsburg on their way there. In June 1863, 90,000 Union soldiers camped on the grounds of St. Joseph’s and the Sisters of Charity feared a battle would occur right here. They prayed and promised to erect a statue of Notre Dame Des Victoires if it did not. Their prayers were answered when the troops moved on to Gettysburg. But that became the bloodiest battle of all, albeit the turning point of the war. The sisters built their statue, which can be seen still today, near the cemetery at the Seton Shrine. To visit, contact the Gettysburg Convention and Visitors Bureau, tel. 800-337-5015, www.gettysburg.com.
Dining
The Carriage House Inn serves fine food and spirits in an 1837 building listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It’s been a warehouse, bus depot and broom factory, and first became a restaurant in 1943. President Bill Clinton and wife Hillary have dined there. The fare is seafood, steaks, veal, chicken and some vegetarian. (200 S. Seton Avenue, tel. 301-447-2366, www.carriagehouseinn.info)
The owners of One More Tavern may have feared there were too many taverns in town when they opened, but apparently there’s always room for one more. In addition to cocktails, they serve sandwiches, subs, ribeye steaks, pizzas and typical munchies. (135 Chesapeake Avenue, tel. 301-447-6749)
Main Street Grill is located in the former Emmitsburg grocery store, and specializes in steaks, seafood, pasta and prime rib (304 East Main Street, tel. 301-447-3116). Ott House Pub & Restaurant serves lunch and dinner in Center Square (tel. 301-447-2625), and the Palm’s Restaurant is a small, locally popular family restaurant serving Maryland crab chowder, soft-shell crabs, prime rib and ribeye steaks. (20 West Main St,. tel. 301-447-3689)
Lodging
Stonehurst Inn Bed & Breakfast was built in 1875 as a summer mansion in the Catoctin Mountains. Once owned by the first National Episcopal Bishop, there’s a meditation chapel in the woods, a fishing pond, solarium,