Shhh… The Emmanuel Episcopal Church in Cumberland, Md., is known for its familiar steeple and beautiful architecture. But underneath all that beauty lies a secret from the past. Host Kimberli Rowley shares the story about the historical significance of the tunnels underneath the church. But remember, you didn’t hear it from her!
And the story is….
In the heart of Cumberland—the Queen City of the mountains—the Emmanuel Episcopal Church stands as a stone sentinel, its Gothic Revival spire piercing the mist of the Potomac valley. Within the context of our Allegany County research, this site represents a profound intersection of military grit and spiritual grace, where the physical strata of the colonial past literally support the sanctuary of the present.
The Strata: A Foundation of Conflict
Emmanuel Episcopal is built upon the earthworks of Fort Cumberland, the 18th-century military outpost that served as George Washington’s headquarters during the French and Indian War. The church’s native sandstone walls rise directly from the footprint of the fort’s original bastions. This geological and structural layering is a perfect example of the Appalachian “Deep Dive”—where the soil itself is saturated with the history of the frontier.
The tunnels beneath the church are actually the surviving earthworks and trenches of the fort, repurposed and preserved for over two centuries.
The Heritage: The Secret Path to Resilience
The church’s most enduring legacy is found in the darkness of these tunnels. As the “Queen City” served as a critical hub for transportation, it also became a pivotal junction on the Underground Railroad.
- The Tunnels of Freedom: Enslaved individuals seeking the North would follow the C&O Canal and the B&O Railroad toward Cumberland. Once they reached the church, they were sequestered in the subterranean passages—originally built for soldiers and munitions—before being moved through the Allegheny gaps toward the Pennsylvania line.
- Architectural Grace: Designed by John Notman and completed in 1851, the church’s architecture is “High Church” Gothic, meant to inspire awe and permanence. Yet, its most sacred work was done in the hidden, low-ceilinged earthen rooms below the sanctuary floor.
Cultural Continuity
For the Mountain Dreams community, Emmanuel Episcopal serves as a reminder that the “Queen City” was not just a place of industry and steam, but a sanctuary of conscience. The church maintains a collection of rare models of Fort Cumberland and provides tours of the tunnels, allowing visitors to step into the literal “Hollows” of our history.
In this space, the Grit of colonial warfare and the Grace of the abolitionist movement are inseparable, bound together by the same native stone that defines the Allegany ridges.
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