Over Easter weekend, my father and both my kids accompanied me to the Sharpless family (my father’s side) cemetery on Mt Zion, off of Backbone Mountain. My grandfather passed away about a year ago, and this was originally the stomping grounds of the Sharpless family in Garrett County. If you haven’t seen Mt Zion, the views are amazing, there’s a lot of history in this area and it’s a beautiful area of the county. It’s also the road to the boat launch (on the Maryland side) of Jennings Randolph Lake. There is a great deal of coal here, and the strip mining is very evident. I took some photos of the coal mining, as well.
When looking around the grounds and cemetery, you will find the original tombstone of Michael Paugh, who served under General George Washington in the Revolutionary War. His family placed a plaque here, and it goes on to say:
1777 – Michael Paugh fought in the American Revolutionary War under General George Washington, spending the historical winter at Valley Forge Pennsylvania under George Washington;s command. After the war, Michael received allotments of land and settled in what is today known as Mt Zion, Garrett County, Maryland.
I’m not sure where the Sharpless family figures in to this story or why the graveyard is here, but I’ll be exploring that part of the family tree in the near future. In the meantime, here are some photos of the beautiful area of Mt Zion:
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