Duffields, West Virginia

Duffields, West Virginia
Good Shepherd Episcopal Church
Good Shepherd Episcopal Church
Duffields is located in West Virginia
Duffields
Duffields
Location within West Virginia
Duffields is located in the United States
Duffields
Duffields
Location within the United States
Coordinates: 39°21′45″N 77°49′39″W / 39.36250°N 77.82750°W / 39.36250; -77.82750
CountryUnited States
StateWest Virginia
CountyJefferson
Time zoneUTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC-4 (EDT)
GNIS feature ID1554333[1]

Duffields is an unincorporated community in Jefferson County, West Virginia, United States. The community has fourteen sites with historical significance.[2]

Duffields is served by Duffields station located on Flowing Springs Rd.[3] MARC operates the Brunswick Line to the station which provides commuter rail service to and from Washington, D.C. on weekdays.[4]

History

Highway marker for General William Darke

Early history

Duffields was settled by the Shawnee, Catawba, and Delaware people; thus, in 1707, it was said that when German immigrants tried to settle in the town in a fort, Catherine Byerle, (a member delivering water to the fort) was shot and killed. Byerle was buried near William Darke; who was a veteran from the French and Indian War. Darke had property east of Duffields; his house and his extent slave quarters.[2]

Duffields Depot

Duffields Depot in 2020

Built in Duffields in 1839, Duffields Depot is the second oldest surviving B&O depot, named for the pre-Civil War landowner who constructed it (Richard Duffield).[5]: 13  Due the B&O, the town developed into a rural commercial hub for farmers and their crops in the 1840s.[2] During the American Civil War, a Confederate infantry company (Company H of the 2nd Virginia Infantry) was recruited from the area. The depot became a strategic target, most famous for its capture by Confederate Capt. John S. Mosby on June 29, 1864, as well as a raid his Rangers made on a Union army pay train on October 14, 1864 (the "Greenback raid").[2][5]: 15 

The depot was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2007.[6][5]: 13–14  No longer in railroad use, it is expected to become a museum.[7]

References

  1. ↑ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Duffields, West Virginia
  2. 1 2 3 4 Spirit of Jefferson Farmer's Advocate. Vol. 13. Spirit of Jefferson Farmer's Advocate. December 23, 1999. p. 4.
  3. ↑ "MARC Station Information | Maryland Transit Administration". www.mta.maryland.gov. Retrieved May 17, 2026.
  4. ↑ "Brunswick Line MARC Train" (PDF). s3.amazonaws.com. July 14, 2025. Retrieved May 17, 2026.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  5. 1 2 3 Restiano, John; Gentry, Anthony F. (February 2007). "National Register of Historic Places Registration Form: Duffields Depot" (PDF). National Park Service.
  6. ↑ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. April 15, 2008.
  7. ↑ "Duffields Depot on the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad" (PDF). Jefferson County Historic Landmarks Commission. 2023.