Welcome to Romney's 250th Celebration Park! Romney is the county seat of Hampshire County, West Virginia. Originally settled in 1725 by hunters and traders, Romney was known as Pearsall's Flats and was the site of the French and Indian War stockade Fort Pearsall. Romney is the oldest town in West Virginia, chartered December 23, 1762. Named for the Cinque Ports town of Romney, Kent, England by Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron, the town still bears place names and symbols from its colonial past such as its Marsham Street, named for Robert Marsham, 2nd Baron Romney. It is also home to the West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and Blind and the nation's First Confederate Memorial in Indian Mound Cemetery.
Celebration is located next to Romney’s Town Hall and is a venue whereby engraved bricks not only are part of the construction, but they also are a means of remembering and honoring people, businesses and much more. The park is comprised of a three section garden. A History Plaza, a Serenity Garden, and a Veterans Plaza, which has developed to what is in place today. Solid brick pavers lead the visitor from the front of the plaza through the three landscaped islands dividing all three plazas.
In the center section, the park committee buried a time capsule when the brick construction of that area was built. Inside the time capsule are photos, letters to and from New Romney, England, (the city's namesake), and officials congratulating the committee on the park, a local newspaper and many other artifacts.
Veterans Plaza is located at the rear of the park. A brick wall designed by artist Dennis Shoemaker of Romney features bronze seals representing the five branches of military service in the United States.
At the time of this cache…the park is open but still a work in progress. It is meant to evolve over the next years to come with more fixtures, gardens, and even a large water feature planned. Please…come visit, walk through and check out the various pavers, maybe sit and enjoy the nice weather…finally finishing your visit in the Veterans Plaza. Please pay respect to those that have served and continue to serve this great country to protect our freedoms.
This can be a high muggle area and is on city property but is open to the public. Also...if for some reason you DNF this cache...please let me know by either logging or sending a private message. That way I can get out and check the cache to make sure everything is ok. From time to time, caches around here are known to go missing. Thanks!
