Hidden Treasures GeoTrail
Welcome to our sixth GeoTrail ( and its NOT a gadget trail : ) )– “Hidden Treasures,” sponsored by the Martinsburg-Berkeley County Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB) and coordinated by WVTim. We invite you to visit Berkeley County, WV, for your first time or welcome back again. This year Berkeley County is celebrating its 250th anniversary. Berkeley County was established in 1772 in the state of Virginia. To help in the celebration, we are launching our Hidden Treasures GeoTrail! This trail will allow you to travel throughout the county and visit our hidden treasures while learning more about where we call home. Enjoy the back roads that follow the same paths that Native Americans traveled for hunting; see the areas where locals fought the Tories during the Revolutionary War, or it was brother against brother during the American Civil War. Experience what makes Berkeley County, WV, rich in history and culture.
How to earn the Hidden Treasures Geocoin: Find 16 of 18 caches that start with - Hidden Treasures. Return in person the completed passport card with the correct code words to the CVB. After verification you will be asked to complete a short survey and they will award the first 250 family units a trackable geocoin. A pic of the 250th Berkeley County Hidden Treasures Geocoin is in the pictures on this web page. Coins will not be mailed out. Please refer to the passport for complete validation instructions. We request that all family units, having more than one Geocaching.com caching account, accept one (1) coin for the trail. This enables us to spread the most smiles to those who visit.
Passports are only available at the WV Welcome Centers on I81 (both N & S bound) and at the The Martinsburg-Berkeley County Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB) which is located at 126 East Race Street, Martinsburg, WV 25401. Their phone number is (304-264-8801). Open 7 days a week; 9 am – 4 pm Monday - Sunday. Please arrive in enough time prior to closing. For more information on visiting Martinsburg and surrounding areas, including special geocacher/CVB hotel rates, visit or call the Martinsburg Visitor's Center.
This is a DAYLIGHT ONLY CACHE
Location : This was the home of General Adam Stephen, the Founder of Martinsburg, the First Sheriff of Berkeley County, a Statesman, Soldier, and Surgeon. This home is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Stephen was born in Scotland around the year 1718. He received a degree in surgery around 1746. Coming to America in 1748, General Stephen he set up a doctor's practice in Fredericksburg, Virginia. He accepted a military post on the Virginia frontier in 1754 at the beginning of the French and Indian War and was present with General Braddock and Colonel Washington at the opening of hostilities. In 1770, he first acquired land along the Tuscarora Creek in present-day Berkeley County, where he later sold lots to develop the town of Martinsburg.
General Adam Stephen House is a fine example of late colonial stone architecture. Adam Stephen acquired the land on which the house is situated in 1770 as part of a 255-acre tract. In 1773, he purchased an adjacent parcel of 563 acres with the thought of dividing the land into lots and selling them to establish a town. Stephen operated two mills, a distillery, and an armory along the Tuscarora Creek in what was to become the town of Martinsburg in 1778. A date stone over the front door shows the presumed completion date of 1789.
The house is built over a tunnel system that the Tri-State Grotto Association is excavating. Studies are still being conducted as to why the tunnels are there and where they go.
Geocache : Coords will lead you to the historic marker where you will solve for the WEST coords to the final where you will find a small HQ plastic Lok-n-lock.
Adam Stephen was good friends with George Washington and was with him at Fort Necessity in ABCD (year). Use number for B and D to find the WEST coords to the final - N 39 27.293 W 077 57.6DB
Another one of Berkeley Counties Hidden Treasures
