Franklin County residents know July is packed with a dynamic lineup of fairs, festivals, and celebrations with opportunities almost daily to attend one event or another. As usual, the month kicks off with the Franklin County Fair (July 5 to 12). This is the annual…

As the tiring Friday evening in May gradually withdrew from sunny skies to rays of artificial stadium lighting, enduring firework fanatics (mostly youngsters) anxiously awaited their favorite outfield attraction. But well before the bangs, booms, and pops of the…

As Washington County and the United States celebrate their semiquincentennial, the Washington County Museum of Fine Arts presents the 2026 Cumberland Valley Photographers Exhibition, a juried display featuring…

Rae Tucker has noticed a pattern whenever she’s out around Hagerstown in a Girls Inc. van. Strangers will run up to her in excitement. “I was a Girls Inc. girl!” they tell her. In many cases these girls are now the age of having…

How did the project originate? 

The National Mural Awards partnership originated through Jason Tetlak, the executive director for the National Mural Awards. He participated in 2025 Hagerfest Music & Art Festival as a…

The senior population of Hagerstown has grown by more than 20 percent during the last two decades, a shift that is placing new demands on the city’s social fabric. As this demographic continues to expand, there is an increasing need for a more…

At the peak of his artistic talents, American landscape painter Frederic Church was one of the most influential and popular painters in the United States. To celebrate his work and the 200th anniversary of his birth, the…

The Washington County Chamber of Commerce hosted its 27th Annual Business Awards event on February 25 at The Maryland Theatre. More than 460 community members and local businesses leaders were on hand to help honor this year’s…

I’m not going to lie to you and say the river doesn’t change. I’ve heard that. I’ve heard people say it all my life. I disagree. In my lifetime, I think the river will change probably just as much as I will, if not more. I might not see it easily with my own eye, but I know…

Malia Briggs may be graduating from Chambersburg Area Career Magnet School this month, but she leaves with much more than an impressive 4.0 grade-point average and an athletic scholarship to Tulane University in…

When Sarah Bowman found herself with free time after going through a divorce and having her daughter step back from her own intense sporting schedule, she thought she’d try pickleball one night a week for fun. She had seen an ad for…

Gayle Schreiber fought to the very end. “She didn’t want to leave us,” says her daughter Zoe Schreiber. “She didn’t want to leave her family.” Gayle, a Hagerstown resident who was once a potential Olympic swimmer, former Maryland State Police trooper and…

When it comes to the Washington County Ag Expo and Fair, it’s no secret that the event remains successful year after year thanks to community leaders and dedicated volunteers. It truly takes a village to pull off all the activities scheduled daily at the…

The Maryland Symphony Orchestra presented the first concert of the Maryland Symphony Youth Orchestra (MSYO) in February, marking a significant new chapter in the organization’s commitment to music education and…

Annette Gavin moved to the United States from the United Kingdom in 1994 to become an associate professor of equine studies at Wilson College in Philadelphia. During her tenure, she recognized a significant gap in equine care, and…

The second North American presentation examining how Nordic artists celebrated the concept of home, national identity, and personal expression is on view until May 17 at the Washington County Museum of Fine Arts. The exhibition, first shown at…

The need for large animal experts for a variety of occupations is thriving in Washington County. Decades ago, entrepreneurs saw a need in Western Maryland and established businesses with hopes of success. Not only have these businesses found…

Sierra Rowe fell in love with horses when she was just seven years old. At that young age began riding English and competing in hunter/jumper shows, but when she discovered the speed and thrill of Western riding, she became enamored with the…

For more than 200 years and now through nine generations, the Schnebly family has worked the land, milked cows, and operated Crown Stone Farm. So, it’s no surprise the historic farm was honored as the…

The opening of Oklahoma on April 11 at Washington County Playhouse Dinner Theater, marks a special milestone for owners Laura and Shawn Martin. The last time the Rodgers and Hammerstein classic graced the…