Mason and Dixon Byway

Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon spent nearly four years helping to settle a land dispute by surveying newly established boundaries between Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Delaware. Though the 1763 Mason-Dixon Line is sometimes cited as the dividing line between slavery and freedom during the Civil War, the true border between Union and Confederate states during the conflict was the Potomac River. For people enslaved in Maryland (which was loyal to the Union yet remained a slave state), however, an escape across the Mason-Dixon Line into Pennsylvania, which had abolished slavery, brought the promise of freedom.

Begin your journey in Westminster, where the Carroll County Farm Museum offers opportunities to experience mid-19th-century rural life. From June through October you can “get down on the farm” throughout Carroll County at participating farms and enjoy farm fresh produce and agricultural events with the Carroll County Agritourism Passport . Westminster’s Carroll Arts Center has events, exhibits and programming throughout the year, including the popular springtime PEEPshow , which is held at the TownMall of Westminster. The Bear Branch Nature Center & Hashawha Environmental Center hosts family-friendly nature programs, festivals, and outdoor activities including fishing on Lake Hashawha.

Just to the north of Westminster is the Union Mills Homestead and Grist Mill . During the Civil War, both Union and Confederate soldiers were welcomed here on their way to the Battle of Gettysburg. Union Mills offers tours and hosts regular seasonal events.

Continue through Melrose to Manchester and Alesia and pick up MD 25 to drive along a portion of the Falls Road byway until veering east toward Prettyboy Reservoir , a popular area for hiking, picnicking and taking in the scenery.

The same can be said for the Torrey C. Brown Rail Trail , a former railroad bed that is now a 20-mile-long, 10-foot wide, stone-dust path running from Hunt Valley to the Mason-Dixon Line. Bike rentals are available through a local vendor. If you’d prefer to lace up your boots and go for a hike, the nearby Hereford area of the Gunpowder State Park has excellent trails.

Seven ponds and more than 80 bunkers provide a challenge for golfers at Greystone , a public, 18-hole venue in White Hall that has been listed among Golfweek’s best municipal courses.