Maryland officials and special guests gathered Tuesday for a preview celebration of Wetipquin Creek State Park, marking the acquisition of a 445-acre property that will hold the distinction of being Wicomico County’s very first state park.
The Maryland Park Service chose the park’s name from the creek that winds through the property before flowing into the Nanticoke River. The park is currently in its planning phase and is intended to preserve and promote appreciation for the natural character of the Delmarva Peninsula.
At the heart of the property stands Long Hill, a historically and architecturally notable house that traces its origins to the middle of the 18th century. The structure was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.
Maryland DNR Secretary Josh Kurtz spoke to the broader meaning of the acquisition. “Places like Wetipquin Creek State Park remind us that conservation is about more than protecting land. It is about protecting memory, culture, and opportunity for future generations,” he said. “This bucolic and historic site will conserve and foster an appreciation of the natural resources and history of Maryland’s lower Eastern Shore.”
Once the park opens its doors, visitors can expect a range of educational and interpretive offerings, including guided tours and programs covering the Long Hill plantation house, the experiences of enslaved people who lived and worked there, the history of Indigenous communities in the area, and everyday life on the Eastern Shore during the 18th and 19th centuries.
Maryland Park Service Director Ranger Angela Crenshaw emphasized the park’s mission. “Maryland State Parks are managed to reflect the natural and historic character of the communities they represent for the enjoyment of our residents and visitors,” she said. “That’s what we will provide here at Wetipquin Creek State Park.”
When the park officially opens, every county in Maryland will have at least one state park within its borders.
The state received the green light to purchase the property in 2024 and finalized the $3.3 million deal earlier this year. The previous owner, Donald Graham, attended Tuesday’s event and addressed the crowd. Long Hill’s historical importance is closely tied to the Dashiell family, several of whom played significant roles in colonial Maryland’s affairs. Graham, who is a descendant of the Dashiells, purchased the land because of its personal and historical value to him. He and his family carefully maintained the home’s historic elements and worked to protect the property’s environmental significance, including partnering with DNR’s Maryland Environmental Trust to establish a conservation easement back in 2016.
Like many large Maryland farms of the colonial period and the early republic, Long Hill relied heavily on the labor of enslaved African Americans. Descendants of those enslaved individuals were present at Tuesday’s dedication. The park’s programming and signage will be designed to honestly tell their stories and acknowledge the full history of American slavery. Dr. Bryant Mitchell of the University of Maryland Eastern Shore and Emmett Dashiell, a descendant of people enslaved at Long Hill, both spoke on behalf of the Wetipquin community.
The park will also serve as a place to educate the public about the Indigenous peoples who called this land home. DNR welcomed representatives from the Pocomoke Indian Nation and the Nause-Waiwash Band of Indians to Tuesday’s event. The Nause-Waiwash Band traces its lineage to two Nanticoke villages that had contact with English explorer John Smith in the 1600s and continues to maintain ties to these lands.
Chichi Nyagah-Nash, deputy chief of staff to Gov. Wes Moore, reflected on what the park represents. “Places like Wetipquin Creek State Park help us honor those that came before us and see more clearly who we are and where we have come from,” she said. “They remind us that the story of Maryland, and the story of America, is only complete when we tell the truth about the people who built this nation, sustained its communities, cared for its landscapes, and expanded our understanding of freedom and belonging. Wetipquin Creek State Park does this and today we’re making a promise to carry this legacy forward.”
The Maryland Park Service has been actively expanding public access to land across the state, with several new properties being dedicated this year as the country marks its 250th anniversary of independence. Earlier in 2026, the Park Service accepted a donation of two acres — including a historic African-American cemetery tied to the Revolutionary War-era Catoctin Furnace — and incorporated it into Cunningham Falls State Park. The state also celebrated the dedication of Freedman’s State Park in Montgomery County, a 1,000-acre property once owned and farmed by a formerly enslaved family who self-emancipated and whose descendants went on to shape Maryland’s Civil Rights Movement.
