Events
Commemoration Events
Throughout 2022, we are hosting and highlighting an assortment of fun, family-friendly events in celebration of the unique history of Berkeley County! Check back for updates!
*Events and dates are subject to change*
Discover Berkeley History Exhibit
December 31, 2021-December 30, 2022
UPDATE: Don’t miss out on the Community History Presentations featuring local historians on the fourth Saturday of the month at 2 p.m. in the Martinsburg Public Library at the History Exhibit!
- June 25 – Gary Gimbel
- August 27 – Michael Noll
- September 24 – Jeff Hollis
- October 22 – Elaine Mauck
Artifact exhibit displays change every two months throughout 2022!
Travel through time with a series of exhibits illustrating our county’s rich history – from the times of Morgan Morgan and Adam Stephen to the arrival of the B&O Railroad, clash of the Civil War and flourishing booms of agriculture, orchards and textile industry.
Location: Martinsburg Public Library – 101 W. King Street, Martinsburg
Thank You! The Berkeley County 250th Commemoration Steering Committee would like to acknowledge and celebrate the invaluable collaboration, contributions and monetary support that made this exhibition possible.
250 Trees For 250 Years
Spring-Fall 2022
The planting of 250 commemorative trees for Berkeley County’s 250 years will be held at schools, parks, historic sites and other prominent places countywide. The tree plantings are being held in collaboration and support from Cacapon Institute and other community partners.
Join in the celebration and plant your own tree! We would love to see 2,500 trees planted, if not more!
Do you or your organization want to volunteer to plant a Commemorative tree?
Don’t forget to share a selfie with your newly planted sapling on Facebook, instagram or Twitter with the hashtag #BerkeleyWV250
Save the Date: Kick-off Ceremony, Adam Stephen House, 309 E. John Street on April 11, 2022.
Location: Countywide
Countywide Pride Community Cleanup
May 14-21, 2022
Join us for a sweeping, week-long, countywide cleanup and beautification project aimed at making all of Berkeley County shine for its 250th year!
Residents, businesses, community organizations and other groups are invited to join in this effort!
Free Collection Events: May 14, Paper & Tires; May 18-19, Bulky Goods; May 19, Document Shredding. and 32nd Take Pride in Your Community Spring Cleanup (City of Martinsburg residents only) on May 21!
Look for daily litter cleanup challenges on Facebook in collaboration with WV Litter Busters!
Celebrate and share the results of of your cleanup work with a post on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter with the hashtag #BerkeleyWV250.
Location: Countywide
County Seal Dedication Ceremony
May 19, 2022 – 9 a.m.
250th Commemoration of the first-ever meeting of the County Court of Berkeley County on May 19, 1772.
Plaques of the newly adopted county seal will be unveiled in the Berkeley County Council Chambers!
Location: Berkeley County Council Chambers, 400 West Stephen St., Suite 205, Martinsburg
Explore Berkeley Challenge
April 11-May 14, 2022
Remember: Complete as many challenges as you can to be entered in an awesome prize drawing on May 15, Berkeley County’s birthday!
Save the Date: Recognition Ceremony, May 15, 2022 @ Noon, Poor House Farm Park barn, Martinsburg.
You do not need to be present to win but it would be great to have you there!
Held in collaboration with James Rumsey Technical Institute, EBC is an active, engaging self-paced challenge focused on the historical and natural wonders of Berkeley County.
Location: Countywide
Founders Day Weekend Celebration
May 13-15, 2022 – 10 a.m. -8 p.m.
Celebrate the founding of Berkeley County with a series of fun, family-focused events! The exciting weekend includes the following:
- May 13 – Adam Stephen Memorial Ceremony, 600 block of South Queen Street (6:30 p.m.)
- May 13-14 – Haunted History tours of Martinsburg (8 p.m.)
- May 14 – Tuscarora Creek Duck Derby – (2 p.m.-6 p.m.)
- May 14-15 – Historic Downtown Martinsburg Site Tours – Adam Stephen House (Tunnels too!) & Triple Brick Museum; Sumner-Ramer Memorial School, Belle Boyd House and Discover Berkeley History Exhibit at Martinsburg Public Library (10 a.m. to 5 p.m.)
- Free Trolley bus service (hourly) between historic sites and free public parking lots (East Martin Street and Caperton Train Station (city parking lots) and College-West Stephen streets (county parking lots) so park your vehicle and leave the driving to EPTA!
- May 14-15 – Living historians, children’s games and yard sale at Adam Stephen House.
- May 15 – Color Me Berkeley 5K Color Run (10 a.m.)
- May 15 – Birthday Cake/Awards Ceremony at Poor House Farm Park’s historic barn (noon)
May 14, 2022 – 2-6 p.m.
Cheer on the ducks in the first-ever Tuscarora Creek Duck Derby at the Adam Stephen House as part of Founders Day Weekend activities!
Enter a duck for a chance to win custom duck trophies, $1,350 in cash prizes and bragging rights. You also may donate your winnings. Winners will be crowned in three divisions; Duckling Dash, Duck Duck Goose and Duck-A-Rora Classic!
Win or lose, those who entered a duck by April 14 will receive an official Commemoration T-shirt!
Must be present to win – rain or shine!
The Race begins at 2:50 p.m., of course!
Founders Day/Youth Volunteer Fair
Before the race, take a tour the historic Adam Stephen House (and tunnels!), browse the yard sale by the General Adam Stephen Memorial Association and check out the Youth Volunteer Fair (12-2 p.m.) by the OnTrack! Anti-Drug Coalition.
Location: 300 block of East John Street, Martinsburg — Adam Stephen House – Oak Street Park.
UPDATE: With more than 250 participants and favorable weather, we couldn’t have asked for a much better outcome! Let’s do it again in 2023!
May 15, 2022 – 10 a.m.
Join us for a colorful race at Poor House Farm Park, one of the gems of the public park system managed by the Martinsburg-Berkeley County Parks and Recreation Board!
Cash prizes awarded!
After burning some calories, stick around for birthday cake!
Proceeds for the event benefit parks and recreation in the City of Martinsburg and Berkeley County.
Location: Almshouse Road, west of Martinsburg
May 18-June 25, 2022
Works of art selected for the “Berkeley County, WV: Future, Past, Past” exhibition will be displayed in the Berkeley Art Works Gallery of the Berkeley Arts Council in Martinsburg.
This event is expected to consist of a visual art exhibit and literary, performance and music-based arts presentations. Work entered for the show should be produced within the last three years. Learn more here:
Awards will be given for Best of Show, Merit and Honorable Mention
Location: 116 North Queen Street, Martinsburg
Juneteenth-West Virginia Day Celebration
June 17-20, 2022
June 17
1 p.m. – “Harriet Tubman,” famed leader of the Underground Railroad network, will make a special appearance at the Martinsburg Public Library at 1 p.m. as part of the History Alive! program by the West Virginia Humanities Council.
June 18
9 a.m. – 12 p.m. – Freedom Between the Lines: Juneteenth-African American History in Eastern West Virginia: Academic panel to discuss Juneteenth and Black History from local and national perspectives. Refreshments to be served; guided afternoon site tours of Sumner-Ramer Memorial School at 515 W. Martin St.
Location: Blue Ridge Community & Technical College, 13650 Apple Harvest Drive, Martinsburg
10 a.m. – 4 p.m. – Ye Olde Berkeley Fest: Look for food trucks and reenactors and docents dressed in period clothing, including members of the Morgan’s Rifles and Daughters of the American Revolution!
Register for trolley-guided historic site tour in southern Berkeley County, where one of West Virginia’s earliest colonial settlers built his log cabin in the early 1700s. Docent-guided tour include Morgan’s restored homestead and gravesite and Morgan Chapel (Christ Episcopal Church and cemetery), the state’s oldest Episcopal congregation, which Morgan helped establish.
Civil War buff? View rarely seen Civil War soldiers’ graffiti inside the Chapel, and visit the Brigadier Gen. James Johnston Pettigrew monument along the way.
Location: 2913 Runnymeade Road, Bunker Hill
12 p.m. to 7 p.m. – Unity in The Community: In the spirit of inclusion and positivity, Main Street Martinsburg is throwing the area’s biggest street fest party! Events include: Annual MSM Father’s Day Car Show, live music from Christian Lopez and Earl Carter band, family fun activities, “food truck court” and beer garden by the performance stage.
1 p.m. to 5 p.m. – Market Place Celebration: Live performances by more than a dozen artists, an appearance by “Bessie Smith” and over 20 vendors at Martinsburg Shopping Plaza, including food from local restaurants and food trucks. Sign up here for special tours of Sumner-Ramer Memorial School! At Town Square in Martinsburg, Juneteenth festivities by People of Worth Inc. will feature historic food samplings, period games and live music!
1 p.m. & 6 p.m.
“Francis H. Pierpont,” the father of West Virginia, will make special appearances at the Musselman-South Berkeley Community Library (1 p.m.) and Martinsburg Public Library (6 p.m.)
Birthday cake for West Virginia’s 159th birthday will be served during Pierpont’s appearance at the Martinsburg Public Library!
The appearance by Pierpont, who acted as governor of the Restored Government of Virginia from 1861 until 1863, is made possible through the West Virginia Humanities Council History Alive! program.
Location: Countywide
Independence Celebration
Sunday, July 3, 2022
Celebrate all day long with live music, and enjoy a variety of fun, family-focused activities at the Eastern West Virginia Regional Airport, including the BerkeleyWV250 Independence Celebration Car Show and “Celebrity” Dunk Tank!
Live music performances are slated to include Davisson Brothers, Cazhmiere and more. Event schedule here!
The Independence Celebration will be capped off by a firework show!
Gates open at 2:50 p.m., of course!
Easterrn West Virginia Regional Airport, Pilot Way (off Novak Drive), south of Martinsburg.
