$8,000 Grant Advances Preservation Work at Historic Heater House

The Cedar Creek Battlefield Foundation has received an $8,000 grant from the Frederick County Historic Resources Advisory Board to continue preservation and stabilization work at the historic Heater House, a structure that has stood for more than 250 years near the center of the Cedar Creek Battlefield.

Wendy Legge May, Frederick County communications director and interim EDA director, joins Cedar Creek Battlefield Foundation President Charles Harbaugh IV and PJ Stanley, owner of Renovation Concepts, at the historic Heater House, where Phase Two preservation and stabilization work is getting underway.

The funding will support Phase Two of the preservation project, with work beginning this week.

PJ Stanley, owner of Renovation Concepts, is returning to the property after completing Phase One work that stabilized critical portions of the house and helped stop further deterioration.

The new grant is also being supplemented by private donations from Frank and Nikki Klebieko and a $1,000 contribution from D&M Container.

Foundation officials said the additional support will help maintain momentum on a preservation effort focused on protecting one of the battlefield’s oldest surviving structures.

The Heater House began as a log dwelling in the 1760s and was later expanded. Its early history is tied to Jost Hite, James Hoge, and the extended Hite family, connecting the property to the earliest European settlement of Frederick County.

The house later became part of the landscape of the Battle of Cedar Creek on Oct. 19, 1864, when Confederate artillery was positioned around the property and fired on Union forces advancing across the farm.

Phase Two work will include structural reinforcement, exterior improvements, and historically sensitive construction intended to protect original materials and prevent water intrusion.

Those repairs are considered important to keeping the building stable and secure while preparing it for future restoration and historical interpretation.

“As Frederick County commemorates the 250th anniversary of our nation’s founding, this investment, combined with generous private support, helps preserve a place that tells the story of the Valley’s earliest settlers, its agricultural heritage, and its pivotal role in the Civil War,” said Charles Harbaugh IV, mayor of Middletown and president of the Cedar Creek Battlefield Foundation.

“We are grateful for the Frederick County Historic Resources Advisory Board, Frank and Nikki Klebieko, and D&M Container for standing with us as we begin Phase Two repairs this week.”

The Cedar Creek Battlefield Foundation has continued working to preserve historic resources associated with the battlefield and the surrounding Shenandoah Valley landscape.

The Heater House project is part of that broader effort, with the long-term goal of stabilizing the structure and preserving it for future generations.