Z. D. Ramsdell House

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National Historic Landmark -- -- Wayne County

Zopher D. Ramsdell was invited to Ceredo, West Virgina, by his friend Eli Thayer, who founded the town. Both men were abolistionists and are believed to have been involved in the Underground Railroad. Ramsdell opened a shoe and boot factory and, in 1857, built a Greek Revival home atop an Indian burial mound. It was the first brick house in Ceredo. When the Civil War began, Ramsdell was among the first to enlist in the Union Army, in which he served as a quartermaster and earned the rank of captain. Active in politics, he was asked by President Ulysses Grant to assist in rebuilding the postal service and was appointed as a special agent or inspector. The property remained in the Ramsdell family until 1977. In 1982, the Ceredo Historic Landmark Commission purchased the property, and the American Legion joined in its restoration and opening as a museum.

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