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Civil War buffs and residents hoping to hear about early settlers in the Gaithersburg and Germantown areas, mark your calendars.

Seneca Creek State Park rangers and naturalists launch a July history series at 4:30 p.m. today. At the Black Rock Mill, 16500 Black Rock Road in Germantown, residents will hear how prosperous grist and saw mills of the 18th and 19th centuries operated.

The following week, talks return to the Seneca Creek State Park Visitor Center, located at 11950 Clopper Road in Gaithersburg. At 4:30 p.m. July 8 and July 22, rangers will cover history of the Civil War and its effects on the area and its residents. Discussions will delve into local lore about a headless Confederate soldier, whose ghost is rumored to haunt Clopper Road and Confederate Private William D. Scott, whose grave is outside the historic chapel of St. Rose of Lima Catholic Church.

Scott, a member of a 6-man advance cavalry sent by Gen. Jubal Early following the July 9 Battle of the Monocacy in Frederick, stopped by the home of Joseph A. Taney asking for supper on July 10, according to church historian Gene Domalski, who wrote "The History of St. Rose Church" and "The Catholic Community." Union forces began firing at the house and Scott, a member of the CSA 14th Va. Cavalry mounted his horse in Taney's barn. He escaped, but union forces shot him in the side. Legend has it that Scott made his way to "the Woodlands," the home of Gaithersburg's Clopper and Hutton families, and asked if he could die on the porch.

The two families — and 19th century daily life — are the focus of talks at 4:30 p.m. on July 12, 19 and 26 at the center. Admission is free.

For more information, contact Katie Wong at 301-924-2127 or e-mail SCSPNAturalist@gmail.com.