Four More Civil War Battlefields in Virginia Under Our Belts (Fredericksburg/Chancellorsville/The Wilderness/Spotsylvania Court House

While staying at Pocahantas State Park in Chesterfield, Virginia, we toured the sites of 4 more Civil War battles, starting with Fredericksburg. Here is my cotton-brained account of events:

 

The Union’s line of attack was to destroy the Southern economy even if unable to destroy the Army of the Confederate States of America. Hence, on December 11, 1862, the Union, under General Burnside (Lincoln’s replacement for General George McClellan), began to bombard the town of Fredericksburg, strategically located halfway between the Union (Washington, D.C.) and Confederate (Richmond, Virginia) capitals. Buildings were destroyed and burned, and Union pillaging ensued. But, thanks to General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson, the Confederates were able to hold the line at Prospect Hill. And the Union’s plan for a diversion at Sunken Road and Marye’s Heights turned into a 7-hour blood bath for the Union. On December 15, the Union retreated, and the Confederates celebrated a victory by reoccupying Fredericksburg.

 

Prospect Hill.

The Innis house is a testament to the Battle of Fredericksburg.  When you get up close, you can still see bullet holes that penetrated its exterior.

The Sunken Road.

This is the only original portion of the wall along the Sunken Road.
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The wall of this family cemetery that dates back to the late 1700s provided shelter for injured Confederate soldiers on Marye's Heights.

View of Innis House from Marye's Heights.

Confederate Richard Kirkland from South Carolina was known as "The Angel of Marye's Heights" for the compassion he exhibited to his enemy.  He provided water to injured Confederate AND Union soldiers.

We visited Chatham in Stafford Heights, a 250-year-old plantation home which served as Union headquarters and a field hospital during the Battle of Fredericksburg. More than 100 slaves toiled here, whether by farming the land, cooking, cleaning, or grooming horses.

 

The grounds of Chatham overlook the Rappahannock River and offer a wonderful view of Fredericksburg. 

The grounds also contain a replica of a pontoon bridge used by Union forces to cross the Rappahannock River to Fredericksburg.
                                                                      

While in the area, we did a walking tour of the city, admiring some of its historic structures. Fredericksburg’s Town Hall building from 1816 to 1982 now houses the Fredericksburg Area Museum (FAM), an interesting, diversified exhibit hall which contains the auction block where slaves were sold to the highest bidder. It also showcased Gladys West. Gladys is a Black woman who broke both racial and gender barriers during the turbulent times of racism and segregation to earn a Master of Mathematics degree and work for the Naval Surface Warfare Center (one of only 4 Black employees). She has a long litany of work accomplishments during her rich lifetime of 94 years, including her work with algorithms and applications that are used in our contemporary global positioning systems (GPS). What an inspiration! I also learned about Sylvania, an innovative company that manufactured cellophane.  Established in Fredericksburg in 1930, Sylvania  created 500 jobs during the Great Depression. At its peak in 1960, Sylvania employed 2,500 people. Unfortunately, it closed its doors in 1978. 

Most of these Fredericksburg structures pre-date the Civil War.

The slave auction block--a stark reminder of the dark and inhumane times of slavery. 

The Sylvania Company of Fredericksburg was the maker of an innovative product known as cellophane.

The Museum had an extensive collection of Civil War rifles, too.

Couldn't resist perusing this specialty shop within Fredericksburg.  It featured my fellow rodentia!  From houses to campers, these mice live a life of luxury--just like me, the Rambling RV Rat!

We viewed historic homes on Caroline Street.  Then we strolled along the greenways of the Washington Street Historic District, viewing the statues/monuments and lovely homes, several of which date back to the 1890s. This quaint residential area once represented the fields of Kenmore Plantation, the 1752 estate of Colonel Fielding Lewis and his wife, Betty, sister of George Washington. The gravesite of Mary Washington, beloved mother to George, is also nearby. We visited both the Confederate Cemetery and the National Cemetery, paying our respects to all who sacrificed their lives for their convictions.

A Caroline Street antebellum gem, built circa 1855 in Greek Revival style.

Several of these Washington Street homes are from the 1890s.

A beautiful 1906 Victorian home on Washington Street.

What remains of Kenmore Plantation, one-time estate of the sister and brother-in-law of George Washington .

Gravesite of Mary Washington, beloved mother of George.

Horace Lacy, the owner of Chatham Plantation, was instrumental in raising funds for this gate/wall for the Confederate Cemetery.

Confederate soldier graves, many of their identities unknown.

Fredericksburg National Cemetery.

We went on to learn about the Battle of Chancellorsville, which occurred April 27-May 6, 1863. Chancellorsville was not a town, but instead the plantation of the Chancellor family. Union General Joseph Hooker planned to squeeze the Confederates, advancing from both the North and South, and establishing a strong defensive line. But the Confederates, under General Stonewall Jackson, found a weak link, and obliterated Hooker’s right flank during a surprise attack on May 2. The Confederates continued to pound the Union with cannon fire at Hazel Grove, and some of the fiercest infantry fighting and cannon fire took place at Fairview. The Battle of Chancellorsville was a huge victory for General Lee and the Confederates—but it came at a tremendous cost. One-third of Lee’s army were killed or wounded. More importantly, he lost his right-hand man. You see, Stonewall Jackson was hit by friendly fire. We drove along the route the ambulance took to transport Jackson to the hospital where his arm was amputated. (Mom admonished Dad—he was driving so fast along this winding 14-mile road, you would think he was the one transporting Jackson!). Sadly, Jackson died 7 days later from pneumonia.

The foundations of the buildings at the plantation of the Chancellor Family.

Hard to believe that this lush field of Chancellor Plantation...

 

...was once the scene of so much carnage.

This monument marks the location where Stonewall Jackson was wounded by friendly fire.

The hospital where Stonewall Jackson's arm was amputated...

...and where he died from pneumonia 1 week later.

Next up was the Battle of the Wilderness on May 5-6, 1864. President Lincoln’s obsession to stomp this war quickly and reunite the country resulted in him changing commanders frequently. Hence, he put Ulysses Grant in charge of all Union forces. The Battle of the Wilderness was the first direct match between Grant and Confederate General Lee.

 

Though battle sites included Saunders Field, Chewning Farm, and Tapp Farm, to name a few, most of the fighting took place in dense forests. With smoke from artillery fire, it was difficult to discern the enemy. Although the Union had twice as many troops as the Confederates (120,000 vs 60,000 respectively), it could not claim victory. Tactically, the Battle of the Wilderness was considered a draw. But Lee suffered a loss of key personnel in this battle with the injury of his second-in-command, General James Longstreet.

Dense forests like this one were the scene...

...of most of the fighting during the Battle of the Wilderness.

Confederate General James Longstreet was injured on nearby Plank Road.

I learned that Ellwood Manor was owned by the Lacy family (who also owned Chatham). Ellwood Manor served as Union Headquarters during this battle. Though caught in the crossfires of the Battle of the Wilderness, Ellwood Manor is the only original home still standing on the battlefield.   

With the Battle of the Wilderness concluding without a victory for the Union, General Grant moved to Spotsylvania Court House to get between Confederate troops and Richmond, the Capital of the Confederate States of America. But General Lee, anticipating Grant’s plan, arrived minutes earlier, and began attacking Union troops at Laurel Hill on May 8, 1864. The Union made two attempts to charge and break Confederate lines on Laurel Hill, but each time it was a failure, resulting in 5,000 Union casualties, including the mortal wounding of Union General John Sedgwick by a sharpshooter’s bullet.

 

Fighting for Confederate earthworks known as the Bloody Angle took place on May 12, 1864. Close range fighting continued for 20 hours in the rain, creating a combined casualty count of 17,000. While the Union fought to win, the Confederates fought to survive—and survive they did.  On May 21, 1864, recognizing the battle as a stalemate, Grant left Spotsylvania Court House, setting his sights on Richmond.

 

Monument commemorating the location where Union General Sedgwick perished during the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House. 

These earthworks became known as the Bloody Angle.

Wow, my head is spinning from all I learned about these battles! But I am thrilled to report that I earned 4 more Junior Ranger badges and even a set of patches!  Time to get a Junior Ranger vest (in addition to my hat) to display all my achievements!

 

I earned badges AND patches for these battles!

Well, I'll sign off now. Talk to you again soon!

Visiting Richmond and Petersburg National Battlefields (Virginia)

We left Brunswick Family Campground in Maryland at 9:30 a.m. thinking we would miss some traffic around the 495 Beltway.  Sadly, we were mistaken, and it took an hour longer than anticipated to reach our next destination: Pocahontas State Park in Chesterfield, Virginia.

Pocahontas State Park is a fantastic facility!  Built by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), it was operated originally by the National Park Service as Prince William Forest Park before it was transferred to the State of Virginia.  A pull-through site with water/electric hookups and easy access to a dump station cost us $44/night, and that included entry to the day-use swimming pool.  There is a laundry facility, playground for children, Nature Center, and tons of trails for hiking and biking.  Pocahontas State Park was the perfect place to celebrate the start of our 13^th year of full-time RVing and to facilitate our visits to Richmond and Petersburg National Battlefield Parks.

Our site was walking distance to the laundry room.

These specimens are stuffed like I am!

There is a CCC Museum on site, but it is only open on weekends.  Rats!  I would have liked to visit.

This dragonfly was enjoying Pocahontas State Park, too!

Please remember, yours truly is a bit cotton-brained and in no way a Civil War expert.  Nor do I want to cause you to nod off while reading this blog.  Therefore, I am offering an abridged account of these Civil War battles.

Richmond was the scene of the Seven Days’ Battle of 1862.  It represented several attacks against Union General George McClellan by Confederate General Robert E. Lee (who had replaced Joseph Johnston as Confederate Army Commander when Johnston was wounded a few weeks earlier at the Battle of Seven Pines).  Lee’s aggressiveness was successful in pushing Federal troops away from Richmond and saving the Confederacy.

Richmond came into play again as part of Union General Ulysses Grant’s 1864 Overland Campaign.  Fighting began at Totopotomoy Creek on May 29, 1864, near Rural Plains, the home of the Shelton Family.  The family took refuge in the basement as the battle transpired.  But the Battle of Totopotomoy Creek offered no conclusive victor.  So, Grant moved his Union troops to Cold Harbor (named for a local tavern), the last location with access to Richmond.  He hoped to drive the Confederates into the Chickahominy River.  However, the Confederates had built nearly 7 miles of entrenchments, successfully blocking Grant’s path to Richmond.  The Union suffered severe casualties (more than 6,000), most of which occurred within the first hour of fighting on June 3, 1864.  Grant became frustrated with his failure to take Richmond during this 2-week battle, and shortly thereafter, he left and headed to Petersburg.

Built in 1723, Rural Plains remained in the Shelton family for 275 years before the building and 125 of their 1,000 acres of land were entrusted to the National Park Service.  The wedding of Sarah Shelton to Revolutionary War patriot and orator Patrick Henry took place here in 1754.

A replica of typical slave quarters stands on the property of Rural Plains.  What a contrast to the spacious home of the Sheltons.

Tobacco was a major crop on plantations during the Civil War.

  

We spent 2 days driving along the 80-miles of roads within the Park to visit all the battle locations and hike the many trails.   Interestingly, the Confederate entrenchments/fortifications were so well constructed, it proved too difficult to tear them down or bring properties back to their original states.  Hence, we have so many fine examples to view.

Hiking to view some of the entrenchments/fortifications...

...along the Cold Harbor Battlefield.

Another fine example of entrenchments/fortifications.

A chimney is the only reminder of the home that once stood on this property in 1864.

We visited several historic structures, too, like the Garthright House, which served as a hospital, first for the Union, then for the Confederates.  At the time of the Civil War, some sections of the home were already 100 years old!

The right portion of the Garthright home pre-dated the Civil War by 100 years!

 

We also visited the site of Chimborazo, the largest Confederate field hospital in continuous operation from October 1861 through April 1865.  At its peak, it contained more than 100 buildings (including a bakery, stable, well, even a bath house).  It served more than 75,000 troops, 80% of which recovered and were released.  Interestingly, sickness killed twice as many soldiers as enemy bullets. 

 

The site of Chimborazo, now a city park, sits on a bluff above the James River.

Speaking of bullets, I learned that soldiers did not have to bite any during amputations.  Instead, they were heavily drugged with alcohol (stimulant), morphine (narcotic), and ether/chloroform (anesthetic).  Yes, I would say with that combo, they were comfortably numb during the 5-minute procedure to amputate an extremity.

 

But the highlight of our Richmond tour was visiting Hollywood Cemetery.  Located along the James River, this cemetery is the resting place for many Virginia elites, including Presidents James Monroe and John Tyler, Confederate President Jefferson Davis, and Fitzhugh Lee, nephew of Robert E. Lee and one-time Virginia governor.  I admired the unique grave markers/monuments/statues throughout the Cemetery.   It is also where area Confederates are buried under a 90-foot granite pyramid inscribed with the Latin phrase that translates to, “They stood for God and Country.”  Erected in 1869, the engineer who designed the monument for the Confederate States of America is buried right below the inscription.  Furthermore, many Confederate soldiers who perished at Gettysburg were reinterred here.

 

Hollywood Cemetery Chapel. 

Gravesite of President James Monroe.

 

Headstone on the grave of President John Tyler.

Burial site of Confederate President Jefferson Davis.

Brothers and Confederate Officers John and William Pegram were both killed in action at Petersburg in 1865. 

I captured a sun beam shining down on this grave.

A statue of the family dog stands outside the grave of this young girl.

This statue of a grieving wife atop the gravesite of her husband moved me to tears.

Gravesites overlooking the James River are expensive real estate.

A 90-foot granite pyramid is surrounded by the graves of Confederate soldiers, including those whose identities are unkown.

Men of all economic, religious, and educational backgrounds served together for  their common cause.

We spent a full day at Petersburg National Battlefield.  Union General Grant believed (and Confederate General Lee was fully aware) that if Petersburg fell, so would Richmond, putting an end to the War and the Confederacy. With 4 railroads and 2 roads, Petersburg was a major supply hub.  So, the Union began a nearly 10-month assault and siege on Petersburg, from June 1864 to April 1865.  Petersburg represented the longest battle of the Civil War, with 70,000 casualties (though most were from infection and disease).

 

"The Dictator" could launch 200+ pound shells for a distance of 2.5 miles.

I wondered how far "The Dictator" could launch me!

This photo was taken during the Civil War...

...and this is what you see today.

There were lots of sites with varying outcomes where fighting occurred in Petersburg, so I will just give you some highlights of what I, your humble stuffed Rambling RV Rat, considered the most interesting.

 

The Battle of the Crater on July 30, 1864, comes in at #1.  It was a bold plan by the Union to build a 500-foot tunnel underneath a Confederate stronghold and fill it with 8,000 pounds of gunpowder.  The detonation created a huge crater and caused great losses.  Ironically, the Union experienced more casualties than did the Confederates, leading Grant to frustration and feelings of failure.

 

The tunnel from which the Union detonated 8,000 pounds of gunpowder.

The result of the detonation was this huge crater and great losses.  

While we are on the topic of explosions, the Confederates pulled off one of their own on August 9, 1864, on a wharf at City Point (where Union General Grant had set up headquarters), destroying $2 million of Union supplies.  Tit for tat, the Union impeded Confederate supplies just weeks later at the Battle of Weldon Railroad.

It was on the grounds of Appomattox Plantation in City Point...

...that Grant set up his headquarters in a rustic cabin.

A view of the confluence of the James and Appomattox Rivers, not far from the site of the wharf explosion.

It was in September 1864 that General Grant directed some Union troops back to Richmond for battle while fighting simultaneously in Petersburg.   The Union gained some ground, but the Confederates still held both cities. 

 

It was a harsh winter for the Confederates.  There was constant trench warfare.  And General Grant’s ability to disrupt some Confederate supply lines created a lack of food.

 

We stumbled upon the site of the Battle of Hatcher’s Run, which occurred February 5-7, 1865.  (This site is not maintained by the National Park Service but instead preserved by the American Battlefield Trust.)  The Union attempted for the 7^th time to capture Confederate supply lines.  But the outnumbered Confederate forces were able to defend their lines.  Confederate Brigadier General John Pegram was killed in action here.

 

General Lee’s last offensive at Petersburg is an early morning attack on the Union’s Fort Steadman on March 25, 1865.   But it is not a success, and he loses 2,000 of his dwindling forces.  

The remains of Fort Steadman.

On April 1, 1865, The Confederates, under the leadership of General George Pickett (known for his ill-fated charge at Gettysburg), are overtaken at Five Forks intersection.  This put Southside Railroad, the Confederates’ only remaining supply line in Petersburg, in jeopardy.  It was here that 23-year-old Colonel William Pegram (brother of John Pegram who perished at Hatcher’s Run 2 months earlier), was mortally wounded just 5 miles from his ancestral home and after fighting in nearly every major battle of the Civil War with the Army of Northern Virginia.

The end is near for the Confederates.  Lee sends word to Confederate President Jefferson Davis that Richmond should evacuate.  On April 3, 1865, both Richmond and Petersburg are captured by the Union.

 

We didn’t do extensive touring of the City of Richmond, having visited there previously on a motorcycle trip.  But we took a quick stroll around the city of Petersburg.  Suffice to say, Petersburg’s economic importance since the Civil War has dwindled significantly.  Hopefully, the 2022 partnership established between the City and the State of Virginia will assist with much needed revitalization.

We did, however, visit Poplar Grove National Cemetery, where Union veterans from the Petersburg Campaign (and a few from wars thereafter through the Korean War) are interred.  Of the 6,188 bodies buried here, the identities of only 2,139 are known.

 

I expanded my Civil War battlefield knowledge and achieved 2 more Junior Ranger badges.  Sadly, the more I learn about the American Civil War, the more I pray we will never see one again.  The shattered families, destruction of property, and, most importantly, the sacrifice of human life is simply heart wrenching.

My gal pal, Mademoiselle Rochelle, is so proud of my Junior Ranger accomplishments!

Well, time for me to sign off.  Talk to you again soon!