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CENTRAL VIRGINIA |
Civil War and Revolution
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There are many discoveries for travelers in Central Virginia - the "silent witness" to the surrender of General Lee at Appomattox Court House to the fearsome gas masks and padded dog-training suites at the Quarter Master Museum at Fort Lee. So climb into your car and prepare to drive yourself back to history and new adventures. Before you do, click on these for all the background information you'll need from Jane Ockershausen's Virginia One-Day Trip Book. Appomattox Court House National Historical Park Quartermaster Museum at Fort Lee Red Hill, The Patrick Henry National Memorial Sayler’s Creek Battlefield Historical State Park
Appomattox Court House National Historical Park Momentous moments happened here In 1861 Wilmer McLean, merchant and sugar importer, lived with his family along a stream near a sleepy Virginia community. The town was Manassas Junction, the stream was Bull Run, and the first battle of the War Between the States was fought there. General Beauregard used McLean's home as his headquarters. Town folks say that a Yankee cannonball went through the McLean's outside kitchen during the general’s stay spoiling his dinner. A year later the armies of the North and South clashed once more on the hills and fields around McLean's home. He decided Manassas wasn't safe and moved his family to Appomattox Court House, an obscure county seat in the central Piedmont region. It is one of the ironies of history that the war which began in Wilmer McLean's front yard ended in his parlor! There are 27 restored or reconstructed buildings at Appomattox Court House National Historical Park. Your first stop should be the visitor center where a 15-minute chronological slide program will acquaint you with the dramatic events from April 1 through 12, 1865, leading up to the final surrender. A second program, Honor Answers Honor, uses first person accounts to recapture the emotions felt by those on both sides of the surrender field. After this slide program you'll walk the quiet country lanes to the area where the stacking of arms ceremony took place. Imagine the emotions of the battle-weary Confederates as they marched between the Union soldiers and discovered that their former enemies were presenting arms. When you tour the Clover Hill Tavern you'll see some of the paroles printed for the surrendering army. The presses had to turn out 28,231 passes for the Confederates who laid down their arms. At the reconstructed McLean House you'll learn that only a few of the furnishings are original. Not only did the surrender take place in Wilmer McLean's parlor, but Federal officers took some of his furniture when they left. Some purchased pieces and others, it is said, stole them; all wanted souvenirs of Lee's surrender to Grant. A small doll, believed to be in the parlor at the time of the surrender, is still there - a "silent witness." The stacking of arms ceremony was ironically on the fourth anniversary of its opening salvo. The surrender of the infantry of Lee's Army of Northern Virginia took place on April 12, 1865, exactly four years to the day after Fort Sumter was fired on by Confederate batteries. Appomattox Court House National Historical Park is open daily from 9:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. except Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's, and the birthdays of George Washington and Martin Luther King. There is a visitor admission fee for those 17 and older. Informative programs are given during the summer months. Directions: From I-95 in the Richmond area, take Route 360 west to Jetersville, then Route 307 to Route 460. Go west on Route 460 to Appomattox. Take Route 24 east for three miles to Appomattox Court House National Historical Park on the right.
Quartermaster Museum at Fort Lee Head for the QM, PDQ! One of the world's most complete military uniform collections can be seen at the Quartermaster Museum at Fort Lee. The uniforms date from the 1700s to the present and include boots, helmets and all kinds of special gear such as fearsome looking gas masks and padded dog-training suits. Many well-known military leaders are remembered. The museum has General George S. Patton's 1944 jeep with its "steamboat trombones" or air horns and General Dwight D. Eisenhower's 1940 mess jacket and his "pinks and greens" dress uniform. Amid the many presidential banners used by Taft, Wilson, Harding, Truman and both Roosevelts is the original 50-star flag presented to President Eisenhower. The museum reveals the diverse functions of the Army Quartermaster Corps which range from providing housing, food, clothing and transportation to arranging funerals. You'll learn how much the rations of the U.S. soldier, now considered the best in the world, have changed from the fire cakes and water that were standard fare at Valley Forge. The Corps also quarters and equips animals used by the military. There's a delightful old recruitment poster that tells potential soldiers, "Join the Cavalry and Have a Courageous Friend....The Horse is Man's Noblest Companion." The era of the horse soldier is illustrated by a display on the Ninth and Tenth Cavalry, whose Black ranks were known as the "Buffalo Soldiers." You'll also see a reconstructed saddler's workshop and a blacksmith shop. In the military funeral exhibit, look for the elaborate black caisson used in the funeral of General George Pickett in 1875 and Jefferson Davis on May 31, 1893. There is also the architect's original model for the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington Cemetery. A somber black drum used in the funeral cortege of John F. Kennedy causes many a visitor to stop and stand solemnly before it. There is so much to see that visitors with special interests can spend hours. The Hall of Heraldry alone has thousands of examples of crests, patches, plaques and flags. Special exhibits and selections from the stored collection make this is an interesting spot to revisit. The QM, as it is called, is open Tuesday through Friday from 10:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. and on weekends from 11:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. It is closed on Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day. There is no admission charge. Directions: From I-95 in the Petersburg area, take the Fort Lee Exit (signs also indicate directions to the QM Museum). The QM is located on Route 36, east between Petersburg and Hopewell. The museum is just inside the main gate of Fort Lee. You do not need a special pass; Fort Lee is an “open post.”
Red Hill, The Patrick Henry National Memorial Country Sage No one visits Red Hill by accident; greater numbers should visit by design. This is the last home and burial place of Patrick Henry, the "voice of the Revolution." Henry argued against the ratification of a United States Constitution containing no Bill of Rights. Some attribute his lack of prominence to his Revolutionary role of speaker, not scribe. He left few papers or letters behind. This neglect lends irony to his gravestone inscription, "His Fame His Best Epitaph," since Henry's fame has diminished. Although school children recognize his famous quote, "Give me liberty, or give me death," they know nothing about the man. This is quite an eclipse for a man once heralded as the "first national hero," the "idol of the country," and "the noble patriot." A visit to Patrick Henry's last home, Red Hill, near Brookneal, introduces you to this fascinating Founding Father. Patrick Henry was the first elected governor of Virginia, which declared independence from England on June 29, 1776. He served five one-year terms in all and was so popular among Virginians that he could have served more. In 1794 he retired from a lucrative law practice at age 57 and moved to Red Hill. This was the favorite of the four Virginia plantations he owned at the time of his death. He called it "one of the garden spots of Virginia," no doubt because of its sweeping view of the Staunton River Valley, which remains little changed today. Today's visitor is greeted at the visitors center where a 15-minute video on Patrick Henry and Red Hill is shown. The center's museum room houses the largest existing collection of Henry artifacts and memorabilia. Perhaps the most famous of these is Peter Rothermel's painting "Patrick Henry before the Virginia House of Burgesses." This impressive canvas, measuring 8 ft. by 7 ft., depicts Henry's Stamp Act speech during which he defied fellow members of the colonial legislature who criticized his opposition to taxation without representation by declaring, "If this be treason make the most of it." You'll explore the Red Hill buildings and grounds with the help of a self-guided walking tour brochure. The house, a reconstruction of the original which burned in 1919, has three downstairs rooms---the master bedroom, children's bedroom and family room. The last two of the Henry's 17 children were born in the master bedroom. Several pieces of furniture throughout the house are Henry originals. The Henry family relaxed and entertained in the parlor. Two of their daughters were married there. It was in this room that Patrick Henry died on June 6, 1799. A Chippendale corner chair is identical to the one he was resting in when he died. Leaving the house, the visitor can explore its dependencies, which include a kitchen, privy, smokehouse, servants' quarters, carriage house and stables. Although Henry had finished riding the circuit of county courthouses by the time he retired to Red Hill. He did continue to practice law in the office building you'll see on the estate. Henry also taught law here to several of his sons and grandsons. In the Henry house's front yard stands the national champion Osage orange tree, certified as such by the National Forestry Association. This multi-trunked giant with its gnarled roots and striated bark rises to a height of 60 feet and has a crown spread of 85 feet. It is an impressive sight. You can take the garden walk to the family graveyard. It contains the graves of Patrick Henry, his wife Dorothea, and several members of his family, including his youngest son John in whose family Red Hill remained until it was purchased by the Patrick Henry Memorial Foundation in 1944. In 1986 it became a national memorial, although it is still operated and maintained by the foundation. Red Hill is open daily 9:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. except from November through February when it closes at 4:00 P.M. It is closed on Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day. Admission is charged. Directions: From I-95 in the Richmond area pick-up Route 360 southwest to the Keysville . Then take Route 15 until it intersects with Route 40. Take Route 40 to within two miles of Brookneal and follow well-marked signs to Red Hill.
Sayler’s Creek Battlefield Historical State Park Botched and Bloody Battle Seventy-two hours before General Lee surrendered at Appomattox, April 1865, he lost over half his army in the war’s last major Virginia battle at Sayler’s Creek. Total Confederate losses were estimated at 8,000 with 6,000 taken prisoner---the largest number of men ever to surrender in a single action on this continent. Five generals and numerous high-ranking officers were captured. As the stragglers were rejoining the main force, Lee looked around and exclaimed, “My God! Has the army dissolved?” What caused such a debacle? A combination of factors bedeviled Lee’s ragged and starving army as they fled Petersburg and Richmond. Heavy spring rains caused frequent rerouting and mudsoaked roads were often impassable for the wagons, resulting in loss of communication. The army was heading for Amelia Court House where they hoped to be reprovisioned. When supplies did not arrive, a day was wasted on a fruitless search for food. This gave Union forces time to catch up. On April 6, a third of Lee’s army under General Anderson and General Ewell bogged down---literally---in the swampy bottom land of Sayler’s Creek and were overtaken by Federal troops under General Wright. Though the Richmond clerks, sailors and artillerymen who made up the Confederate force repulsed the first attack, they came under the artillery batteries and were stopped. The entire force surrendered. The wagon column under General Gordon that the Confederates were trying to salvage had already crossed the creek but here, too, they were stopped by a numerically superior Union force commanded by General George Armstrong Custer. While General Gordon and a few men escaped, the wagons and almost all of Lee’s dwindling supplies were lost along with three-fourths of the men. The defeat of the Confederate army at Sayler’s Creek was just three days before Lee’s surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia at Appomattox Court House (see selection). Today there is an auto route at Sayler’s Creek Battlefield Historical State Park. Overlooking the battlefield is Hillsman House (not open to the public) which was used as a field hospital by both armies. Interpretive signs and audio programs reveal details of this climactic encounter. This state park is open Memorial Day through Labor Day at no charge. Directions: From I-95 just to the south of Richmond, take Route 360 west. Just past Jetersville, turn right on Route 307. Make another right on Route 617 and head north. The battlefield auto route markers are at intervals along Route 617.
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