Droop Mountain Battlefield State Park

Last updated

Droop Mountain Battlefield State Park
Droop Mountain Battlefield State Park.jpg
Observation tower overlooking the Greenbrier River valley.
USA West Virginia location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location of Droop Mountain Battlefield State Park in West Virginia
Location Pocahontas, West Virginia, United States
Nearest town Hillsboro, West Virginia
Coordinates 38°06′45″N80°16′19″W / 38.11250°N 80.27194°W / 38.11250; -80.27194
Area287 acres (116 ha)
Elevation3,104 ft (946 m)
EstablishedJuly 4, 1928 [2]
Named for Battle of Droop Mountain
Governing body West Virginia Division of Natural Resources
Website wvstateparks.com/park/droop-mountain-battlefield-state-park/
Droop Mountain Battlefield
Nearest city Marlinton, West Virginia
Coordinates 38°6′36″N80°16′20″W / 38.11000°N 80.27222°W / 38.11000; -80.27222
NRHP reference No. 70000664
Added to NRHPJanuary 26, 1970 [3]

Droop Mountain Battlefield State Park is a state park located on Droop Mountain in Pocahontas County, West Virginia. The park was the site of the Battle of Droop Mountain, the last major battle of the American Civil War in the state taking place on November 6, 1863. John D. Sutton, a West Virginia private in the Union Army at the battle, became the leader in the movement to create the park when he served in the West Virginia House of Delegates. Dedicated on July 4, 1928, Droop Mountain Battlefield became the first state park in West Virginia. [4]

Contents

The battlefield was transformed into a historical, outdoor recreation area by the Civilian Conservation Corps during the Great Depression. Public reenactments of the battle have been conducted in October of some [ which? ] even-numbered years by the West Virginia Reenactors Association. [5] [ failed verification ]

The park was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1970. [3]

Droop Mountain Battlefield State Park is located about 25 miles (40 km) north of the Lewisburg exit of I-64 on U.S. Highway 219 and about 15 miles (24 km) south of Marlinton on US 219. The park is also near Beartown State Park and Watoga State Park.

Features

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pocahontas County, West Virginia</span> County in West Virginia, United States

Pocahontas County is a county located in the eastern part of the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 7,869. Its county seat is Marlinton. The county was established in 1821. It is named after the daughter of the Powhatan chief of the Native Americans in the United States who came from Jamestown, Virginia. She married an English settler, and their children became ancestors of many of the First Families of Virginia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Virginian Railway</span> Defunct American railroad

The Virginian Railway was a Class I railroad located in Virginia and West Virginia in the United States. The VGN was created to transport high quality "smokeless" bituminous coal from southern West Virginia to port at Hampton Roads.

The Battle of Kessler's Cross Lanes, also known as the Battle of Cross Lanes, took place on August 26, 1861 in Nicholas County, Virginia as part of the Western Virginia Campaign during the American Civil War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Carnifex Ferry</span> Battle of the American Civil War

The Battle of Carnifex Ferry took place on September 10, 1861 in Nicholas County, Virginia, as part of the Operations in Western Virginia Campaign during the American Civil War. The battle resulted in a Union strategic victory that contributed to the eventual Confederate withdrawal from western Virginia, which in turn led to the creation of the State of West Virginia two years later.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Camp Allegheny</span> Battle of the American Civil War

The Battle of Camp Allegheny, also known as the Battle of Allegheny Mountain, took place on December 13, 1861, in Pocahontas County, Virginia, about 3 miles from the mountainous border of Highland County, Virginia, as part of the Operations in Western Virginia Campaign during the American Civil War. The battle was a small brigade-level conflict, and while the Confederates technically won with a Union withdrawal, it was considered militarily indecisive. However, it had critical implications for the future border of Virginia and West Virginia, ensuring Highland County remained in Confederate hands and would not be involved in the formation of the future state of West Virginia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Greenbrier River</span> River in West Virginia, United States

The Greenbrier River is a tributary of the New River, 162 miles (261 km) long, in southeastern West Virginia, in the United States. Via the New, Kanawha and Ohio rivers, it is part of the watershed of the Mississippi River, draining an area of 1,656 square miles (4,290 km2). It is one of the longest rivers in West Virginia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cass Scenic Railroad State Park</span> State Park in Cass and Pocahontas counties, West Virginia

Cass Scenic Railroad State Park is a state park and heritage railroad located in Cass, Pocahontas County, West Virginia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beartown State Park</span> State Park in Greenbrier and Pocahontas counties, West Virginia

Beartown State Park is a 110-acre (45 ha) state park located on the eastern summit of Droop Mountain, 7 miles (11 km) southwest of Hillsboro, West Virginia, in northern Greenbrier County, West Virginia. The land was purchased in 1970 with funds from the Nature Conservancy and a donation from Mrs. Edwin G. Polan, in memory of her son, Ronald Keith Neal, a local soldier who was killed in the Vietnam War. Development of the park has been minimal in order to preserve the natural attractions of the area. Recreation in the park consists of hiking along improved trails and boardwalks. Markers explain the natural processes at work in the area. The name "Beartown State Park" was chosen because local residents claimed that many cave-like openings in the rocks made ideal winter dens for the native black bears, the state animal of West Virginia. Also because the many deep, narrow crevasses were formed in a regular criss-cross pattern which appear from above like the streets of a small town. Beartown is noted for its unusual rock formations, which consist of Droop, or Pottsville, Sandstone formed during the Pennsylvanian age. Massive boulders, overhanging cliffs and deep crevasses make up the beauty of the park. On the face of the cliffs are hundreds of eroded pits. These pits range from the size of a marble to others large enough to hold two grown men. It is not unusual to see ice and snow remaining in the deeper crevasses until midsummer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Blair Mountain</span> Violent early 20th century American labor dispute

The Battle of Blair Mountain was the largest labor uprising in United States history and, thus far, the largest armed uprising since the American Civil War. The conflict occurred in Logan County, West Virginia, as part of the Coal Wars, a series of early-20th-century labor disputes in Appalachia. Up to 100 people were killed, and many more arrested.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Greenbrier River Trail</span> Long-distance hiking trail in the United States

The Greenbrier River Trail (GRT), is a lineal state park comprising a 77.1-mile (124.1 km) rail trail between North Caldwell and Cass in eastern West Virginia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carnifex Ferry Battlefield State Park</span> State park in Nicholas County, West Virginia

Carnifex Ferry Battlefield State Park is an American Civil War battle site that commemorates the Battle of Carnifex Ferry. It is located on the rim of the Gauley River Canyon near Summersville, a town in Nicholas County, West Virginia. The 156-acre (0.63 km2) park features Patterson House Museum, three views of the Gauley River, hiking trails and picnic facilities. It is one of the oldest state parks in the United States. A Civil War re-enactment takes place on a weekend after Labor Day. As Carnifex Ferry State Park, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Watoga State Park</span> State park in Pocahontas County, West Virginia, USA

Watoga State Park is a state park located near Seebert in Pocahontas County, West Virginia. The largest of West Virginia's state parks, it covers slightly over 10,100 acres (41 km2). Nearby parks include the Greenbrier River Trail, which is adjacent to the park, Beartown State Park, and Droop Mountain Battlefield State Park. Also immediately adjacent to the park is the 9,482-acre Calvin Price State Forest. It is one of the darkest night skies of all of West Virginia State Parks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tu-Endie-Wei State Park</span> State park in Mason County, West Virginia

Tu-Endie-Wei State Park is located at the confluence of the Kanawha River and the Ohio River in downtown Point Pleasant, West Virginia. The park commemorates the Battle of Point Pleasant, fought between the settler militia of Virginia and the forces of Shawnee Chief Cornstalk on October 10, 1774. The militia victory by the settlers weakened the alliance between native forces and the British and freed up settlers from western Virginia to cross the Allegheny Mountains and join in the American Revolutionary War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Droop Mountain</span> Battle in the American Civil War

The Battle of Droop Mountain occurred in Pocahontas County, West Virginia, on November 6, 1863, during the American Civil War. A Union brigade commanded by Brigadier General William W. Averell defeated a smaller Confederate force commanded by Brigadier General John Echols and Colonel William L. "Mudwall" Jackson. Confederate forces were driven from their breastworks on Droop Mountain, losing weapons and equipment. They escaped southward through Lewisburg, West Virginia; hours before a second Union force commanded by Brigadier General Alfred N. Duffié occupied the town.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Little Beaver State Park</span> State Park in Raleigh County, West Virginia

Little Beaver State Park is state park in Raleigh County, West Virginia. It is located near Beckley, West Virginia, about 2 miles (3.2 km) south of I-64 at Grandview Road, exit 129A. The park sits on the shores of 18-acre (0.07 km²) Little Beaver Lake.

Droop Mountain is a small mountain in the Allegheny Mountains on the border of Greenbrier and Pocahontas counties in southeastern West Virginia. It was the scene of one of West Virginia's most important battles during the American Civil War—the Battle of Droop Mountain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Droop, West Virginia</span> Unincorporated community in West Virginia, United States

Droop is an unincorporated community in Pocahontas County, West Virginia, United States, in the Greenbrier River Valley.

The Buckskin Council is the local council of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) that serves Scouts in Kentucky, Ohio, Virginia and West Virginia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Commemoration of the American Civil War</span>

The commemoration of the American Civil War is based on the memories of the Civil War that Americans have shaped according to their political, social and cultural circumstances and needs, starting with the Gettysburg Address and the dedication of the Gettysburg cemetery in 1863. Confederates, both veterans and women, were especially active in forging the myth of the Lost Cause of the Confederacy.

References

  1. "Droop Mountain Battlefield State Park". Protected Planet. IUCN. Retrieved April 30, 2018.
  2. "Dedication of Droop Mountain Battlefield State Park". West Virginia Division of Culture and History. Archived from the original on July 5, 2008. Retrieved July 4, 2008.
  3. 1 2 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. April 15, 2008.
  4. Debra Patterson, ed. (April 1988). Where People and Nature Meet: A History of the West Virginia State Parks. Charleston, West Virginia: Pictorial Histories Publishing Company. p. 89. ISBN   0-933126-91-3.
  5. "West Virginia Reenactors Association". West Virginia Reenactors Association website. Retrieved January 30, 2021.

Further reading