Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park

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Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park
Sunken Road Restored 2004 Section in Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park.jpg
The stone wall along Sunken Road, in Fredericksburg
USA Virginia relief location map.svg
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Location Spotsylvania County and Fredericksburg, Virginia, United States
Nearest city Fredericksburg, Virginia
Coordinates 38°17′35″N77°28′09″W / 38.29306°N 77.46917°W / 38.29306; -77.46917
Area8,405 acres (34.01 km2) [1]
EstablishedFebruary 14, 1927 [2]
Visitors534,636(in 2005)
Governing body National Park Service
Website Fredericksburg & Spotsylvania National Military Park
Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania County Battlefields Memorial National Military Park
Area4,601.1 acres (1,862 ha)
NRHP reference No. 66000046 [3]
VLR No.111-0147
Significant dates
Added to NRHPOctober 15, 1966
Designated VLRJanuary 16, 1973 [4]

Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park is a unit of the National Park Service in Fredericksburg, Virginia, and elsewhere in Spotsylvania County, commemorating four major battles in the American Civil War: Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, The Wilderness, and Spotsylvania.

Contents

Battles

Failed attempt by General Ambrose Burnside to cross the Rappahannock and take the Confederate capital Richmond. Delayed arrival of the pontoons had given Robert E. Lee time to fortify the high ground, and the result was a one-sided massacre. Visitor center staffed by Park Service rangers.

A bold gamble by Robert E. Lee, dividing his forces and sending Stonewall Jackson on a flanking attack, which took the enemy totally by surprise, causing the Union commander General Joseph Hooker to lose his nerve and call retreat. Visitor center staffed by Park Service rangers.

Robert E. Lee's first battle against Grant, whose advantage in artillery could not be used in the dense forest. Casualties were high on both sides, and the battle is classed as a draw. Grant withdrew, but only in order to force another battle in more open country. Exhibit shelters, staffed on a seasonal basis.

Key crossroads which Grant hoped to occupy, to keep his army between Lee and the Confederate capital Richmond. Lee was able to take this position just ahead of Grant. Heavy rain had dampened the gunpowder, leading to intense hand-to-hand fighting. Exhibit shelters, staffed on a seasonal basis.

The park also preserves four historic buildings associated with the battles: Chatham Manor, Salem Church, Ellwood Manor, and the house where Stonewall Jackson died. The ruins of the Chancellor family mansion are included. Chatham Manor in Stafford County is open daily. All sites are free.

Park history

The park was established as Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania County Battlefields Memorial National Military Park on February 14, 1927, and transferred from the War Department August 10, 1933. The lengthy name remains its official designation—75 letters, the longest name of any unit in the national park system. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 15, 1966. The park includes 8374 acres (33.89 km2), of which 7369 acres (30 km2) are owned by the Federal government. Over 500,000 people visit the battlefield each year.

Cemetery

Mass grave headstone for 11 soldiers Fredericksburg National Cemetery Mass Grave Headstone 11 Persons.jpg
Mass grave headstone for 11 soldiers
Mass grave headstone for 4 soldiers Fredericksburg National Cemetery Mass Grave Headstone 4 Persons.jpg
Mass grave headstone for 4 soldiers

Fredericksburg National Cemetery was created by act of Congress, in July 1865 after reunification of the states, to honor the Federal soldiers who died in local battles or from disease. The cemetery was placed on Marye's Heights, a Confederate stronghold during the Battle of Fredericksburg. There are a total of 15,243 Civil War interments, of those, only 2,473 were identified. [5]

Graves of soldiers, known and unknown, are distinguished by their markers. Identified soldiers are buried in individual graves, marked by a rounded headstone inscribed with the soldier's name and state. Unknown soldiers were buried in mass graves, the headstones marking these plots contain two numbers. The first, upper, number identifies the plot while the second, lower, number identifies the number of soldiers buried in that plot. [5]

Approximately 100 20th-century soldiers are buried in the cemetery; in some cases, their spouses were buried next to them. The cemetery allowed new burials until 1945. [6] Willis Cemetery, a separate cemetery on Marye's Heights, was established to serve local needs and predates the Civil War. This cemetery is distinguished from the Civil War burials by its brick wall. The Willis home, which burned down before the outbreak of war, was separated by a gap in the ridge from the Marye's family home, Brompton. Previously known as Willis Hill, the name Marye's Heights was applied to the whole of the ridge as the battle was covered by the national press in 1863. [5]

Located near the 127th Pennsylvania Volunteer Monument, and throughout the cemetery, are plaques containing verses from Theodore O'Hara's 1847 poem "The Bivouac of the Dead". [5] O'Hara wrote the poem to commemorate American dead at the Battle of Buena Vista, fought during the Mexican–American War. [7] The first two octaves, and the first half of the eleventh octave are displayed in the cemetery:

The muffled drum's sad roll has beat
The soldier's last Tattoo;
No more on life's parade shall meet
That brave and fallen few.
On fame's eternal camping ground
Their silent tents to spread,
And glory guards, with solemn round
The bivouac of the dead.

No rumor of the foe's advance
Now swells upon the wind;
Nor troubled thought at midnight haunts
Of loved ones left behind;
No vision of the morrow's strife
The warrior's dreams alarms;
No braying horn or screaming fife
At dawn shall call to arms.

Rest on, embalmed and sainted dead,
Dear as the blood ye gave,
No impious footstep here shall tread

The herbage of your grave.

The following monuments and memorials are located in the Fredericksburg National Cemetery: [5]

Related Research Articles

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

Spotsylvania County is a county in the U.S. state of Virginia. As of the July 2021 estimate, the population was 145,300. Its county seat is Spotsylvania Courthouse.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fredericksburg, Virginia</span> Independent city in Virginia, United States

Fredericksburg is an independent city in Virginia, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 27,982. It is 48 miles (77 km) south of Washington, D.C., and 53 miles (85 km) north of Richmond. The Bureau of Economic Analysis of the United States Department of Commerce combines the city of Fredericksburg with neighboring Spotsylvania County for statistical purposes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Falmouth, Virginia</span> Census-designated place in Virginia, United States

Falmouth is a census-designated place (CDP) in Stafford County, Virginia, United States. Situated on the north bank of the Rappahannock River at the falls, the community is north of and opposite the city of Fredericksburg. Recognized by the U.S. Census Bureau as a census-designated place (CDP), Falmouth's population was 4,274 as of the 2010 census.

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

Chancellorsville is a historic site and unincorporated community in Spotsylvania County, Virginia, United States, about ten miles west of Fredericksburg. The name of the locale derives from the mid-19th century inn operated by the family of George Chancellor at the intersection of the Orange Turnpike and Orange Plank Road. The Battle of Chancellorsville occurred there during the American Civil War in May 1863, and the Battle of the Wilderness was fought nearby in May 1864. During the 1863 battle, Lt. Gen. Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson was wounded by friendly fire, dying eight days later on May 10, 1863, from pneumonia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Washington Birthplace National Monument</span> 550 acres in Virginia (US) managed by the National Park Service

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Germanna Community College</span> Community college with several campuses in Virginia, U.S.

The Second Battle of Fredericksburg, also known as the Second Battle of Marye's Heights, took place on May 3, 1863, in Fredericksburg, Virginia, as part of the Chancellorsville Campaign of the American Civil War.

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

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chatham Manor</span> Historic house in Virginia, United States

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Antietam National Battlefield</span> Historical area from the American Civil War

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U.S. Route 1 (US 1) is a major north–south U.S. Route that serves the East Coast of the United States. In the U.S. state of Virginia, US 1 runs north–south through South Hill, Petersburg, Richmond, Fredericksburg, and Alexandria on its way from North Carolina to the 14th Street bridges into the District of Columbia. It is completely paralleled by Interstate Highways in Virginia—Interstate 85 (I-85) south of Petersburg, I-95 north to Alexandria, and I-395 into the District of Columbia—and now serves mainly local traffic. At its north end, on the approach to the 14th Street bridges, US 1 is concurrent with I-395; the rest of US 1 is on surface roads.

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State Route 218 is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of Virginia. The state highway runs 30.00 miles (48.28 km) from U.S. Route 1 and US 17 Business in Falmouth east to SR 205 in Tetotum. SR 218 connects suburban communities in Stafford County east of Fredericksburg with rural areas in northern and eastern King George County.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kenmore (Fredericksburg, Virginia)</span> Historic house in Virginia, United States

Kenmore, also known as Kenmore Plantation, is a plantation house at 1201 Washington Avenue in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Built in the 1770s, it was the home of Fielding and Betty Washington Lewis and is the only surviving structure from the 1,300-acre (530 ha) Kenmore plantation.

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Aquia Church is a historic church and congregation at 2938 Richmond Highway in Stafford, Virginia, USA. It is an Episcopal congregation founded in 1711, that meets in an architecturally exceptional Georgian brick building that was built in the 1750s. The building was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1991 for its architectural importance. It maintains an active congregation with a variety of programs and outreach to the community.

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

Chancellor is an unincorporated community in Spotsylvania County, in the U.S. state of Virginia. Originally named Screamersville, the community was established as a railroad whistle stop west of Fredericksburg. The name was changed to Chancellor around 1927 by agreement of the railroad and the local community.

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

Chatham Heights is an unincorporated community in Stafford County, in the U.S. state of Virginia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Lawrence Marye Jr.</span> American politician

John Lawrence Marye Jr., was a Virginia lawyer, plantation owner, Confederate soldier and politician. He served in the Virginia House of Delegates during the American Civil War, and upon the legislature's election of Lt. Gov. John F. Lewis as one of Virginia's U.S. Senators following the Commonwealth's readmission to the Union, was elected the tenth Lieutenant Governor of Virginia (1870-1874) and as such presided over the Virginia Senate. Marye also represented Spotsylvania County in both the Virginia Secession Convention and the Virginia Constitutional Convention of 1868, when he was a leading opponent of Congressional Reconstruction.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ellwood Manor</span> Historic house in Virginia, United States

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References

  1. "Listing of acreage – December 31, 2020" (XLSX). Land Resource Division, National Park Service. Retrieved 2021-08-15. (National Park Service Acreage Reports)
  2. "Park Anniversaries" . Retrieved 13 August 2021.
  3. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  4. "Virginia Landmarks Register". Virginia Department of Historic Resources. Retrieved 19 March 2013.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 Fredericksburg & Spotsylvania National Military Park: Fredericksburg National Cemetery, National Park Service, 2009-05-18, retrieved 2010-05-25
  6. "Fredericksburg National Cemetery". National Park Service. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
  7. The Bivouac of the Dead, National Park Service , retrieved 2010-05-25

Other references