Ok, even we have to admit that Gettysburg isn't the ONLY Civil War Battlefield in the country (just the best)! So during a free day in early March we decided to celebrate Christine's birthday and the approaching 150th Anniversary of the beginning of the US Civil War with a day trip to Virginia to see some of those other historic sites. Molly came along too, as you all know we need LOTS of supervising to be sure we're doing a good job!
We left the Doubleday Inn at 6:30 AM and headed down I-95 to our first stop at Fredericksburg. It was a cold but very clear and sunny day, and the lack of foliage made it easy to interpret all the Battlefields as we went and take some great pictures.
Fredericksburg has a very nice Visitor Center
with a 20 minute introductory movie. We also picked up a copy of the Park Service's Battlefield Map and an audio tour CD with which we were able to cover the entire field. We spent about 3 hours overall and felt we got to explore pretty well, although our schedule didn't leave us any time for meandering downtown, which looked very quaint with some interesting shops and restaurants.
To see the extreme incline at Marye's Heights was truly awe-inspiring (pic above shows the mansion on top of the heights and the original stone wall bordering the sunken road). It is very difficult to imagine the courage that must have been necessary as a Union soldier charging against such a well-fortified position. Another fascinating display was the 30 pound Parrot Gun (pic below) that the Confederates had delivered by train from Richmond to the Battlefield at Fredericksburg (for comparison, the Parrot guns here at Gettysburg were all 10 or 20 pounds in size). Molly was just glad she wasn't on the team that had to pull it to the top of Telegraph Hill!
Our next stop was Chancellorsville, just a few miles west. Here we were most interested to see the spot of the fatal wounding of Stonewall Jackson. This field also marks the final meeting place of Generals Lee and Jackson as they planned the infamous countermarch which would lead to the routing flank attack on the Union Army. Another very nice Visitor's Center with a small museum and introductory movie helped us get oriented. This park also had a CD driving tour which we enjoyed thoroughly.
It would be General Lee's decisive victory at Chancellorsville in May of 1863 that would provide the final prompt to move his army and the war northward to Gettysburg that summer.
Next onward to the nearby Wildnerness Battlefield, where the amputated arm of General Jackson was buried in the family cemetary of the Lacy family who lived at Ellwood House. The house and grounds are open to the public and the farm is a rare spot of cultivation in the midst of what is to this day dense forest and underbrush. The house and a gorgeous, absolutely ENORMOUS black walnut tree (surely a witness to the brutal fighting that took place here) are pictured below.
The Wildnerness Battlefield did not have a visitor's center but did have its own CD driving tour and a Park Service map which helped us navigate the many back roads that wind throughout the field itself. There is also an outdoor exhibit shelter which gives a good overview of the fighting and the specific points of interest.
Finally, chasing daylight a bit, we headed south to Spotsylvania Court House just as both armies did after the fighting at the Wilderness ended in May, 1864.
At Spotsylvania there was again no visitor center, but a small exhibit shelter and a walking trail that takes you over the famous Mule Shoe salient and Bloody Angle.
Most of the wayside markers had been removed (likely being refurbished for the upcoming 150th Anniversary) so we didn't get to go as in-depth on this field as we did the rest, but it piqued our interest enough to ensure that we will plan a return visit. Todd was very interested in seeing the spot where Union General "Uncle" John Sedgwick was killed.
At 6:30 pm we were 12 hours into our marathon day and the light was definitely gone, so we began the 2.5 hour drive home. It was a fun, interesting and very educational
day. If anyone is planning a day trip from Gettysburg to any of these excellent Battlefields, it is very doable! If you plan to go please let us know; we saved all our info and the Audio CD's which you are welcome to borrow!
Wishing everyone a warm and wonderful Spring and some time to get out and explore!
~Your Doubleday Friends
