Gettysburg Campaign

Franklin County, PA

Marker Text: Here on June 22, 1863, the First N.Y. Cavalry attacked the Southern advance force of cavalry under Gen. A.G. Jenkins. Here died the first Union soldier killed in action in Pennsylvania. Corporal William H. Rihl of Philadelphia, serving in a Pennsylvania unit assigned to the New York regiment.

Location: On U.S. Route 11, just North of Greencastle, PA. Erected by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission in 1964.

  The main Confederate invasion of Pennsylvania began on the morning of June 22, 1863 when Richard S. Ewell's Second Corps of Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia vacated their camps in Maryland and headed north across the Mason-Dixon Line. On that day, Confederate Brigadier General Albert G. Jenkins' cavalry brigade again was the advance force that crossed the state border into Pennsylvania. Jenkins' men had earlier on June 15 had entered Pennsylvania to conduct scouting duties.

Photo taken looking north on Route 11 toward Chambersburg.  Monument to Rihl across the road.  Click any photo to enlarge.

  The Confederate troops rode into the undefended town of Greencastle early that morning, then halted to await the slower advance of General Robert E. Rodes' foot soldiers. Some time that morning, one of Jenkins' patrols encountered D. K. Appenzellar, a young Pennsylvanian who was on his way to Chambersburg to enroll in the militia. When asked by Jenkins' men whether he knew of any Yankee military movements in the area, Appenzellar lied. He said that while in Chambersburg the day before he had learned that the Army of the Potomac's first popular commander, General George B. McClellan, had been placed in charge of the state's defenses and was marching south from Harrisburg with 40,000 men.

Gettysburg Campaign

Rappahannock County, VA
Marker No. J-25

Marker Text:  Ewell's Corps of Lee's army passed here going north, June 11-12, 1863; Hill's Corps, June 19.

Location: On Route 522 (Remount Road), at the county line with Rappahannock and Warren Counties on Rappahannock side between Chester Gap and Huntly. Grouped with the marker Z-173 (Warren/Rappahannock County). Erected by the Commission on Conservation and Development in 1934.

  Hello folks, it has been about six months since I last posted. I have wanted to make posts about the wide range of markers I have related to the 150^th Anniversary of the American Civil War. During the months of May, June and July there are a multitude of markers which could be posted. The reason for my absence has been due to personal changes in my life. At the beginning of the year, I accepted a call to become the pastor of two congregations in Pennsylvania. My wife and I have been busy with all the tasks related to moving, setting up a new home and beginning in a new church, which has left little time to post on my blog. I have so many markers related to the events leading up to the Battle of Gettysburg that I felt a needed to attempt to post some of these markers.

Photo taken looking north on Route 522 toward Front Royal. Click any photo to enlarge.

  During the past two months, there was the Battle of Chancellorsville where Stonewall Jackson was wounded and later died from this wounds, the official organization of John Mosby's Rangers, the Second Battle of Winchester, just started today, 150 years ago, and northern Virginia and Pennsylvania has many markers related to military movements as Confederate General Lee moves his army into Pennsylvania. If time permits, since I have so many markers related to the events listed above, I will attempt to post as many as I can even if they are not recent anniversary events.

  To get started this marker is related to the movement of Confederate General Ewell's Army over the mountain at Chester Gap going from Rappahannock County into Warren County, Virginia leading into the Shenandoah Valley at Front Royal. After the Battle of Brandy Station, June 9, 1863, Lee ordered the Second Corps, Army of Northern Virginia, under Lt. Gen. Richard S. Ewell, to clear the lower Shenandoah Valley (lower valley is actually the northern part of the valley) of Union opposition. Ewell's Second Corps needed to cross over Chester Gap in order to reach the Shenandoah Valley. Ewell's Second Corp was attempting to protect General Lee's movements north toward Pennsylvania and to move the Union Army out of the Shenandoah Valley which resulted in the Second Battle of Winchester on June 13-14, 1863.

  A week later Confederate General A.P. Hill Corp passed through this gap on their way to Gettysburg. Though a modern two lane highway (U.S. Route 522) now goes through this gap today, it is still a steep drive for a car coming up both side of the mountain. I have always found it fascinating that an army of 10,000 to 15,000 men mainly on foot with all their equipment crossing these mountains on roads no better than the worse dirt roads of today.

  Now, I need to get busy and prepare some other markers.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution No Derivatives license.

Jack Jouett's Ride

Louisa County, VA
Marker No. W-213

Marker Text: From the tavern that stood here, Jack Jouett rode to Charlottesville, by the Old Mountain Road, in time to warn the members of the Virginia government of the coming of Tarleton's British cavalry, June 3, 1781.

Location: On U.S. Route 33, near intersection with Route 522 in Cuckoo. Marker is grouped with marker W-223 (Cuckoo). Erected by the Virginia State Library in 1963.

  Today's marker is the second in a series of eight markers about the ride of Jack Jouett from Cuckoo to Charlottesville, VA. Before Jack Jouett enters the story there is some back story leading up to this event.

  On June 1, 1781, British General Cornwallis learned from a captured dispatch that Virginia Governor Thomas Jefferson and Virginia's Legislature had fled to Charlottesville, Virginia, where Jefferson's home, Monticello is located. The American traitor Benedict Arnold, by this time had become a British general and his troops had been raiding and pillaging along the James River from the river’s mouth to Richmond, VA the state capitol. Virginia's legislature voted to move the government temporarily to Charlottesville to escaped Benedict Arnold's efforts to capture them.

Photo taken looking north on Route 522 and east on Route 33. Click any photo to enlarge.

  General Cornwallis ordered Lieutenant Colonel Banastre Tarleton to ride to Charlottesville, VA and capture Gov. Jefferson and the Virginia legislature. Tarleton hoped to capture Jefferson and many notable Revolutionary leaders who were Virginia legislators, including: Patrick Henry, Richard Henry Lee, Thomas Nelson, Jr., and Benjamin Harrison V. Tarleton's ability to capture these Revolutionary leaders in Virginia would have been a major blow to the fight for independence and might have ended the Revolutionary War in favor of the British.

Battle of Blair Mountain

Logan County, WV

Marker Text: In August of 1921, 7000 striking miners led by Bill Blizzard met at Marmet for a march on Logan to organize the southern coalfields for the UMWA. Reaching Blair Mt. on August 31, they were repelled by deputies and mine guards, under Sheriff Don Chafin, waiting in fortified positions. The five-day battle ended with the arrival of U. S. Army and Air Corps. UMWA organizing efforts in southern WV were halted until 1933. "

Location: On WV Route 17, approximately 8 miles east of Logan between Ethel and Blair, WV. Erected by WV Celebration 2000, West Virginia Division of Archives and History in 2002.

  From 2002-2008, I lived in Logan County, WV and I often heard of the stories about the Battle of Blair Mountain from local residents. From the mid-1800's residents in the area knew coal existed in the mountains of Logan County, but it was not until the railroad came to the county in 1904 was it possible to mine the coal for commercial use. Once the railroads made it possible to remove the coal to needed markets the coal business in Logan County took off and the population increased with men seeking employment in the coal mines.

  Prior to the construction of the four lane highway, U.S. Route 119 (or as the locals call it Corridor G) from Logan to Charleston, WV, the only way to travel to Charleston was to go over Blair Mountain on WV Route 17. Traveling over Blair Mountain is not the most difficult mountain road crossing a person can make in West Virginia, but you definitely know you are going over a mountain as you travel the road.

Photo taken looking south on Route 17 toward Logan County. This is where you would go up Blair Mountain from the north.  Click any photo to enlarge.

  The details about the Battle of Blair Mountain, including the events in the coal mines that lead to this confrontation, the lives of the miners, the struggle for unions and the political conditions at the time are so extensive, I cannot possibility cover them in my post on this marker. So I will only give a general description of the events here. If you want to learn more a simple search on the internet, using a search engine, like Google or Bing will give you many links about the details with many interesting photos. A web site by the West Virginia Archives and History has several links to articles about the Battle of Blair Mountain.

Jackson's March to Fredericksburg

Madison County, VA
Marker No. JE-1

Marker Text: Stonewall Jackson, on his march from Winchester to Fredericksburg, preceding the battle of Fredericksburg, camped here, November 26, 1862.

Location: At the intersection of Business U.S. Route 29 (North Main Street) and Virginia Route 231 (Old Blue Ridge Turnpike), north of Madison, VA. Erected by the Conservation & Development Commission in 1929.

  On November 24, 1862, 150 years ago, Confederate General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson's Second corps of about 25,000 men began their march to cross the Blue Ridge Mountains using Fisher's Gap within the bounds of present day Shenandoah National Park on the way to Fredericksburg. By the evening of November 26, Jackson's Army had reached this point north of Madison, VA and about 6.5 miles south of the previous camp location where a previous marker was covered yesterday is located.

In photo Route 231 is on the left traveling north and Business Route 29 is on the right looking northbound. Going north on Route 231 would take you to the site of yesterday's marker. Click any photo to enlarge.

  According to sources, it took Jackson's army four days to move over the Blue Ridge Mountains with all their men and equipment. Based on this information, only a part of Jackson's army would have camped here, while other parts of the army was camping at yesterday's location and while still others were camped at a location on the west side of the mountain.

  Once all of the army had moved over the mountains, then their rate of travel to Fredericksburg would have increased considerably. Stonewall Jackson's army arrived at Lee's headquarters on November 29 and his divisions were deployed to prevent Gen. Ambrose Burnside from crossing downstream from Fredericksburg.

A Camp of Stonewall Jackson's

Madison County, VA
Marker No. JE-15

Marker Text: Just to the north, on the night of November 25, 1862, Stonewall Jackson, with his corps, camped. He was on his way to join Lee at Fredericksburg.

Location:  On Route 670 (Old Blue Ridge Turnpike) just south of County Route 649 (Quaker Run Road), one mile north of Criglersville, VA. Erected by the Conservation & Development Commission in 1930.

“Near the top, as we were marching, there was a rock, and looking back and down the road, we could see six lines of our army; in one place infantry, in another artillery, in another ambulances and wagons. Some seemed to be coming towards us, some going to the right, some to the left, and some going away from us. They were all, however, climbing the winding mountain road, and following us.” - quote by Private John H. Worsham of the 21st Virginia Infantry who later wrote of the armies crossing through Fisher's Gap.

Photo taken looking north on Route 670. Mountain that Jackson’s army traveled over is in the background to the right.  Click any photo to enlarge.

  Throughout Virginia, a person will discover almost countless numbers of historical markers related in some way to Confederate General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson. Many of the markers relate to U.S. Civil War engagements and battles which he and his troops participated. Some markers, like today, simply mention that his army camped at a particular location exactly 150 years ago, while others may simply indicate that his army crossed the road.

  Stonewall Jackson's army had crossed the Blue Ridge Mountains, several times during the Civil War from the Shenandoah Valley to the Piedmont region of Virginia. Crossing the Blue Ridge Mountains, even using the variety of gaps that existed was not easy for an individual, but to do it with a whole army of 25,000 troops and equipment must have been an amazing accomplishment.

Stuart's Ride Around McClellan

Marker No. WO-14
New Kent County, VA

Marker Text: J. E. B. Stuart, on his famous ride around McClellan's army, June 12-15, 1862, arrived here in the early night of June 13, coming from Hanover Courthouse. He rested here several hours and then pressed on to the Chickahominy River, rejoining Lee's army on June 15.

Location: On Route 249, just west of Route 106, Talleysville, grouped with markers WO-13 (St. Peter's Church) and WO-12 (The White House). Erected by the Conservation & Development Commission in 1931.

  About the time J.E.B. Stuart had completed his ride around McClellan's Army and was reporting to Gen. Robert E. Lee, McClellan made his first report to Secretary of War Edwin Stanton:

“A rebel force of cavalry and artillery, variously estimated at from 1,000 to 5,000, came around our right flank last evening, attacked and drove in a picket guard...at Old Church; they proceeded to a landing 3 miles above White House, where they burned two forage schooners and destroyed some wagons. Then they struck the railroad at Tunstall’s Station, fired into a train of cars, killing some 5 or 6. Here they met a force of infantry which I sent down to meet them, when they ran off. I have several cavalry detachments out after them and hope to punish them. No damage has been done to the railroad.”

  When Gen. Robert E. Lee became commander of the Army of Northern Virginia, he requested J.E.B. Stuart perform reconnaissance to determine whether the right flank of the Union army was vulnerable. Stuart set out with 1,200 troopers on the morning of June 12 and took his men on a complete circumnavigation of the Union army.

  Early on the morning of June 13, 1862, J.E.B. Stuart revealed his orders to Fitz and Rooney Lee and the other commanders as they rode east towards Hanover Court House. Just west of the Hanover Courthouse, Stuart's advance guard ran into elements of the Union's 6th Cavalry, the first encounter with Union troops. Hoping to envelop the Union Cavalry, Stuart ordered Fitz Lee to strike the Union cavalry while Rooney Lee tried to flank the unit.

Stuart's Ride Around McClellan

Marker No. E-74
Hanover County, VA

Marker Text: Near here, on Winston's Farm, J. E. B. Stuart, advancing north, camped on June 12, 1862. Stuart was scouting to find the position of the right wing of McClellan's army besieging Richmond. At this point he turned east to Hanover Courthouse. Stuart made a complete circuit of the Union army.

Location: On Route 1 (Washington Highway), south of intersection with State Route 641, 1.9 miles north of Ashland. Erected by the Conservation & Development Commission in 1931.

  This week is the 150^th Anniversary of J.E.B. Stuart's famous ride around Union Gen. George B. McClellan's Army of the Potomac. During April until June McClellan's army had traveled up the Peninsula and established positions around the north and eastern sections of Richmond in preparation for their attack.

  In early June, Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee assumed command of the Army of Northern Virginia after the wounding of General Johnston and began planning a counterattack. Beginning on June 12, General J.E.B. Stuart led 1,200 cavalrymen on a daring three day reconnaissance and discovered that the Union right flank was unsecured. “Stuart's Ride around McClellan" gave Lee the vital information he needed to launch the offensive known as the Seven Days' Battles on June 26.

  Stuart's cavalry regiment had been hastily been organized early during the Civil War with little formal training and mustered into the Confederate army. His regiment was assigned to General Joseph Johnston's forces in the Shenandoah Valley.

Brother against Brother

Marker No. J-17
Town of Front Royal

Warren County, VA

Marker Text: The first Maryland Regiment, U.S.A., was a part of the force holding this town when it was attacked by Stonewall Jackson, May 23, 1862. With Jackson was the First Maryland Regiment, C.S.A. The two regiments were arrayed against each other.

Location: On Route 340, North Royal Avenue at intersection with Chester Street, in the town of Front Royal. Erected by the Conservation & Development Commission in 1932

Photo is looking south on North Royal Avenue with the street on the right. Click any photo to enlarge.

  Throughout the American Civil War one characteristic of the war were divided family loyalties between the North and South. Individuals within families often fought on opposing sides. Today's marker describes these tensions of brother against brother during the Battle of Front Royal on May 23, 1863.

  Prior to the Civil War, Maryland had strong ties with Virginia and the other southern states. Maryland was quite different than many southern states being heavily populated and more industrialized than her southern sisters, most Marylanders still considered themselves "southerners" being south of the famed Mason-Dixon Line. When Virginia seceded from the Union many Marylanders clamored for their state to secede as well. President Abraham Lincoln, recognizing the strategic importance of keeping Maryland in the Union, suspended the writ of habeas corpus and arrested the most ardent secessionists.

Confederate Defenses

Marker No. C-21
Fairfax County, VA

Marker Text: Here, while the Confederate army camped at Centreville, Gen. Joseph E. Johnston built strong fortifications in the winter of 1861-1862. In Feb. 1862, President Jefferson Davis ordered Johnston to evacuate them and move his army closer to Richmond, the Confederate capital. Outnumbered by Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan's Army of the Potomac, Johnston complied. On 10 March, McClellan found "Quaker cannon," logs painted black, in the abandoned trenches to deceive his scouts. McClellan, believing that he was outnumbered, already had planned to attack Richmond from the east instead of the north, via the Peninsula between the James and York Rivers.

Location: At the intersection of Machen Road and U.S. Route 29 (Lee Highway) on the grounds of the Centreville Public Library located at the southwest corner of the intersection at 14200 Saint Germain Drive, Centreville VA 20120. Grouped with three other markers, C-20 (First Battle of Manassas); C-22 (Second Battle of Manassas); and C-40 (Campaign of Second Manassas). Erected by the Department of Historic Resources in 1999.

  Over the next few months I will be returning to posting markers I have related to the American Civil War. During the winter months most military activities slow down and the armies made camp in different locations. Today's marker is about the winter quarters and defenses of the Confederate Army under the command of Gen. Joseph E. Johnston. Little today remains of these defenses and the camp during the winter of 1861-62. Most of the area has been developed since the 1960's and most traces of the actions of the Civil War in this area are only remnants. At this link The Historical Marker Database has some photos of the remnants of these fortifications that exist today. This marker replaces an older marker from the 1920's or 30's and was originally located on the highway which is now Route 29.

A Revolutionary War Hero

Marker No. B-33
Loudoun County, VA

Marker Text: Near here stood the home of Sergeant Major John Champe (1752-1798), Continental soldier. Champe faked desertion and enlisted in Benedict Arnold's British command for the purpose of capturing the traitor. Failing in his attempt, Champe rejoined the American army. His meritorious service was attested to by such patriots as General Henry (Light Horse Harry) Lee.

Location: On U.S Route 50 (John Mosby Highway), 2.59 miles west of Route 15 (James Monroe Highway), just east of Champe Ford Lane. Group with three other markers, B-30 (Stuart and Bayard); B-22 (Cavalry Battles); B-32 (Gettysburg Campaign). Erected by the Virginia Historic Landmarks Commission in 1983. Marker probably replace an early marker erected in 1934.

Today’s marker is the one on the right.  Click any photo to enlarge.

  As you can see from the photo, today's marker is grouped with three other markers along U.S. Route 50. Traveling Route 50 from Winchester to Washington, D.C. you can find numerous markers and historical sites related to many different periods of U.S. history. The story of John Champe whose home use to stand every near here in Loudoun County, VA is about a man who became a double agent in an attempt to capture the Revolutionary War traitor Benedict Arnold.

  In late October 1780, near Bergen, N.J., the Loudoun Dragoons were encamped a few miles from the Hudson River. John Champe was 28 years old at the time and the cavalry unit's sergeant major. Maj. Henry "Light Horse Harry" Lee was its commander. Across the river was New York City, which housed the British headquarters.

The Bucktails

McKean County, PA

Marker Text: At the call of Col. Thos. L. Kane, 100 Civil War volunteers assembled here on Apr. 24, 1861, to go to Harrisburg. Tails of buck deer, worn as distinctive insignia, provided the name of the famed 42d Regiment, of which they were the core.

Location: On U.S. Route 6 in front of the McKean County Court House, Smethport, PA. Erected by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission in 1948.  Two other markers are in front of courthouse, “Smethport” and “McKean County.”

Monument to the men who served during the Civil War from this county in front of the McKean County Courthouse.

  In the weeks following the surrender of Fort Sumter in Charleston, South Carolina and with other southern states considering succession. Abraham Lincoln issued a request on April 15, 1861 for 75,000 volunteers to sign up for 90 day enlistments. In communities both north and south, they took action to form military regiments for a fight they knew that was about to happen. This marker in McKean County, Pennsylvania observes the formation of one among hundreds that were to form in the coming months and one of Pennsylvania's most famous Civil War units, called the “The Bucktails.”

Colonel John Singleton Mosby

Frederick County, VA

Marker No. B-16

Marker Text:  This road, along which many of his skirmishes took place, is named for Colonel John Singleton Mosby, commander of the 43rd Battalion of Confederate Partisan Rangers. Their activities in this area helped keep the Confederate cause alive in Northern Virginia toward the end of the Civil War.

Location:  On U.S. Routes 50 & 17 (Millwood Pike or John Mosby Highway) north of Route 723 (Carpers Valley Road), east of Winchester. Erected by the Department of Conservation and Historic Resources in 1987.

  If you live in or visit northern Virginia, you can not escape seeing the names of some of the more popular southern individuals from the American Civil War, Robert E. Lee, Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson, Jubal Early, J.E.B. Stuart, and John S. Mosby are some of the main characters. Today's marker tells the traveler that this highway they are driving is named for John Singleton Mosby. When you travel U.S. Route 50 between Winchester and Fairfax County, VA you are taking a journey through some of the same country side that John Mosby and his 43^rd Battalion of Confederate Partisan Rangers operated during the Civil War.

  This marker is the western Virginia companion marker on Route 50 with another identical marker located in eastern Virginia on U.S. Route 50 in Chantilly, VA in Fairfax County and is marker B-12.

Forbes Road

Bedford County, PA

Marker Text: This intersection marks the point where Forbes Road of 1758 diverged from the path cut by Col. Burd in 1755. The Forbes Road led through the Wilderness west toward Ligonier from this point.

Location: At the junction of U.S. Route 30 & PA Route 31, 4 miles West of Bedford, PA. Erected by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission in 1947.

  Many historical road markers speak of the creation of early colonial roads that existed in the area or in most cases still exist in some form though they have gone through many evolutions. When the first settlers landed in places, like Jamestown, VA, they chiefly used the waterways, such as, the James River, Chickahominy River or the Chesapeake Bay to travel to other locations or form other communities. Eventually, the need for developing trails and later roads were needed to journey further inland away from main waterways. Many early colonial roads developed from paths through the wilderness that were already in use by Native Americans. Often, these early roads main purpose was as a military transportation route, later their importance in aiding in the develop of a region where realized.

Little Fork Church

Culpeper County, VA

Marker No. G-9

Marker Text: One-half mile east stands Little Fork Episcopal Church, begun 1753, destroyed by fire in 1773. Present structure completed in 1776.

Location: On Route 229, 6 miles south of Route 211, southwest of Warrenton, VA, same side of road near intersection with Route 726 (Little Fork Church Road) and opposite intersection with State Route 611 (Waterford Road). Erected by the Virginia Historic Landmarks Commission in 1967. The church itself is located about 0.4 miles east on Little Fork Church Road.

  Sunday morning, so it is time for another church, an Episcopal church in Virginia. Little Fork Church is the only Colonial church in Culpeper County, VA and one of the few colonial churches to survive in northern Piedmont Virginia, however, it was never a parish church. Created in 1731 as a "chapel of ease" for the St. Mark's Parish within the Little Fork between the Rappahannock and Hazel Rivers by order of Governor Spotswood.