Preservation News

Civil War Trust Preserves 25 Acres At Fredericksburg Battlefield

Originally published November 2016 · p. 3

In September 2016, the Civil War Trust declared victory on 25 acres associated with the 1862 Battle of Fredericksburg. This latest preservation success story was the result of a national fundraising campaign conducted by the Trust earlier this year. With the addition of these 25 acres, the Trust has helped save almost 250 (Library of Congress)

acres at Fredericksburg, one of the defining conflicts of the Civil War. “With this most recent success, this crucial land is protected forever from the development creeping up all around the Fredericksburg battlefield,” said Trust President James Lighthizer. “This project is a sterling example of what we can accomplish when a preservation-minded landowner, local partners and Trust supporters work together to save hallowed ground.” Lee Garrison, a builder with approvals to construct 98 townhomes on the property, agreed to sell the land to the Trust for well below the appraised value of $2.59 million. In addition to this donation from Garrison, the site was acquired from funding sources including a $100,000 Virginia Battlefield Preservation Fund grant secured by the Central Virginia Battlefields Trust, a grant from the American Battlefield Protection Program, and a major gift from a husband and wife who are among the Trust’s most dedicated and generous supporters. The remaining funds, totaling a little over $100,000, were raised from donations by Trust members during a campaign announced in January 2016. The property runs adjacent to Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park, and will create a clear path along the Union attack line at the southern end of the battlefield — from Pelham’s Corner to the stone Meade Pyramid Monument in the park, to the Slaughter Pen Farm site also owned by the Trust. On the site, Union Gen. George Gordon Meade briefly broke through Confederate Gen. Stonewall Jackson’s lines; had Federal reinforcements entered the battle at this critical moment, the outcome at Fredericksburg may have been different. On November 14, 1862, Union Gen. Ambrose Burnside sent a corps to occupy the vicinity of Falmouth near Fredericksburg. The rest of the army soon followed. Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee reacted by entrenching his army on the heights behind the town. On December 11, Union engineers laid five pontoon bridges across the Rappahannock River while under fire. Their army crossed the river the following day, and on December 13, Burnside mounted a series of futile frontal assaults on Prospect Hill and Marye’s Heights that resulted in staggering casualties. Meade’s division, on the Union left flank, briefly penetrated Jackson’s line on the property acquired by the Trust but was driven back by a counterattack. On December 15, Burnside called off the offensive and recrossed the river, ending the campaign.