American Battlefield Trust
Originally published February 2023 · pp. 1–4
Calling All “Advocacy Allies” The Trust is ringing in the new year with a call to preservation allies across the country. Launching in 2023, the nonprofit is introducing a new subscription newsletter for friends groups, historical societies, and other groups with ongoing interests in battlefield preservation and advocacy. Published on a quarterly basis, subscribed organizations will receive updates on emerging threats to historic sites, as well as discussions on best practices
America’s Monthly Newspaper For Civil War Enthusiasts for political outreach and proven tactics to empower the evergrowing preservation community. Subscribe to this “Advocacy Allies” newsletter and other dispatches at www.battlefields. org/email-signup. Preservation allies are also encouraged to submit their upcoming events to the Trust’s partner event submission form at www.battlefields.org/ addyourevent.
Help the Trust Bring Preservation Efforts Across the Finish Line
The Shepherdstown Battlefield is one of many that donors can help the Trust preserve through its current campaigns. (Photo by Matt Brant)
Preservation projects can sometimes involve several layers of history, ultimately making for an even more meaningful impact. With its latest efforts, the Trust is targeting seven acres across three sites in New York and South Carolina, as well as 128 acres of battlefield land in Maryland and West Virginia. Altogether, these sites cover three separate conflicts in American history. With an ambitious goal of protecting 2,500 acres of Revolutionary War battlefield land to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution, the Trust is eyeing a small property at Upstate New York’s Fort Ticonderoga and two additional Palmetto State properties at Fort Johnson and Eutaw Springs. Fort Ticonderoga, initially under French control, was a critical post during the French and Indian War. Captured by the British during that earlier conflict, a contingent of Green Mountain Boys and New England militia took the fort only one month into the Revolutionary War. Just outside Charleston, S.C., the 2nd South Carolina Regiment seized Fort Johnson in September 1775. On April 12, 1861, a flaming mortar shot from Fort Johnson exploded over Fort Sumter, beginning the American Civil War. The Eutaw Springs Battlefield is an hour northwest of Fort Johnson and represents a key moment in the Southern Campaigns. This is where it became evident that Patriot forces wouldn’t take defeat as an
Ruins of bridge, across Potomac River at Shepherdstown. (Library of Congress) answer. It is also a stop along the budding Liberty Trail. These properties are valued at more than $2.7 million, but thanks to a variety of matching grants and already-promised donations, the Trust must raise the remaining $62,000. Preservationists are also needed to protect land associated with the bloody Maryland Campaign of 1862. Now, 160 years later, the Trust has launched an effort to protect 128 acres at the Antietam and Shepherdstown Battlefields. While six acres are prime for preservation at the site of America’s bloodiest day at Antietam, 122 acres are at stake at Shepherdstown. With federal and state matching grants, partner funding, and a generous donor, all gifts will be matched $8-to-$1 to meet the $343,837 need. Learn more at www.battlefields.org/ preserve.
Mark Your Calendars for Park Day 2023: April 15 For 27 years, thousands of history lovers, families, Boy and Girl Scouts, and more have come together to celebrate and help keep our nation’s heritage preserved and well
37 – Events 27 – The Graphic War 21 – Library of Congress maintained. This year, volunteers will convene nationwide at battlefields, museums, cemeteries and historic sites on April 15. Since its inception in 1996, citizens have taken part in Park Day at sites across the country. Activities vary at each site and can include building trails, raking leaves, painting signs, constructing fences and more. Every participant receives official Park Day water bottles and may get the opportunity to hear local historians discuss the site’s importance. This year, the Trust will be paying special attention to accessibility at Park Day sites, ensuring that the event is something that everyone can partake in, no matter what their limitations! While some locations have cemented Park Day as an annual tradition, new sites are always welcome to join in on the movement. Site managers are invited to register online at www. battlefields.org/addparkdayevent. As the date draws closer, details for individual locations will be posted, giving volunteers an opportunity to make plans to attend a site near them.
The newest batch of Untold video shorts highlights some of the Revolution’s most fascinating leaders. (Courtesy American Battlefield Trust)
Park Day volunteers rake leaves at Buford Massacre Battlefield. (Courtesy American Battlefield Trust)
Trust Makes Strides to Inspire “Revolutionary” Learning Through the Trust’s dedication to outside-the-box learning, students of history are gaining access to tools that present the story of the American Revolution in energetic, thoughtful ways. The newest resources to enter this collection lean on a combination of eye-catching animation and quippy dialogue, as well as immersive virtual reality (VR) footage. After the success of its first two installments, the Trust again expanded its How We Became America: The Untold History series of video shorts. Supported by the American Battlefield Protection Program and brought to life by Makematic, this series is made for students and teachers, but easy-to-consume by all. It is designed to fill in the gaps and bring interesting stories to life. While the first two 15-episode batches of videos focused on the
Revolution and the Civil War, the new set expands upon the independence-yielding conflict, from King George III to George Washington, the significance of Fort Ticonderoga, the 1783 Newburgh Conspiracy and more. In the realm of virtual reality, the Trust followed up to the vast success of its Civil War 1864: A Virtual Reality Experience by releasing Soldier Life of the American Revolution. Produced by longtime partner Wide Awake Films, the VR experience places viewers in a 360-degree perspective of daily life during the Revolutionary War, giving them an inside-look at a military encampment, the chaos of woodland fighting and the perilous horrors of late 18th-century medicine. See these videos for yourself at www.youtube.com/ AmericanBattlefieldTrust.
Another Successful Year Motivates the Trust to Keep Marching On! Dedicated to preserving, educating, and inspiring, the American Battlefield Trust made impactful strides toward its mission in 2022. Notably, the nonprofit celebrated its crossing the threshold of 55,000 acres saved forever as it went about preservation efforts in 11 states this past year. Of these efforts, more than 300 acres were successfully transferred to responsible stewards, such as the National Park Service. Of the organization’s most monumental victories, the Fredericksburg Battlefield’s Slaughter Pen Farm was finally deemed “saved forever” following a 16-year, $12-million fundraising campaign to ensure its protection. Additionally, establishment of Culpeper Battlefields State Park came via a two-year, compromise budget for the Commonwealth of Virginia signed by Gov. Glenn Youngkin over the summer. At the park’s core will be 1,700 acres donated by the Trust from our holdings at the Brandy Station, Cedar Mountain, Kelly’s Ford and Rappahannock Station battlefields. The Trust also made big steps by announcing its goal to preserve 2,500 Revolutionary War acres to mark the upcoming 250th anniversary of the American Revolution, launching the Medal of Honor Valor Trail™ alongside the Congressional Medal of Honor Society and teaming up with the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) to debut the American Revolution Experience. Each of these initiatives will allow the organization to share even more stories across American military history. The jam-packed year also saw the Trust connect with some 16 million teachers and students through its quality content covering the nation’s first conflict-filled 100 years. Despite a wealth of victories, the Trust also witnessed an overwhelming resurgence of threats to historic landscapes in the form of data centers, highway interchanges, solar facilities, and more. The organization called on preservationists nationwide and thousands answered our calls for support at Manassas, Culpeper, Wyse Fork, Wilson’s Creek, Vicksburg, and Gettysburg. These causes remind us that our work is incredibly relevant and that we must march on to advance our mission. The American Battlefield Trust is dedicated to preserving America’s hallowed battlegrounds and educating the public about what happened there and why it matters today. The nonprofit, nonpartisan organization has protected more than 55,000 acres associated with the Revolutionary War, War of 1812 and Civil War. The Trust relies on dedicated individuals like yourself to ensure that these hallowed grounds are forever preserved and serve as outdoor classrooms for generations to come. To learn about becoming a member, visit www.battlefields.org/give.
After a 16-year-long fundraising effort, the American Battlefield Trust declared victory at Slaughter Pen Farm in Fredericksburg, Va. (Photo by Chris Landon)