Visit Fairfax: Civil War Sites

I wanted to let readers know that Visit Fairfax has just published an excellent brochure to attract Civil War tourism during the Sesquicentennial.  The well-illustrated brochure provides a general timeline of events that occurred in Fairfax County from 1861-65, including the September 11, 1861 skirmish at Lewinsville.  It also lists the multitude of Civil War-related sites in the county, from the well-known to the obscure.  I look forward to exploring many of the sites around here that I have not yet visited, and encourage others to do the same.

The Civil War at Oakwood-Ridgewood Elementary

Recently I started to think about my early Civil War education in fifth grade at Oakwood-Ridgewood Elementary School near Pittsburgh.  By the time I reached fifth grade in 1981, I had already been a "buff" for a couple of years.  My family even gave in to their young son's pleas to visit Gettysburg during the previous summer.

It probably is safe to say that I entered the classroom with more knowledge of the Civil War than a lot of fifth graders across the country, with the exception of Southern boys and girls who were raised on tales of the Lost Cause!  Of course, I still didn't know that much.  I guess you could say that I was young and impressionable.

What I find most fascinating after all these years is the relatively over-simplified and pro-Southern view I remember learning.  Some of this makes sense, given that we were fifth graders, and not history grad students.  But it doesn't explain why the Southern side seemed to figure so prominently in my education, particularly at a Northern school.  We were taught that the cause of the Civil War was states' rights; that Southern society was characterized by chivalry and honor; that Southern men were skilled horsemen and marksmen, and even better fighters; and that the South had the best generals.  Our teacher even entertained us by reading aloud from a book about a young soldier with Confederate General Wade Hampton's Legion.  A romanticized and sanitized version stuck with me for many years.  It was as if the Lost Cause had found its way across the Mason-Dixon line.  (In some ways it already had, looking at the early 80s popularity of the Dukes of Hazard and "The General Lee," with its Confederate flag and Dixie-tooting horn.)

"The General Lee"

Perhaps my memory is faulty.  After all, back in those days, I admired the Southern generals, whose dash and daring appealed to this boy's sense of adventure and imagination.  Maybe I liked rooting for the underdog, since I myself was sometimes picked on by the schoolyard bullies.  If I remember learning the Confederate side of things, it might just be my selective memory.  However, I can't help but think that this Catholic boy would have felt more guilt if I had learned the whole truth and continued to cheer for the Rebels.  Now, all these years later, my adult mind views the war and its causes quite differently, although I have to confess to still admiring the military skills of Lee and other Southern generals.

One of my childhood books. I remember reading this on my grandparents' front porch one summer.

I'd like to think that public schools are beyond teaching a view of the "War Between the States" that glosses over the hard issues.  I don't yet have kids in school, but I hope that they would learn a balanced, fair, and complete picture of the war, including a frank discussion of slavery and race, even in the fifth grade.   We can still teach that Lee was a brilliant general and that country boys from Dixie were better horsemen, but we can't forget to teach the truth about the system they fought to preserve and the threat that the Confederacy posed to our Constitution and our Union.

149 Years Ago Today in Lewinsville

Today marks the 149th anniversary of a skirmish in Lewinsville, Virginia.  Although not written about nearly as much as the September 11, 1861 skirmish, this encounter actually involved larger numbers than the earlier one.  (See here.)  Around 9 a.m. on Wednesday, September 25, Union General William "Baldy" Smith deployed about 5,100 infantry, 16 pieces of artillery, and 150 cavalry in positions running from Langley, down Chain Bridge Road towards Lewinsville.  Many of the soldiers doing duty that day were involved in the fight on the 11th, including Captain Charles Griffin's battery, the 19th Indiana, and the 79th New York Highlanders.

General "Baldy" Smith (courtesy of Wikipedia Commons)



Wagon train and Union Army camp (Corbis)



On the morning of the twenty-fifth, Smith surveyed the countryside for Confederates, and seeing no enemy activity, ordered the quartermaster troops to begin foraging.  As the New York Times reported, the wagons were "load[ed] with hay belonging to farmers known to be Secessionists."  According to Smith, the soldiers filled 90 wagons to the brim by three in the afternoon.  Smith then sent the wagons back toward the Union lines and recalled the skirmishers.  As the Union soldiers were being pulled in, the 79th New York captured an Irishman named Burke.  The prisoner claimed to be an aide to Colonel J.E.B. Stuart and warned that the enemy was on the way to Lewinsville.  Before long, the Northern soldiers "could see advancing over the hills from the Falls Church road what seemed to be a large regiment, marching rapidly in close column and others deployed as skirmishers with the apparent intention of turning our flank." (OR, I.V.5, p. 216.)  A Southern gun opened fire, but was too far away to do any damage.  Confederate cavalry soon moved through the corn fields and woods to the Union left, and the Confederates brought up two cannon to fire on the right of the Union line.  An artillery duel ensued between Union and Confederate batteries.  Smith reports that the Northern cannoneers got off thirty rounds before the Confederates retreated to Falls Church.

Captain Charles Griffin, here in a later photo as a general (courtesy of Wikipedia Commons)

At 5:30, Smith ordered the section of a Union battery to fall back slowly to Langley, and then withdrew the Union forces, which arrived at camp near Chain Bridge by 7 o'clock.  Around dusk, Smith was informed that the Confederates had fired four or five shots into Langley, but by the time a Northern scout arrived, the Southern troops had already left the area.

In his official report of the skirmish, Smith singled out Griffin's battery, noting that "the firing [from his guns] was most excellent."  (OR, I.V.5, p. 216.)  He also praised "[t]he conduct of the troops," which "was all that I could desire, standing with perfect coolness when [the Confederate] shot was falling...." (OR, I.V.5, p. 217.)  In all, it appears that only one Union solider was wounded in this engagement.  The Official Records contain no report from the Confederate side, so Southern casualties are uncertain.  In about two weeks time, the Union would finally occupy Lewinsville and establish winter camp in the vicinity.  (See here and here.)

Mosby: Good or Bad?

While recently touring the site where Mosby's Rangers were officially organized in 1863, I encountered a fellow visitor and his wife.  The gentleman asked me if I was a Civil War buff, to which I enthusiastically responded "Yes."  I then asked him the same question.  He hesitated, and then replied, "Sort of," before expressing his disgust with the hero worship directed towards Colonel Mosby.   To this man, Mosby was nothing more than a bandit, and his Rangers took the coward's way out, unlike his great grandfather, who had shouldered a musket and marched off to war as a member of the 5th Alabama.

This man got me thinking.  Are Mosby and his Rangers worthy of admiration?  There is certainly a tendency to romanticize their wartime adventures.  The very idea of taking a general hostage in his own bedroom is the stuff of legend.  (See here.)  And there is something incredible about a handful of mounted men being able to outsmart far superior numbers.  (See here.)  But was Mosby a legitimate military figure, or a common criminal in cavalryman's clothing?

Mosby's irregular brand of warfare was an important component of the Confederacy's military operations in the Eastern theater of war.  Mosby and his troopers disrupted the rear of the Union Army, seized valuable supplies and ammunition, took prisoners, and forced Washington to divert resources in an effort to eliminate the threat to men and materiel.  Mosby's value to the war effort was recognized by no less a general than Robert E. Lee.  In fact, when the Confederacy repealed the Partisan Ranger Act, largely at Lee's urging, Mosby's command was exempted along with one other group.

Colonel John S. Mosby (courtesy of Wikipedia Commons)

In my mind, I've always made a distinction between Mosby and other guerrilla leaders, such as William Quantrill.  For the most part, Mosby enforced discipline on his ranks and avoided large-scale bloodshed and retribution killings, such as Quantrill's massacre at Lawrence, Kansas in 1863.  This is not to say that Mosby's men always had clean hands.  For example, Mosby ordered a retaliatory execution after several of his Rangers were killed by Federal troops under General Philip Sheridan.  (See here.)   Mosby's men also took livestock, horses, and crops from Quakers and Union sympathizers in Loudoun County.   There is no denying, however, that Mosby was an exceptional military leader, skilled in the ways of irregular warfare.  For this, he is certainly worthy of the admiration that many have accorded him.  As Jeffry Wert concluded in his book Mosby's Rangers, Mosby and his men have "earned a place among some of the finest guerrilla warriors in history."

Recent Book Purchases on Washington-Area Civil War History

Not long ago I went to the annual used book sale of the McLean branch of the American Association of University Women.  (I mentioned this sale in a previous post.)  Last year, I found a Civil War-era book for only fifty dollars.  While I did not stumble upon such a treasure this year, I did discover Old Roads and New Insights: Adventures in Discovery by Winslow R. Hatch. This book, published posthumously in 1985, contains a wealth of information on the history of the roads around McLean and Great Falls, including the Georgetown Pike.  Although the book was printed from a typewritten draft, along with hand-drawn maps, don't let the quality of the publication distract you from the content.  This book offers incredibly detailed insights into local history.  Hatch endlessly explored and meticulously recorded the location of old roads in Fairfax County.  Of particular interest to Civil War enthusiasts is the chapter on Camp Griffin and the hospital at Benvenue, subject of a previous post.  (Incidentally, Hatch was one of the prior owners of Benvenue.)  I even learned that Kirby Road, not far from the entrance to the GW Parkway in McLean, existed at the time of the Civil War.  One end of the road fell within Confederate lines, while the Union soldiers occupied the part closer to McLean, and both Union and Confederate officers drank at Charles Kirby's home.

Another purchase along similar lines is Forgotten Roads of the Hunter Mill Road Corridor, by Jim Lewis over at the Hunter Mill Defense League. Although not exclusively focused on the Civil War era, this booklet explores the many old roads around Hunter Mill Road that still can be seen today, including the original Lawyers Road that led to the Fairfax County Courthouse, located near present-day Tyson's Corner in the mid-18th century.  (I recently took an HMDL tour that visited some of the roads featured in the booklet.)  Jim used the 1862 McDowell map of Northeastern Virginia as his starting point, and as to be expected, there are plenty of sites for Civil War buffs.  Jim, for example, has located Clarks Crossing Road, down which the 3rd Pennsylvania Cavalry fled from the 1st North Carolina Cavalry in November 1861.  This skirmish was J.E.B. Stuart's first encounter with his Northern counterparts.  The Washington Post recently took a look at Forgotten Roads and the efforts of the HMDL.

On the recommendation of Drew over at Civil War Books and Authors, I also purchased a re-print of The Confederate Blockade of Washington, D.C., 1861-1862 on Amazon.  Drew blogged about this work a few years ago.  (See here.)  This book details the Confederate efforts to cut off Washington through the placement of batteries along the Potomac River.  Lincoln eventually became anxious to lift the blockade and ordered the Army and Navy to work together to reopen the river.  I look forward to reading this book, which promises to shed some light on a little-known aspect of Civil War history in D.C.

Who Were the Pennsylvanians at Langley?

As a native Pennsylvanian, I was very interested to discover that soldiers from Pennsylvania had encamped in the Langley area during the winter of 1861-62.  Readers may recall that I briefly discussed the Pennsylvania Reserve Volunteer Corps at Camp Pierpont in a previous post about the Civil War in present-day McLean.

In response to President Lincoln's call for volunteers to put down the rebellion in April 1861, Pennsylvania raised more regiments than the U.S. War Department would accept under the state's quota.  Governor Andrew Curtin was not willing to turn away the Pennsylvanians rushing to enlist.  In May 1861, he persuaded the Pennsylvania Legislature to authorize the organization of a "Reserve Volunteer Corps of the Commonwealth" to be armed and equipped from the state treasury.  Four training camps were established in the cities of Easton, Harrisburg, Pittsburgh, and West Chester.  George A. McCall, an 1822 graduate of West Point and decorated Mexican War veteran, was placed in command of the corps.  Notable future commanders would include John F. Reynolds, who rose to lead the First Corps of the Army of the Potomac, only to be killed at Gettysburg, and George G. Meade, Union commander of the Army of the Potomac from Gettysburg until the end of the war.

Brigadier General George A. McCall (Wikipedia)

The Reserve Volunteer Corps consisted of thirteen regiments of infantry, including the famous Pennsylvania "Bucktails" of the 13th Pennsylvania Reserves, also known as the 1st Pennsylvania Rifles.  An artillery regiment and a cavalry regiment were also attached to the corps. The largest number of companies came from Philadelphia County and Allegheny County, where my hometown, Pittsburgh, is located.

A couple of regiments were initially sent to Western Virginia to join the forces of Colonel Lew Wallace.  Following the Union defeat at First Bull Run, the U.S. Government urgently called for additional troops, and requisitioned the Pennsylvania Reserve Volunteer Corps.  The corps was dispatched to Washington and quartered around Tennallytown (now Tenleytown).  On October 9, 1861, the corps, now a division of the Army of the Potomac, marched across Chain Bridge and established Camp Pierpont, around Langley.  Here the division trained and readied itself for the eventual movement on Richmond.  The third brigade under General E.O.C. Ord participated in the Union victory at Dranesville on December 20, 1861.  In the spring of 1862, the Reserve Volunteer Corps, now a division of the First Corps of the Army of the Potomac, marched to the Fredericksburg area.

1863 Flag of the 9th Pennsylvania Reserves, a Pittsburgh regiment (courtesy of Pennsylvania Reserve Volunteer Corps Historical Society)

The Pennsylvania Reserve Volunteer Corps had an illustrious war record. During the Seven Days Battles on the Virginia Peninsula (June 25-July 1, 1862), it fought as part of the Fifth Corps. The division was next assigned to the Third Corps of the Army of Virgina during the August 1862 Second Bull Run Campaign, only to be re-assigned to the First Corps of the Army of the Potomac, where it fought at South Mountain, Antietam, and Fredericksburg. At Fredericksburg in December 1862, the division was instrumental in penetrating a portion of the Confederate line. The division was part of the Fifth Corps at Gettysburg, where it helped in the defense of the Union left flank and drove back the Confederates around Plum Run. When the three-year enlistment of the division's soldiers expired in 1864, many re-enlisted in other Pennsylvania regiments.

Encounter at Plum Run by Dale Gallon (depicts the Pennsylvania Reserves forming up under Brigadier General Samuel Crawford to charge the withdrawing Confederate infantry at Plum Run, 

July 2, 1863; courtesy of Assonet Art)

I am continuing to research the Pennsylvania Reserve Volunteer Corps at Camp Pierpont and hope to include additional material in future posts.  The website of the Pennsylvania Reserve Volunteer Corps Historical Society also contains a wealth of information on the corps, including a a copy of  a complete history of the outfit, written in 1865.

Another Interesting Civil War Find in Old Town

A couple of weeks ago, my wife and I took the boys to Old Town Alexandria.  As we were headed back to the SUV,  I stumbled upon another historic site related to the Civil War -- the birthplace of Brigadier General Montgomery Corse.  Unless you stroll down Prince Street, away from all of the shops on King Street, you would completely miss the Corse house.  I snapped a couple of photos and submitted the site to the Historical Marker Database.  My photos, and a brief write-up, can be found here.  The house is actually located a few hundred feet from the famous Confederate Monument on South Washington.  (See previous post here.)

Veterans of the 17th Virginia Infantry at the dedication of the Confederate Monument at S. Washington and Prince Streets, Alexandria, 1889 (courtesy of the Fairfax Rifles)

Corse, a veteran of the Mexican War, rose to become commander of the famed 17th Virginia Infantry Regiment, which fought in most of the major battles in Virginia.  The 17th Virginia was comprised of companies from around Northern Virginia, including the Alexandria Riflemen and the Fairfax Rifles.  Corse was captured at the Battle of Sailor's Creek on April 6, 1865 and conveyed to Fort Warren prison in Boston.  After the war, he was a charter member of the R.E. Lee Chapter of the United Confederate Veterans.  Corse was a distinguished guest at the dedication of the Alexandria Confederate Monument in 1889. 

You can always count on finding another Civil War site in Northern Virginia, just when you thought you had seen them all.

Letter to the Editor: McLean and the Civil War

Recently I wrote a letter to the editor of the McLean Connection, my local community newpaper.  The letter ran in the September 1-7, 2010 edition of the paper. I thought readers might be interested in the sentiments that I expressed:

Civil War History Overlooked

To the Editor:

I am writing in regard to Alex McVeigh’s article [“The Story That Is McLean,” McLean Connection, Aug. 25-31] According to Mr. McVeigh, “McLean has seen its share of history.” The article jumps from President Madison’s flight to the establishment of a railroad [] that took tourists along the Potomac River.  However, the article neglects an important period of McLean history — the American Civil War — when Union and Confederate armies skirmished at Lewinsville and the Union Army established winter camps before the famous Peninsula Campaign in the spring of 1862. I notice the unfortunate oversight frequently whenever the history of McLean is discussed, whether in your paper or elsewhere. Fairfax County has erected a couple of markers, at Salona and Benvenue, that recognize the importance of our community in the early days of America’s civil conflict. Nevertheless, for some unknown reason, there is little to commemorate the Civil War era. This is a shame, particularly as we approach the 150th anniversary of the Civil War. 

I have started a blog, “All Not So Quiet Along the Potomac” (http://dclawyeronthecivilwar.blogspot.com/) which seeks to shed some light on this forgotten history. I have discussed several aspects of the Civil War history of present-day McLean and intend to cover many other episodes from the 1860s. I invite you and other readers to take a look at the entries. I also hope that the McLean Connection will at some point feature the Civil War history of McLean, so that readers become familiar with this truly fascinating aspect of our history.

It really seems odd to me that discussions of McLean's Civil War past are so rare, particularly given the prominence of Civil War history in nearby communities like Fairfax and the Hunter Mill Road area. Perhaps this has something to do with the fact that McLean proper did not exist in the 19th century. Then again, President Madison's escape through the area happened long before the founding of McLean, and this event is often mentioned.  Perhaps the original residents of McLean chose to forget the earlier "occupation" by Union forces, and the collective amnesia ensured that newcomers didn't hear much about the war around here.  Whatever the reason, I am glad that I can use this blog to discuss interesting aspects of McLean's Civil War history, and I hope that my readers, wherever they are from, learn something about the lesser known events associated with the Civil War in Northern Virginia.  Of course, as I've told readers a few time before (here and here), I hope that we can get a few more markers installed to tell the whole story, but at least Fairfax County has started to take notice.

Weekend Excusion to Mosby's Confederacy Continued: From Middleburg to Mt. Zion Church

My recent post described part of the weekend trip my wife and I made to Mosby's Confederacy at the end of August.  As readers may remember, we stayed at the Ashby Inn in Paris, Virginia and toured the surrounding area, including Mount Bleak, Rectortown, and Atoka.  This post picks up where my wife and I left off--Middleburg, Virginia.  Because we had to get back to relieve the grandparents of babysitting duty, we only briefly stopped in Middleburg before heading to sites that I had a greater interest in seeing.

Day 2: Middleburg to Mt. Zion Church

Middleburg, a quaint town along U.S 50, features many up-scale antique stores, galleries, and cafes catering to the hunt country crowd.  The place definitely has the feel of Georgetown in Loudoun County.  During the Civil War, Middleburg, like its smaller counterpart Paris, served as a rendez-vous point and place of entertainment for Mosby's Rangers.  On the night of June 17, 1863, Mosby met with General J.E.B. Stuart at the Red Fox Inn to share intelligence about the region.

Red Fox Inn, Middleburg (c. 1728)

General Lee had ordered Stuart to interpose his force between  Lee's Army of Northern Virginia and the Army of the Potomac and to screen Lee's army as it moved northward, down the Shenandoah Valley and into Maryland.  Starting on June 17, 1863 at Aldie, and continuing through the 21st at Middleburg and Upperville, Stuart engaged the Federal cavalry under General Alfred Pleasonton.  Stuart succeeded in keeping the Union cavalry at bay, and Lee moved into Pennsylvania, where he clashed with Union troops at Gettysburg. 

Although time did not permit a complete exploration of the sites that were part of the second largest cavalry battle in North America, my wife and I turned off onto the Snickersville Turnpike in Aldie to check out the monument to the 1st Massachusetts Cavalry.

Monument to the 1st Massachusetts Cavalry and the stone wall where Virginia sharpshooters filed at the Massachusetts cavalrymen.  A historical marker next to the monument describes the action.

Detail of 1st Massachusetts Monument, erected in 1888.  This was the first monument to Union soldiers placed south of the Mason-Dixon Line after the Civil War.

On June 17, 1863, Stuart's cavalrymen engaged Pleasonton around Aldie.  The area along the Snickersville Turnpike where we were parked was the scene of the deadliest fighting.  Sharpshooters from the 2nd and 3rd Virginia fired from behind the stone wall next to where the monument is now located and drove back successive charges of the 1st Massachusetts Cavalry.  Only the arrival of the 1st Maine Cavalry put a stop to the carnage and drove back the Virginians.  The countryside is so serene and peaceful today that it is hard to imagine the bloodshed that took place here.

Part of the Aldie battlefield, across the Snickersville Turnpike from the monument and stone wall.  Note the Bull Run Mountains in the distance.

After taking in the battlefield, my wife and I headed back down U.S. 50 to Aldie Mill Historic Park, where we visited the old mill buildings constructed between 1807-16.  Before the Civil War, the mill's owner had opposed secession.  On March 2, 1863,  Mosby and sixteen Rangers attacked 59 troopers of the 1st Vermont Cavalry as they watered their horses at the mill.  Mosby succeeded in capturing nineteen of the Union soldiers.  As the guide at the mill told us, some of the troopers hid in the mill's flour bins and were covered in white, like ghosts, when Mosby captured them.

Aldie Mill, with country mill in foreground and merchant mill at back.

Our last stop before heading home was Mt. Zion Church, built in 1851.  The church was the scene of a skirmish on July 6, 1864 between Mosby's Rangers and a battalion of New York and Massachusetts cavalry under Major William Forbes.  Mosby had followed the battalion when it left Leesburg earlier in the day on a mission to track down Mosby.  The Rangers launched their attack on Forbes' men, who had paused near the church to water their horses and make coffee.  The Union troopers, overtaken by Mosby's men, were driven back to Mt. Zion Church.  In the end, the Union force lost fourteen killed, 37 wounded, and 55 captured of 150 men.  The church also served as a hospital during the war, and was used to imprison some of Mosby's civilian supporters in 1865.

Mt. Zion Church, now owned by Loudoun County.

One of many Confederate graves in the cemetery at Mt. Zion Church.  The gate was closed, but I managed to snap a few photos over the fence. 

Following the visit to the church, my wife and I continued down U.S. 50 on our way home.  As we left the tranquility of Virginia horse country and entered the suburban sprawl of Chantilly, I was glad to see that Mosby's Confederacy was so well preserved, but I also worried about the future. The DC metro area continues to spread even further west along U.S. 50 and I-66, transforming the rural character of the landscape.  Here's to hoping that the spirit of Mosby is able to fight off the next invasion.

Resources for planning your own trip:

I found a few resources invaluable as I put together my tour of Mosby's Confederacy.  The Historical Marker Database has entries on most, if not all, of the markers in that part of Virginia.  The entries provide exact locations for various markers and links to useful background information. 

The Mosby Heritage Area Association has assembled a wealth of helpful resources on visiting the region, including driving tour brochures and audio tours.

I also purchased a copy of Mosby's Confederacy: A Guide to the Roads and Sites of Colonel John Singleton Mosby by Thomas J. Evans, James M. Moyer, and Virgil Carrington Jones.  This book, a comprehensive guide of Mosby's Confederacy, contains descriptions of so many sites that it will be difficult to choose which ones to visit.

Weekend Excursion to Mosby's Confederacy: From Paris to Atoka

This past weekend my wife and I took a trip to Virginia hunt country for our second wedding anniversary.  Civil War enthusiasts know this area better as "Mosby's Confederacy."  We stayed in the amazing Ashby Inn in Paris and ate at the top-notch restaurant there.  My wife was so kind as to indulge my interest in the Civil War, and we visited several historical sites, including those in and around Paris.  Not everything was related to the Gray Ghost's exploits.  The area played a role in many other events during the course of the war, and sites are scattered across the towns and farmland of Fauquier and Loudoun Counties.  Given our limited amount of time, however, my wife and I stuck mainly with the Mosby-related sites.

Day 1: Paris and Surroundings

Nestled at the foot of Ashby's Gap in the Blue Ridge Mountains along what used to be the Ashby's Gap Turnpike, Paris was a frequent haunt and rendez-vous point for Mosby's Rangers.  Despite the enticements of the small town, the Rangers boarded in isolated farmhouses around Paris, where they could remain undetected between raids.  The area near Paris also saw the passage of General Thomas J. Jackson's Confederate brigade on the way to First Manassas in July 1861, before Jackson won his famous nickname.

Mount Bleak (front side) at Sky Meadows State Park

On Saturday, my wife and I headed down I-66 West and exited towards one of the Ranger's "safe houses," Mount Bleak.  Today, Mount Bleak is part of Sky Meadows State Park, and offers dramatic views of the surrounding mountains and countryside.  At the time of the Civil War, the home was owned by Abner and Mary Settle.  Incidentally, Abner's son pronounced John Brown dead when he was hanged in December 1859 after the raid on Harper's Ferry.  Mount Bleak was a frequent stop of Mosby's men, and several Rangers boarded in the house's attic.  The Rangers also erected a signal station on the high ground around Mount Bleak.

After leaving Sky Meadows, we checked into the Ashby Inn and headed out for a walking tour of Paris, which has many fine examples of early- to mid-19th century Virginia architecture.  The Ashby Inn itself was constructed in 1829 and served as a Methodist parsonage in the 1860s.  According to a handout from the inn, General Joseph E. Johnston and Jackson rested on the original porch on their way to First Manassas.  I am uncertain as to the veracity of this story, given that it appears Jackson was alone with his brigade when it entered Paris at two in the morning on July 19, 1861, and Johnston had already gone ahead to Piedmont Station to await the arrival of his entire Army of the Shenandoah.

Ashby Inn and Restaurant on Federal Street

Further along Federal Street sits the home of Dr. Albin Payne. During 1864-65, this dwelling served as a "safe house" for one of Mosby's Rangers, Lewis Thornton Powell.  In January 1865, Powell disappeared, only to team up with John Wilkes Booth.  On April 14, 1865, the night of Lincoln's assassination, Powell, under the assumed name of Payne, attacked Secretary of State William Seward with a knife.  Seward lived, but Lewis Payne was captured and hanged on July 7, 1865. 

Dr. Payne's House on Federal Street

Closer to the inn, we checked out the so-called "Grove of White Oaks."  This area was the scene of political, social, and religious gatherings before the war. Jackson's soldiers camped in the fields among these trees on July 19, 1861 after crossing through Ashby's Gap and entering Paris.

Grove of White Oaks, along State Rt. 701

Turning down Republican Street, my wife and I examined the red-brick "Meeting House," which served as a school and church for both whites and blacks.  During the Civil War, the building was used as a hospital for Union and Confederate Armies.

The "Meeting House," site of hospital for Union and Confederate troops, Republican Street

Day 2: Paris to Atoka

After a restful night's sleep and a delicious breakfast, we left Paris and headed down U.S. 50, known as the "John S. Mosby Highway" in this part of Virginia.  Our first stop was the tiny village of Rectortown, site of a few interesting episodes in Civil War history.  On November 7, 1862, Major General George McClellan, who had established his headquarters at Rectortown, was relieved here of command of the Army of the Potomac and replaced by Major General Ambrose Burnside.  The actual site of the event is not marked, but is commemorated by a Civil War Trails marker.

Rectortown, like everything in this part of Virginia, also has a connection to Mosby.  On November 6, 1864, Mosby had Union prisoners draw lots to determine who would be executed in retaliation for the killing of seven of Mosby's Rangers earlier that year, including six in Front Royal on September 23.  When a drummer boy drew one of the numbered tickets, Mosby allowed him to live and had a substitute selected by another draw.  In all, three of the seven were hanged, the others surviving or escaping.  Mosby wrote to General Philip Sheridan, Union commander in the Shenandoah Valley, and promised that henceforth, Mosby would treat Federal prisoners with "kindness due to their condition" unless Sheridan did otherwise to Confederates who were captured.  Sheridan responded favorably, and there were no repeats of the death lottery.

Prison building in Rectortown along Maidstone Road (note Civil War Trails marker in front)

We made our way down to an old stone building in Rectortown.  During the war, this structure was used to house Union prisoners of war and still has traces of graffiti on the interior.  (Unfortunately, we were unable to enter and look around; probably just as good, considering the poor state of the building.)  I also walked over and checked out the railroad tracks alongside the prison.  Now the Norfolk Southern line, at the time of the Civil War, it was the Manassas Gap Railroad.  In October 1864, Mosby's Rangers disrupted Union plans to rebuild the railroad in an effort to supply General Sheridan's army in the Shenandoah Valley.

Manassas Gap Railroad line, next to old prison in Rectortown

Following the visit to Rectortown, my wife and I drove across a very rough, narrow country road and arrived at Atoka, which was known as Rector's Crossroads during the Civil War.  Here we stopped to look at the Rector House, where on June 10, 1863, the 43rd Battalion of Virginia Cavalry, known better as Mosby's Rangers, was officially organized.  Around two weeks later, Confederate General J.E.B. Stuart received orders here from General Robert E. Lee concerning the cavalry's route in the Gettysburg Campaign.  Stuart's actions in carrying out his order are controversial and the subject of much debate among historians to this day.

The Rector House in Atoka.  Mosby's Rangers was organized in the parlor, at the left front of the house. Note the historical marker to the right.

The Rector House is only open on Saturday's in the summer, so we were unable to view the inside.  My wife and I hopped in the SUV and headed next for Middleburg, capital of horse country.

Up Next: The remaining sites on our tour of Mosby's Confederacy, including Aldie Mill and Mt. Zion Church.