Civil War History & Wine -- a Great Combination!

Living in Northern Virginia has its perks. After all, Civil War history surrounds us everywhere. As a added bonus, wineries dot the rolling countryside just beyond the inner suburbs. On Father's Day, my wife and children took me to The Winery at Bull Run, which offers the best of both worlds. Opened in 2012 by Jon and Kim Hickox. the winery sits on land adjacent to the Manassas National Battlefield Park and the famous Stone Bridge.

During the Civil War, the property was the site of Hillwood. The Weir family, who owned the estate at the time, lived at their nearby plantation known as Liberia and left the property in the hands of a tenant or caretaker. (Liberia served as Gen. P.G.T. Beauregard's headquarters around the time of First Manassas.  Gen. Irvin McDowell also did a stint there in 1862.) On July 21, 1861, soldiers under then-Colonels William T. Sherman and Erasmus Keyes marched across Hillwood on their way to ford Bull Run and join the Union attack. Capt. James Carlisle's battery of U.S. artillery also took position on the ridge line at Hillwood. During Second Manassas in August 1862, Confederate troops under A.P. Hill crossed the property en route to link up with the remainder of Stonewall Jackson's wing of the Army of Northern Virginia. As the Union forces retreated across the Stone Bridge following their defeat on August 30, they too passed by Hillwood. In other words, this land is an important piece of the story of both battles.

Following the devastation of the Civil War, the property was returned to family farming and other economic activities. The Hickox family purchased the land in 2008 and set to work on establishing their winery. Today, the winery's two vineyards are planted with Norton and Traminette varieties. The Winery at Bull Run also farms grapes on 115-acres in Rappahannock County, Virginia.

The remains of the Hillwood house (c. 1840s/50s) on the winery grounds. A fire nearly destroyed the historic structure in 1990. In 2008, Jon Hickox took down the damaged walls but preserved the foundation.

The Tasting Room represents two styles of Virginia barns. The darker wood structure built of reclaimed stone and wood is about the same size as the 19th century barn that stood at Hillwood. The white structure is typical of the 1920s dairy barns that were seen across Northern Virginia until the 1950s. 

The Tasting Room at the winery features display cases filled with relics that were found on the property and at other places nearby. Pictured above is a variety of artifacts from a field hospital that was located in front of the Hillwood house.

Additional artifacts in the Tasting Room, including artillery shells, Minie balls, and a State of New York belt buckle.

A view over the vineyard. Both Union and Confederate troops crossed this property at the time of the fighting at Manassas in July 1861 and August 1862. US-29, the Warrenton Turnpike during the war, is beyond the distant treeline.

What I believe to be a reconstructed winter cabin, similar to those used by Confederates in Centreville during the winter of 1861-62. 

One of several historical markers placed on the grounds at the winery. This one has a rather fanciful depiction of Hillwood, the Stone Bridge, and environs, during First Manassas.

The Winery at Bull Run represents a successful marriage of preservation and agricultural tourism. Large swaths of commercial and residential development have largely spoiled this part of Northern Virginia; the Hickoxes ensured that the pastoral and historic landscape of Hillwood would be preserved for generations to come. An outing to the winery is a must for any Civil War enthusiast. And the allure of wine tasting will make it easy for other family members to indulge in your love of history.

Sources & More Information
Local historian Chuck Mauro has written an interesting history of the Hillwood property and winery. The booklet is available for purchase at the winery's Tasting Room.

For more information on visiting The Winery at Bull Run, go to the vineyard's website here.

Confederate Symbols, a Call to Moderation, and a Respect for History

I guess it was folly for me to think I could avoid writing a post on the recent controversy over Confederate symbols. I usually try to steer clear of these fights. However, as an amateur historian (or whatever you want to call me!), the recent turn of events is very troubling. We now find ourselves in a battle of extremes. On the one end, there are those who would just as soon tear down and erase every trace of the Confederacy on American soil; on the other, those who deny that slavery had anything at all to do with the Civil War or the Confederacy and assert that the Confederate flag is just "heritage."

The flag of the 28th Virginia Infantry, captured by the 1st Minnesota at Gettysburg, was on display at the Minnesota Historical Society for the 150th of the battle. (courtesy of MPR)

If you follow me on social media, you generally know where I come out on these issues. But I thought I'd use this post to break it down into a few key points:

1) As a boy, I grew up admiring the South, and the Confederate generals. (See this post.) I even had a few Confederate flags in my bedroom. I didn't really make the slavery connection back then. So the flag to me meant the Civil War and Lee and Jackson. Only later, as an adult, did I come to understand and appreciate the multiple meanings behind it, including the fact that it represents a political entity whose main purpose was the preservation and perpetuation of human bondage. That said, when I see the flag I still think first of battles and generals and my boyhood interest in the war -- despite my better instincts.

2) I think the Confederate flag, in any iteration, should not fly from state houses, town halls, and other government buildings. It wasn't flying there right after the war, and in many instances, it only went up again to protest the civil rights laws and desegragationist court decisions of the 1950s and 60s. Although it may represent the sacrifices and bravery of Confederate ancestors, it also represents slavery and treason to many others. And let's not forget to mention those who actually want the flag to fly there in the name of white supremacy. Gotta go.

3) Some people are now calling for the removal or elimination of Confederate monuments and memorials that dot town squares and other public places across the South. I can see little good in such actions. In most cases, these statues and other monuments were erected by the Confederate veterans themselves, or their immediate offspring. These memorials tell us a lot about how Southerners in the 19th and early 20th century chose to commemorate and remember the war. Sure, they may be associated with a cause we find distasteful (and should), but that doesn't give us a license to destroy our past. If we were to erase these memorials, we'd be no better than Soviet propagandists or ISIS radicals. Instead, as I have noted before on this blog, we should maintain these memorials, and place them in the proper context if necessary. This could include adding markers to explain the meaning of the monuments and what they represent. (The Atlantic published a thoughtful piece on this idea here. I also wrote previously about this issue with respect to Alexandria's Confederate monument here.) Some bloggers and professional historians, like Kevin Levin in this post, are unfortunately opening the door to a slippery slope. Whatever our personal views on the Confederacy, we shouldn't be providing people with a rationale for dismantling the past in our public spaces.

4) The placement of the Confederate flags at museums and historic sites seems like a no-brainer. Where better to interpret the flag and display it than in its historical context? If visitors can't view original regimental Confederate Battle Flags at battlefield museums, for example, then they are missing the chance to connect with tangible and meaningful artifacts. However, the recent move by the National Park Service (NPS) at Ft. Sumter is troubling. (Check out Craig's excellent post here on the subject.) Hopefully others won't go the same way, and Ft. Sumter will reverse its decision.

5) Reenactments and living history demonstrations are another appropriate place to show the flag. Again, however, we see a step backwards when the Gettysburg Seminary bans the display of the flag in a way that adversely impacts living history events held on campus. Far from being a "courageous stand," the action represents nothing more than caving in to public pressure. "Courageous" would have been a position that allowed display of the colors by reenactment groups.

6) Another part of the debate involves what I dub "the bottom of the barrel." Some folks are now just overreaching and looking for excuses to do a complete purge. The debate has focused on removing all vestiges of the Confederacy from gift shops, on-line stores, military bases, street names, and even TV programming. Some of this is downright silly. I mean, is the Duke boys' car really hurting anyone? One of the most ridiculous and foolish proposals I have seen calls for the re-naming of a U.S. Navy vessel because it carries the name of a Confederate victory, Chancellorsville! As for sales of the flag, private enterprises have the right to sell what they want, but they may just be hurting their bottom line, and their capitulation speaks more to their inability to stand up to the current witch hunt than anything. Street, school, and base names have at times been controversial, but I am sure that most people haven't thought twice about them as they go about their daily lives. How many are actually offended by a street or school named after a Confederate icon? That said, if a community wishes to rename public places and streets through the democratic process, then be my guest. Again, however, that just seems like overkill.

7) So how do we get out of this mess? A solution calls for mutual understanding and moderation, as well as a healthy dose of respect for preserving our history. America needs to stop the wholesale rush to dismantle or reshape the past,  and instead engage in a thoughtful discussion about the Confederacy. (For example,see Robert's post here.) We also can't ignore the hard truths about the causes of the Civil War.

I am a bit saddened that we did not use the Sesquicentennial to address our history in this way. Instead, extreme passions in the wake of the tragedy in Charleston have driven the agenda just as we are wrapping up the commemoration of our bloodiest war. One possible step in the right direction involves building, rather than tearing down. We should take action to remember slavery and the role of African-Americans in the war. I'd love to work on historical signage to commemorate Northern Virginia's contraband camps. I am sure there are many such opportunities across our country. As we celebrate the Fourth of July, let's strive to heal the divisions that have developed and come together as a country to shape a commemorative landscape that works for all.

A Tour of Concord's Abolitionist History

Every summer I take a trip with my wife and kids to visit her family near Boston. I tend to set aside at least a day dedicated to history. After all, her hometown is right down the road from where the shot heard round the world was fired in 1775, and colonial and Revolutionary War attractions abound. At the same time, there is no shortage of Civil War-related sites in the Bay State, and given my interests, I've made sure to include them on my to-do list each year. Last summer I toured Ft. Warren, the site of a Union prison on Georges Island near Boston, and in 2012 I checked out the antebellum and Civil War past of Lexington and Concord. This year I decided to take a closer look at the sites in Concord that are associated with the town's rich history of abolitionism.

As I wrote a few years ago, Concord was a hub of antebellum intellectual and literary life. Famous writers and philosophers, including Bronson Alcott, Louisa May Alcott, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and Henry David Thoreau, called the town home. Most of the artistic and intellectual class also shared a passion for abolitionism. Concord served as a stop on the Underground Railroad, and townspeople became ardent supporters of John Brown as the situation rapidly deteriorated in Bleeding Kansas.

During my 2012 visit, I hit some of the abolitionist highlights, but I promised to come back and do a more thorough tour. A local non-profit, known as the Drinking Gourd Project, has compiled an excellent walking tour and map, available online and at the Concord Visitor Center.  The group is dedicated to spreading the word about the town's African-American and antislavery history. I decided to concentrate on many of the sites included in the organization's brochure. (Note that in this post I am focused for the most part on places that I had not visited a couple of years ago; readers wanting a more comprehensive view of antebellum and Civil War sites in Concord are advised to read my earlier post as well.)

The Concord Museum on the Cambridge Turnpike.

My first stop was the impressive Concord Museum. As I expected, most of the exhibits centered on the town's colonial and Revolutionary War past, as well as nineteenth century literary life. The museum's Civil War artifacts were featured as part of a special exhibition at the start of the Sesquicentennial, but I was disappointed to see that very few of them are displayed on a permanent basis. Luckily the museum had a room dedicated to prewar social activism, and I was able to view some interesting antislavery-related items.

A view of Emerson's study. The museum has reconstituted the room using original furnishings. A reluctant abolitionist at first, Emerson became increasingly outspoken against slavery. He delivered several antislavery addresses during the twenty years prior to the Civil War.

Display focusing on abolitionism in Concord. Pictured at right are Mary Merrick Brooks, first president of the Concord Ladies' Antislavery Society, and John Brown, who visited Concord in 1857 and 1859. 

"Uncle Tom and Eva," made in England between 1855-60. People displayed such ceramic pieces in their homes to demonstrate antislavery views. These particular figurines were a gift to Thoreau from a slave that he helped escape to Canada. 

One of the few Civil War pieces in the museum. This poster advertises the 1861-62 Concord Lyceum on "National Honor." Emerson was one of the scheduled lecturers. 

Original furniture from Thoreau's cabin at Walden Pond, where he resided from 1845-47. He penned some of his most famous works at the desk, including Walden and "Civil Disobedience."

Following my stop at the museum, I began my walking tour of some key abolitionist and Underground Railroad sites in Concord. Most of the homes remain private property, so I could only take a look from the street!

The Reuben Brown House (77 Lexington Rd.). Emerson lodged John Brown here when the noted abolitionist visited Concord in March 1857. Aside from Emerson, Brown also met Thoreau during his stay.

The First Parish Church (20 Lexington Rd.), a scene of antislavery gatherings. Both Frederick Douglass and Harriet Tubman spoke here in the years prior to the Civil War. The current structure was built in 1900-01 to resemble the colonial-era church that burned to the ground. 

Franklin Sanborn House & Schoolroom (49 Sudbury Rd.). Sanborn opened the Concord School here in 1855. Among his students were the children of such literary giants as Ralph Waldo Emerson and Nathaniel Hawthorne. Sanborn was active in the antislavery movement and served as secretary of the Massachusetts Free Soil Association. He traveled to Kansas in 1856 and met John Brown the following year. Sanborn became a member of the "Secret Six," a group which helped to finance and plan Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry. He hosted Brown at his home for three days in May 1859. After Brown was hanged in December 1859, his daughters came to Concord to attend Sanborn's school.

This engraving from Harper's Weekly depicts the attempted arrest of Sanborn in Concord on the night of April 3, 1860 (courtesy of Wikipedia). When Sanborn ignored a summons from a Senate committee investigating the raid on Harpers Ferry, federal marshals appeared at his residence and tried to arrest him. A group of townspeople quickly assembled and interfered with the arrest. Local judge Ebenezer Hoar issued a writ of habeas corpus, which prevented the marshals from carrying Sanborn away. 

Col. William Whiting House (169 Main St.). Whiting, a carriage maker, was one of Concord's most active abolitionists. He served as president of the Middlesex County Anti-Slavery Society and as a vice president of the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society. Whiting's house was a stop on the Underground Railroad. Aside from John Brown, abolitionists William Lloyd Garrison and Wendell Phillips were also guests here.

Thoreau-Alcott House (255 Main St.). The entire Thoreau family, including Henry David, moved to this house in 1849-50. The Thoreaus, all ardent abolitionists, sheltered former slave Henry Williams here in 1851 before sending him by train to Canada. Henry David Thoreau died at the Main Street house in 1862. The Alcott family moved here in 1877.

Concord Town House (22 Monument Square). In March 1857, John Brown spoke here to an audience of around 100 that included Emerson and Thoreau. Both men contributed to the cause. In May 1859, Brown again gave a speech at the Town House, this time raising $2,000. Bronson Alcott, Emerson, and Thoreau were all in attendance. Following Brown's trial and execution, Concord held a memorial service at the Town House. Both Emerson and Thoreau played a role in painting Brown as a martyr for the antislavery cause.

Mary Rice House (44 Bedford St.). Rice was a Concord school teacher and a stationmaster on the Underground Railroad. In 1864 she collected signatures from 195 pupils on a petition asking President Abraham Lincoln to emancipate all slave children. Lincoln replied: "Please tell these little people I am very glad their young hearts are so full of just and generous sympathy, and that, while I have not the power to grant all they ask, I trust they will remember that God has, and that, as it seems, He wills to do it." Today the petition and Lincoln's reply hang in Concord's elementary schools. (See here for the full story.)

Historical marker on Concord's Monument Square indicating the spot where Thoreau was imprisoned in 1846 for failing to pay a poll tax in protest against the Mexican War and the spread of slavery. As the marker notes, Thoreau wrote of this incident in the essay, "Civil Disobedience."

As I waited for my lift home in Monument Square, I reflected on my trip through Concord's past. Here, where the American Revolution began, many townspeople participated in a new struggle for liberty and freedom. Some of Concord's abolitionists have gone down in history as famous writers and philosophers, but they were also political activists of the antebellum North. Their connections to the movement were numerous, and at times radical. Regional tensions took root here as much as on the plantations and in the state capitols of the South. But in the end, the streets of Concord would lead inexorably towards a promise fulfilled.

Sources

Aside from the links provided above, the following resources were useful in compiling this post:

Concord Free Public Library, Antislavery in Concord: An Online Exhibition Drawn from the William Monroe Special Collections of the Concord Free Public Library (website); First Parish Church in Concord, "History of First Parish"; Rick Frese, Concord and the Civil War: From Walden Pond to the Gettysburg Front (2014).

Odds and Ends, April 2014

This week I offer readers a few odds and ends of interest. There is a lot going on, and sometimes it's good to just throw it all out there!

*The busy season for the 1864 Sesquicentennial is about to begin. Over the next few months, we will commemorate the Overland Campaign, the siege of Petersburg, Jubal Early's raid and the Battles of Monocacy and Ft. Stevens, and the Atlanta Campaign, to name a few. Most immediately, Fredericksburg & Spotsylvania National Military Park is observing the 150th anniversary of Wilderness and Spotsylvania. The park has set up a dedicated web page for all Sesquicentennial-related matters. Check here for a complete program of events, including living history and Ranger-led, real-time hikes. The offerings are truly dizzying, and I hope you'll be able to attend at least some of these very special events, which start May 3. I unfortunately have limited vacation time right now, but whatever I do, I'll be sure to report back. And look for my buddy, fellow blogger, and Sesquicentennialist extraordinaire Craig Swain, who will be in the thick of it, live Tweeting and all that good stuff.

*Closer to home, Falls Church will hold its annual Civil War Day on Saturday, May 17, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on the grounds of the historic Cherry Hill House and Farm (c. 1845), a Unionist property during the conflict. The Cherry Hill website promises a day filled with numerous activities:

Learn how the Civil War affected Falls Church as re-enactors portray both civilians and soldiers from the period. Watch soldiers conduct firing and drilling exercises, listen to spy stories, letter readings and period music. Look for our children’s tent filled with lots of activities for kids.  

Old-fashioned box lunches with fried chicken, cole slaw, corn bread, ginger cake, and lemonade can be pre-ordered for $8.00. Call (703) 248-5171 for more information.This event is always a fun and interesting time for those interested in the Civil War in these parts.

My sons meet General Lee (Frank Orlando) while Fairfax Museum Curator Susan Gray looks on.

*Speaking of local happenings, last Saturday I took my boys to the 14th Annual Fairfax Civil War Day at Historic Blenheim in the City of Fairfax. This was my first time attending the event, which offered activities for young and old alike. Exhibits, tours, and lectures covered a variety of topics, including German-American caricaturists in the Civil War, preserving Fairfax history, railroads, and medicine. Visitors could see an 1862 traveling forage in action, as well as the remnants of a corduroy road recently unearthed along VA-123. My twins are only three, so we were limited to the taking horse-drawn wagon rides, visiting the camp of the 17th Virginia, meeting General Lee, feeding the horses of the Black Horse Cavalry, and climbing the hay pyramid. But I was happy to expose the boys to Civil War history and introduce them to our rural past. I take it as a good sign that they rushed to buy souvenirs in the gift shop! (A Springfield musket pen and 34-star flag....) I was also pleased to see so many other families with young children enjoying the day. As an added bonus, I had a chance to catch up with a few local historians.

*I have begun work on a possible Civil War Trails marker to commemorate the winter encampment of the Pennsylvania Reserves at Camp Pierpont in Langley. As readers know, my interest in this topic borders on an obsession. At the present time, nothing in Langley marks the site where one of the Army of the Potomac's most storied units spent the first winter of the war under the leadership of McCall, Meade, Reynolds, and Ord. Hopefully this will change in the relatively near future. I will keep everyone informed as I move forward with this project.

*The April 2014 edition of the Civil War News includes an article by reporter Nancy J. Olds about a nineteenth-century Sunday school tract that a reader gave me last year. The book contains an inscription indicating that it was taken from the home of a "Rebel" near Lewinsville,Virginia by Sgt. William A.C. Oaks of the 7th Pennsylvania Reserves. I wrote a post about the artifact last year.

Looking over graveyard towards Lewinsville Presbyterian Church in McLean.

*Last week I had the pleasure of meeting Roland McElroy, a freelance writer and congregant of Lewinsville Presbyterian Church. During the government shutdown in October, I found myself with free time and decided to do some field research at the church. Lewinsville Presbyterian was established in 1846 and sustained extensive damage during the Union occupation of Lewinsville, now part of McLean. The original church building is long gone, but the old cemetery survives. An assistant in the church's office gave me Roland's name and told me that he had just written a history of Lewinsville Presbyterian. When we finally met for coffee, he presented me with his work, Pilgrims and Pioneers Always: The History of Lewinsville Presbyterian Church, 1846-2013. Roland also gave me a copy of The Lewinsville Presbyterian Church: A Concise History of the Congregation, written by Frank W. Gapp in 1976. I am indebted to Roland for these two books, which contain priceless details about the church during the Civil War. (Incidentally, copies of Roland's book can be purchased in person at Lewinsville Presbyterian, 1724 Chain Bridge Road, McLean for $10.) Roland and I also plan to collaborate on research. He is going through the church archives and uncovering some very useful and interesting information. I hope to blog about the church in upcoming posts. Like for many congregations around Northern Virginia, the war brought tremendous and often unwanted change.

Railroad History in Ellicott City, Maryland

Railroads seem to dominate life in the Baumgarten household these days. My twin boys love trains, and Santa just got them a wooden train table for Christmas. I'll also admit to being a train aficionado, ever since the days of HO model railroading in my parents' basement. (In a former life, I was even a railroad lawyer representing Union Pacific!) It should come as no surprise that we've had some train-related family outings, including the requisite stops at local model railroad displays. But no visit so far can match the Sunday we spent at the B&O Railroad Museum in Ellicott City, Maryland.

Ellicott City, known as Ellicott's Mills in the nineteenth century, was the terminus of the nation's first thirteen miles of commercial rail. The Baltimore and Ohio (B&O) Railroad built the station in 1830-31 out of local granite. Now part of the B&O Railroad Museum system, it is considered "the oldest surviving railroad station in America." (B&O Railroad Museum, Ellicott City Station website.) The railroad first used the station for handling freight, but made changes in 1856-57 to accommodate passenger traffic.

Streetside view of the  Ellicott City Station, part of the B&O Railroad Museum. A Civil War Trails marker sits in the foreground. For more information, see the Historical Marker Database.

During the Civil War, the B&O Railroad played a pivotal role in moving men and materiel for the Union military. Various Federal units were assigned to protect the rails at Ellicott's Mills. The homegrown Patapsco Guards, organized in September 1861, stood watch over the railroad until the spring of the following year. The 12th New Jersey was encamped at Ellicott's Mills from September-December 1862. Pennsylvania and Maine troops also performed guard duty in the town. Confederate prisoners of war captured at Antietam and Gettysburg were kept at the Ellicott's Mills Station while awaiting parole or transportation to prison camps. After the Battle of Monocacy in July 1864, the defeated Federals retreated through Ellicott's Mills as they made their way to Baltimore by train and on foot.

Trackside view of the station looking towards the north (away from Baltimore). The Patapsco River sits at the bottom of an embankment located just beyond the fence and elevated tracks to the right. The doors to the car house are visible in the middle of the building. By the 1840s, trains were no longer pulled into the station. A replica of the first horse-drawn passenger rail car, Pioneer, sits on tracks outside the station.

A close-up view of the horse-drawn passenger car Pioneer. The first trains on the B&O Railroad were drawn by horses. More powerful steam locomotives soon replaced them.

View of the station's administrative office, which later served as the ladies' waiting room. The museum has added a few Civil War-era touches (Union great coat, national colors of the Patapsco Guards, and portrait of President Lincoln), even if not technically correct to the period when the room was used as an administrative office (1831-56).

The station's telegraph room and ticket office, which was added during the 1856-57 conversion for passenger service. Men purchased their tickets through the window on the right; women and children bought theirs from a window on the opposite wall.

View past the Pioneer to the 1885 freight house and 1927 "I-5" caboose. The freight building now houses a 40-foot HO-gauge model of the B&O line between Baltimore and Ellicott's Mills. In honor of the Sesquicentennial, the museum has chosen to depict the thirteen mile stretch as it appeared during the Civil War.

Detail of model railroad display in freight house showing Union artillery emplacement, Camp Relay, and the Thomas Viaduct.

View of Main Street in Ellicott City. A walk through the historic town, whose streets are lined with many shops and restaurants, is well worth the time following a visit to the train station. During the Civil War, mill workers and merchants in Ellicott City and surrounding Howard County were largely Unionist, although pockets of Confederate sympathizers also existed. 

My son Jack standing in front of the last remaining arch of the Oliver Viaduct over the Tiber River. The railroad station sits to the right of the viaduct. Originally composed of three arches, the Oliver Viaduct was completed in 1830 and carried trains across the Baltimore & Frederick Turnpike, or National Road (today's Main Street/MD 144).

The railroad Bridge across Main Street welcomes visitors to Ellicott City. The bridge connects with the remaining arch of the Oliver Viaduct to the left.

View of the Patapsco River on a beautiful fall day. The railroad station sits above the river to the right.

The B&O Railroad Museum in Ellicott City made the Civil War Trust's "Essential To-Do List" for the 150th anniversary of the Civil War. After my trip to the museum in October, I understood why. The station transports visitors back to a day when the B&O Railroad was essential to the Union war effort. A stroll through the old town past nineteenth century buildings further enhances the time travel effect. Whether you are a Civil War enthusiast, a railroad fan, or simply curious about history, I'd recommend a visit to Ellicott City and the B&O Railroad Museum.

More Information

For additional information about visiting the B&O Railroad Museum's Ellicott City Station, see here. The museum's main complex is located in Baltimore.

"The War Came By Train" is the B&O Railroad Museum's special commemoration of the Sesquicentennial of the Civil War. The museum is sponsoring a variety of Civil War-related events and exhibits now through December 2015. The day I visited the Ellicott City Station, for instance, the museum was featuring an interpretative panel on the role of the Patapsco Guards during the Gettysburg Campaign. For more information on the 150th commemoration, including events in Ellicott City, see the museum's website.

EllicottCity.net provides extensive information on visiting the town, including attractions, restaurants, and shopping.

A list of historical markers in Ellicott City, including Civil War Trails stops, can be found here.

Sources

Aside from the links provided in the above text, the following sources were useful in compiling this post:

B&O Railroad Museum, "Image 2: The Oliver Viaduct"; Lisa Kawata, "Union soldiers' letters offer insight about Civil War camp in Ellicott City," Baltimore Sun, Feb. 1, 2011; Janet P. Kusterer & Victoria Goeller, Remembering Ellicott City: Stories from the Patapsco River Valley (2009); Maryland Dept. of Natural Resources, "The Thomas Viaduct -- A Vital Link"; Maryland Historical Trust, "Inventory Form for State Historic Sites Survey: Oliver Viaduct"; Maryland Historical Trust, "National Register Listings: Howard County: Ellicott City Station, B&O Railway"; John F. Stover, History of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (1987).

New England Civil War Monuments: Westford and York

I've often thought that the town commons of New England are the Yankee equivalent of the courthouse squares down South. The presence of the Civil War looms just as large in the villages of Massachusetts or Maine as it does in small towns throughout Dixie. Of course, the monuments in New England honor a different cause, but they also serve as an equally powerful reminder of how Americans sought to commemorate the service and sacrifice of local soldiers once the war had ended.

Westford's Memorials

This summer I traveled to New England a couple of times, and on each trip, I had an opportunity to explore some of the region's Civil War monuments. My wife hails from Westford, Massachusetts, a town recently named by Money as one of America's best places to live.  The Civil War is never very far away in Westford -- the town chose to erect three different memorials to honor its native sons who fought for the Union.

The Westford Town Hall was built in 1870. That same year, the town dedicated a marble panel inscribed with the names of thirty-three war dead who hailed from Westford. The tablet, which was installed inside the Town Hall, carries an incredible amount of detail on most of the soldiers (and one sailor), including unit affiliation as well as the place and date of death. This memorial speaks plainly yet poignantly of those who made the ultimate sacrifice in the name of their country.

The Westford Town Hall from across Main Street. Constructed in 1870, the building was enlarged in 1880 and recently underwent an extensive renovation.

Memorial to Westford's Civil War dead inside the Town Hall. The panel is located on a staircase landing just inside the front entrance to the building. 

A detail from the memorial to Westford's Civil War dead, including soldiers who fell at Second Manassas and Antietam. Some of the deaths  recorded on the memorial occurred after the fighting had ended due to diseases that were contracted during the war. The latest death was recorded on July 11, 1867.

A few decades later, Col. Edwin D. Metcalf, a wealthy businessman and politician who had lived in Westford as a little boy, donated money for the construction of a memorial to honor the town's citizens who had served their country during the Civil War. The monument -- a bronze solider mounted atop a large granite base -- was dedicated on Memorial Day 1910. Edwin's father, Lt. William Metcalf, served in Co. C, 16th Massachusetts. He was apparently the first person in Westford to enlist at the outbreak of hostilities in 1861. Although Edwin Metcalf had long since moved away, he never forgot the delegation of Civil War veterans who met him at the train station when he returned to Westford to bury his father. As he told the crowd at the dedication ceremony:

They were strangers to me, they came without any solicitation, they came without any previous knowledge on my part, but I was so much pleased and so much touched at the spirit of devotion and loyalty of those who had stood shoulder to shoulder during the Civil War, that I then and there resolved that I would do something in Westford to the memory of the Veterans, and I hope this monument will stand and serve as an inspiration to the younger generation to take their part in matters of vital interest of their day, and to keep and preserve intact the good name of this great country, as the soldiers of Westford were ready to do 49 years ago. (quoted in Westford's Civil War Monument: A Centennial History from Contemporaneous Sources.)

The Westford Civil War Monument, erected in 1910 on a piece of land across from the town common. Over 200 men from Westford served in the Union military during the Civil War. Many veterans from Westford and neighboring Chelmsford attended the dedication ceremonies. Aside from Edwin Metcalf, former Massachusetts Governor and ex-Secretary of the Navy John D. Long and former Assistant Secretary of the Treasury Charles S. Hamlin also addressed attendees. Incidentally, Long had served as preceptor of the Westford Academy (my wife's alma mater) in the late 1850s.

In 1924, Westford commissioned a memorial to honor those residents who had served in the military from colonial times through the First World War. The eight-sided monument, topped by a large bronze eagle, was placed on the town common in November 1924. An entire side is dedicated to Westford's Civil War volunteers.

Westford's War Memorial, 1924. Service in each conflict from colonial times through World War I is commemorated by a bronze plate. (The Mexican War (1846-48) is missing, so presumably Westford did not send any volunteers to participate in that fight.)

One side of the monument contains this famous quote from Massachusetts Sen. Daniel Webster's January 27, 1830 speech against the Southern doctrine of nullification of Federal laws. The Union was still a powerful concept when this memorial was dedicated almost sixty years after the end of the Civil War.

The plate dedicated to those from Westford who served and died in the Civil War. The inscription leaves no doubt that Westford viewed the war as a fight to preserve the Union and end slavery.

York's "Confederate" Memorial

Aside from Westford, I also made a couple of side trips to York, a charming old seacoast town located in the southwest corner of Maine. Driving through York Village in early July, I did a double-take as we passed the town's Civil War monument. The soldier atop the base looks like anything but a typical Union infantryman. I made sure to go back and check it out in person during our August trip to York.

According to local legend, York accidentally received a statue destined for a Confederate war memorial, but the town leaders refused to acknowledge a mix-up. Around twenty years ago, York discovered that Kingstree, South Carolina had a similar problem -- the statue on the monument there appeared to be a Yankee. A person from York even wrote a letter to the people of Kingstree and proposed a "friendly exchange of our last two prisoners of war." But the historical record just doesn't support the theory of a switch. The statues were made in different years and in different states. The real story is a bit less interesting. More recent research indicates that the design of York's statue was deliberately chosen by the monument committee.

The Civil War Monument in York, Maine. The inscription reads:  "Erected 1906 to Sons of York who served their country in Army and Navy for preservation of the Union." Former Maine Governor Joshua Chamberlain of Little Round Top fame presided at the dedication ceremony on May 2, 1906. I wonder what he thought of the statue!

The odd representation of a Union soldier atop the York Civil War Monument. The uniform seems more like something out of the Spanish-American War, although one account has noted a resemblance to the garb that soldiers from the Iron Brigade or 20th Maine wore.

As I returned to the Washington area after my trips north, I reflected on what I had seen. Whether in Westford, York, or elsewhere, towns and cities across New England erected monuments to honor the sacrifices made by their own during the Civil War. But how many people walk or drive pass them every day without so much as a glance? These memorials in granite, marble, and bronze are more than just relics of the past. They are there to remind us of those who fought and died for Union and freedom. They also speak to the human toll that the war took on local communities. The least we can do now is to stop, listen, and reflect.

Sources

Donald Cartmell, The Civil War Up Close: Thousands of Curious, Obscure, and Fascinating Facts About the War America Could Never Win (2005); Karen Dandurant, "Soldier's garb generates doubt about monument," Seacoast Online, Sept. 26, 2004; Tony Horwitz, Confederates in the Attic: Dispatches from the Unfinished Civil War (1998); Dan Huntley, "Civil War's granite soldiers rooted out behind 'enemy lines,'" The Day (New London, CT), Oct. 13, 1994; Gordon B. Seavey, "Because a grateful son refused to forget his past," Westford Eagle (date unavailable) (on file with J.V. Fletcher Library, Westford, MA); U.S. Capitol Visitor Center, History of Congress and the Capitol (website); Westford Museum & Historical Society (website); Westford's Civil War Monument: A Centennial History from Contemporaneous Sources (website).

Some Odds and Ends

Life has been a bit hectic recently, meaning I haven't had as much time for research and writing about the war. This week I will be taking a mini-vacation, which translates into even fewer chances to blog. However, before leaving my keyboard behind, I wanted to share at least a few odds and ends:

*The City of Fairfax Museum & Visitor Center is running a Sesquicentennial exhibition entitled Civil War Fairfax 1863 from now through January 2014. According to the city's website, the exhibition "examines the events and personalities that defined life in Fairfax Court House in 1863. Themes include the emancipation of slaves, the growing Union Army presence, daring raids by Confederate John S. Mosby and his partisan rangers, the unsettled lives of Fairfax’s civilians, and the complicated romance between southerner Antonia Ford and Union Army Major Joseph C. Willard." I look forward to visiting this one at some point in the near future. Incidentally, the museum consulted with me on Fairfax's contraband camps when the exhibit was under development, so I will be interested to see how the displays address this interesting and important topic. For more details, see here.

*Civil War Railroad Buff Alert! I recently discovered that the Fairfax Station Railroad Museum is offering a couple of Civil War-related forums. On August 14 at 7:30 pm, Civil War historian Ron McAnaw will discuss "Military Actions Around the Orange and Alexandria Railroad, 1862-64." Later this fall, on November 13 at 7:30 pm, the museum will feature a lecture on the "Use of the Orange and Alexandria Railroad in Support of the Army of the Potomac, 1862-64" by railroad historian Ron Beavers. Both programs are free to the public. For more information on the upcoming Fairfax Station Forums, see here. The museum also offers Civil War tours of the area. The next one is tentatively scheduled for October 2013, but further details are not yet available. The museum itself features items on Civil War history, as well as model railroad exhibits. But be warned -- opening hours are usually limited to Sundays from 1 pm to 4 pm.

The Fairfax Station Railroad Museum, housed in a post-Civil War station. I blogged about the Civil War history of the site here.

*Whenever you travel this summer, whether near or far, don't forget about the Historical Marker Database (www.hmdb.org). Before going somewhere, I tend to research the local historical sites by doing searches on HMDB. This often catches some obscure but interesting places that normally don't show up in the glossy brochures. In fact, I used HMDB a few years ago to pull together a Civil War-related tour of Roanoke Island. Once arriving at my destination, I use HMDB's mobile app on my iPhone to pick up nearby markers that I may have missed. Of course, I am always on the prowl for new markers to add to the database. Most recently, I contributed entries for two Judah P. Benjamin-related sites in Sarasota, Florida. (See here and here.) I suppose you could say I am a "Marker Hunter," but not like Craig Swain, the original one! Head to Craig's blog, To the Sound of the Guns, if you want to explore battlefields by marker. He has done an amazing job of cataloguing and mapping the markers and monuments on various key battlefields, including Antietam and Gettysburg. (See here.)

*I hope to return soon to the topic of the contraband camps in present-day McLean. I just need to get out and take some pictures in my neighborhood to show what the area looks like today. I also plan to blog a little more about the war's impact on civilians as we head into the late summer and early fall. These stories have been in the pipeline for quite some time, and I look forward to sharing them.

A Visit to Fort Warren in Boston Harbor

Last month my wife, kids, and I headed to the Boston area to visit with her parents. This trip is fast becoming an annual ritual, and as part of our vacation, I make sure to squeeze in a visit to local Civil War sites with my father-in-law and fellow buff (aka "the Colonel"). Last year I fashioned a Civil War-themed tour of Lexington and Concord. This summer I made a long-anticipated trip to historic Fort Warren in Boston Harbor.

The Colonel and I drove to downtown Boston on the last Saturday in June and took the thirty-minute ferry ride to Georges Island from the Long Wharf in Boston Harbor. Fort Warren occupies most of the 53-acre island. The fortification is part of the Boston Harbor Islands, A National Park Area, which is jointly administered by federal, state, municipal, and nonprofit agencies. The Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) has the main responsibility for Georges Island. The Colonel and I made a stop at the museum in the Visitor Center and then joined a Ranger-guided walking tour of the fort.

The U.S. Government began construction of Fort Warren in 1833 using granite from Quincy and Cape Ann, Massachusetts. The five-sided fortification was designed to protect the main shipping channels into Boston. The Army named the fort after Dr. Joseph Warren, a general of the Massachusetts Militia who was killed at the Battle of Bunker Hill in 1775.

The walls of Fort Warren dominate the wharf at Georges Island. The red brick building, which now houses the Visitor Center, was built in 1906 and served as a mine storage and servicing station in both World Wars. The Visitor Center was opened in 2010 and contains an array of informative exhibits on the history of Fort Warren. A short introductory film is also shown throughout the day. Any visit to Fort Warren should start here.

A wartime view of Fort Warren from the Dec. 7, 1861 edition of Harper's Weekly (courtesy of sonofthesouth.net).

Fort Warren was not altogether finished when the Civil War erupted in 1861. The Second Battalion of Massachusetts Infantry, also known as the "Tigers," arrived in April 1861 and began work to prepare the fort for occupancy and use. During the spring and summer months of 1861, the 11th, 12th, and 14th Massachusetts trained at Fort Warren before heading to the front around Washington. The fort was regularly garrisoned by Massachusetts units.

In October 1861, the Union decided to use the fort to hold Confederate military and political prisoners. Around 2,200 prisoners were kept at Fort Warren throughout the war. Most prison stays were relatively short in duration. Conditions at the fort were rather humane compared to other Union prisoner of war camps, and only thirteen prisoners died in captivity. Civilians in Boston even made charitable donations of food, clothing, blankets, medicine, books and other items. Gens. Simon Bolivar Buckner, Richard Ewell, and Isaac Trimble were among the more famous Confederate military prisoners. Confederate diplomats James Mason and John Slidell were sent to Fort Warren following their capture aboard the British mail steamer, Trent, in November 1861. The arrest of the two officials heightened tensions between the United States and Britain. The envoys remained at the fort until the following January, when they were set free on orders from Secretary of State William Seward. One of the fort's most famous prisoners, Confederate Vice President Alexander H. Stephens, was held there from May to October 1865. Other political prisoners included members of the Maryland Legislature and the police marshal of Baltimore.

The fort continued in military service through the end of World War II. Various artillery improvements were made over the years, including the installation of huge 12-inch guns on disappearing carriages around the turn of the last century. Fort Warren was decommissioned in the early 1950s. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts acquired possession from the U.S. Government in 1958 and opened the fort to the public in 1961. Georges Island, including Fort Warren, became part of the National Park System in 1996.

The guardhouse (left) on the outside of Fort Warren. The arch over the walkway was built right before World War II. The guardhouse served as the fort's security office. Soldiers doing garrison duty were also jailed here as punishment for violating army rules.  

 A dirt coverface was constructed on two of the fort's five sides (Fronts II and III); this demilune was erected on the shore side of the coverface. The demilune was the site of one of the few attempts to escape from Fort Warren. In October 1863, a Maine soldier who was imprisoned at Fort Warren for desertion widened a musket loophole and slipped through. He leaped into the channel, where a passing schooner discovered him. The soldier was returned to the fort. The supposed loophole is the fourth opening in the demilune from the left. A historical marker next to the loophole describes the story of the unsuccessful escape.

A view of the sallyport along the Front III exterior wall. 

A picture of the sallyport along the interior side of the fort's Front III. The date of 1850 indicates the year by which most of the work on the fort was complete. A marker indicating the fort's designation as a National Historic Landmark in 1970 is located to the right of the entrance.

A view from the sallyport across the parade ground to the Front I casemates. The parade ground was used for military drills and reviews, as well as recreational purposes. The Union authorities permitted Confederate prisoners to exercise here. Incidentally, Fort Warren gave birth to the popular war tune, John Brown's Body, which was played on the parade ground by the band of the 12th Massachusetts. Pvt. John Brown was a soldier from the Massachusetts Tiger Battalion who shared a name with the famous abolitionist executed for his role in the raid on Harpers Ferry. While assigned to garrison duty at the fort, Brown's fellow soldiers began to make jokes about his name. For example, when Brown was late to drill, they wondered how it could be Brown because Brown was already dead. A parody was soon set to the tune of a well-known hymn. Upon arriving at Fort Warren in May 1861, the members of the 12th Massachusetts adopted the song as their own and carried it to the front. Later, Julia Ward Howe took John Brown's Body and penned the new lyrics that became The Battle Hymn of the Republic.

Front III casemates, which were used to hold captured Confederate officers and political prisoners. Union officers were also quartered here. A door leading to the cell of Confederate commissioners Mason and Slidell is to the right of the historical marker on political prisoners.  The chain link fence detracts somewhat from the authentic Civil War atmosphere!

This room was supposedly part of Mason and Slidell's cell at Fort Warren. The Confederate diplomats enjoyed spacious and relatively comfortable accommodations while held at the fort.

Ovens in the bakery. Food was prepared and stored in this area of the fort. Enlisted men held at Fort Warren ate standard rations, including bread, salt beef, potatoes, and coffee. The Confederate officers and political prisoners often supplemented their diet with purchases from Boston merchants.

The granite platforms for 10-inch Rodman guns that were installed on the Front II Terreplein during the Civil War. The guns could be moved along the traverse arches to the rear of the platforms. Other artillery at Fort Warren include 15-inch Rodmans, 8-inch Columbiads, and 100-pounder Parrotts.

A view across the parade ground to the Front III casemates and sallyport. The Boston skyline is visible in the distance.

Front I casemates, which housed enlisted men, both Union soldiers and Confederate prisoners. Some Confederates complained of overcrowding in this part of the fort. The prisoners would boil beef, soup, and coffee in large kettles placed outside the doors.

A portion of the hospital located in Bastion D. Prisoners suffering from a variety of ailments, including measles, mumps, and typhoid fever, were treated here. A Confederate doctor imprisoned at the fort was given permission to work in the hospital during his time on Georges Island.

The door to the living quarters of Col. Justin Dimick, the commander of Fort Warren from October 1861 to November 1863. Dimick was an old Army Regular known for his compassion towards the Confederate prisoners under his supervision. His son, a Union artillery lieutenant who was later killed at Chancellorsville, was given a letter from Confederate POWs requesting that he be treated humanely in the event of capture.

A memorial outside the fort's walls dedicated to the thirteen Confederate prisoners who died there.  One of the dead, Aquila Glassock, was a member of Mosby's Rangers. The Boston Chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy erected this memorial in 1963.

The visit to Fort Warren reminded me once again that Boston's ties to the Civil War run deep. As Kevin Levin observed in a post the other day, although Boston's Revolutionary War past may have rendered the Civil War and its memory "largely invisible," "[i]t doesn’t take much effort. . . to bring this world back into focus." His words ring true, and Fort Warren is one such example of the Civil War's living presence in Beantown. The next time you get up that way, be sure to take a trip to Georges Island and check out the fort. The site is a true gem with a fascinating story to tell about how the Civil War affected this corner of New England.

For more information about visiting Fort Warren and Georges Island, including transportation options, see here.

Sources

Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation, Fort Warren, Georges Island, Curriculum Packet, Liberty or Treason? The Case of Josiah H. Gordon (2005); Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation, Georges Island: A Self-Guided Tour of Fort Warren (park brochure available at the Visitor Center); National Park Service, Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area (website); Jay Schmidt, Fort Warren: New England's Most Historic Civil War Site (2003); Jay Schmidt, History of Fort Warren (website containing many vintage photographs of the fort).