On this land, 5,000 soldiers died in the first battle and 2,500 in a second battle, fought 13 months later.
This house was actually destroyed. From what I understand, there was only one civilian casuality in the whole 4 years of the war, and it took place in this house. It was an older woman who refused to leave her house when she heard the armies marching toward her. The two sides collided right in her front yard. One of her slaves was hit with a bullet, but she survived. Another slave hid in the fireplace, and spent the rest of her life deaf. The family returned after the battle to find their house in ruins and their elderly mother dead on her bed. Sad. The confederates actually stripped the house later, I am not sure why. All that was left was the foundation and the stone fireplace. The house was rebuilt.
The land was just breathtaking. It was hard to imagine that the bloodiest battle in American history took place on this very spot.
This is where Stone Wall Jackson emerged from the trees. His men had almost lost hope, when he entered the field sitting tall and sure on his horse. It was here that he was given the name of "Stone Wall Jackson", and the confederates ended up winning this battle, even though they lost the war.
The museum on the property also had some really interesting things. There were swords and bullets that were found at the site, along with many other things. One thing that left an impression on me was the coat of a 17 year old boy that was shot in the shoulder minutes into the battle. On his coat you could see the hole from the fatal shot. I read about how the men and boys were very optimistic about war...their daydreams were shattered quickly when reality set in.
I am glad we could see these lands for the beauty they hold, and not the death they were once blanketed with.
5 comments:
Hi guys! This is Megan Snyder! I just found your blog! Sounds like lots of excitement for you guys lately! So fun to be able to keep up with you guys now! Good luck in your new place.
Oh, and I read a couple of your older posts...and it sounds like your Jacob and my Seth would get along quite well. We have had our share of poison control incidents and more ER visits than I can count! Gotta love those boys!
What fun adventures you guys are having! Also, those pictures are beautiful! I'm glad you guys are having a good time and enjoying this new chapter of your life!
Hey Marci! It's Amy (gunnerson)Smith. I saw on your facebook that you have a blog. How are you liking VA? My sister lives in Arlington. It looks like you guys are having so much fun! Check out our blog at tommyandamy.blogspot.com You have such a cute family!
you're amazing! I love that you guys go out and see all the cool stuff here....I need to be better at that, for sure!! Which battle field did you go to??
This post totally made me miss DC. We really loved it there. We were in Arlington. We were so excited to move here to NC so we could buy a home, but we really miss the city. We lived so close that we could see the Washington Monument from the roof of our apartment complex.
What are you there for and how long will you be there? What ward are you in?
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