Spotsylvania Battlefields

Home
United States
Fredericksburg, VA
Spotsylvania Battlefields

Spotsylvania Battlefields grew from local preservation efforts and continues to support work to save and spotlight the battlefields in this county.

Four major Civil War battles and campaigns happened in Virginia’s Spotsylvania County: Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Wilderness, and Spotsylvania Court House. We are passionate about our local Civil War history and love to share interesting facts about the current preservation and historical facts.

09/29/2026

As part of Gen. Stephen Ramseur’s brigade, 21-year-old Pvt. John W. Bone and his comrades in the 30th North Carolina received the call to counterattack the Federal assault on the Confederate “Mule Shoe” defenses at Spotsylvania on May 12, 1864.

During the move toward the threatened works, Bone remembered, “I was . . . wounded by a ball striking me in the right breast passing through my lungs and coming out beside my backbone, and lodging in some clothes that I had on my back.” Bone cut off his cartridge box and attempted to make his way to the rear. Going a short distance, he had to stop and was hit by another bullet. Again, trying to muster his energy, he got up and was hit yet again.

With the battle raging into the night, no one was able to assist Bone to a field hospital. He lay on the wet ground for three days before he was able to move closer to the new Confederate line, helped in, and received medical aid. Amazingly, Bone recovered and returned to service about five months later. He surrendered at Appomattox and lived to be 93 years old, dying in 1936.

Like our Facebook posts? CVBT is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit entity. We exist only because of the generosity of our members and donors. Please consider giving or joining to support our efforts.
https://cvbt.org/support-us/

09/28/2026

Save the Date: Saturday, October 24, 2026, is CVBT’s Youth Community Service Day from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm. We will be cleaning up litter and working on clearing a walking trail at our Nine Mile Run tract (1008 Rensselaer Ct., Fredericksburg, VA 22407). Participants receive lunch and a special presentation about the site's history. To register visit – http://tinyurl.com/CVBTCleanup
For additional information or questions contact Eric Powell at [email protected]

09/25/2026

CVBT released its September 2026 e-newsletter yesterday. If you missed it, it is available at: https://bit.ly/46HZRsR

If you don’t want to miss future CVBT email newsletters, you can sign up for them at: https://bit.ly/3IElLAr

Like our Facebook posts? CVBT is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit entity. We exist only because of the generosity of our members and donors. Please consider giving or joining to support our efforts.
https://cvbt.org/support-us/

09/24/2026

Virginia is losing its rural farmland acreage at an alarming rate. Fields and forests that were once believed perpetual have succumbed to bulldozers and buildings. However, we can help change that. In many cases, battlefield preservation allows generations-old traditional land uses to continue. Agricultural efforts often keep the land profitable while also maintaining it as a historic and educational greenspace, making preservation a true win-win.

Consider becoming a CVBT preservation partner member today! Let’s save our battlefield land and rural landscapes together! https://bit.ly/3IHicta

09/23/2026

Located along Hazel Run and the Telegraph Road, Howison’s Mill was a noted landmark by soldiers who traveled that route and either attacked or defended the nearby positions of Willis Hill and Lee’s Hill.

In writing about his role as a courier during the Battle of Fredericksburg, South Carolinian R. K. Charles remembered: “Just at the [Hazel] run was a large old mill house, as we passed [it] a shell went through it, scattering boards immediately behind us. In a few leaps we overtook an am******on wagon making its way [up Willis Hill Road]. . . . A shell took off the two lead mules, sweeping them off the embankment. In a few moments we were on Marye [Heights].”

Today, the Fredericksburg National Cemetery occupies the hill shown above it in this photograph.

Image courtesy of the Library of Congress (Identified as Wellford’s Mill).

Like our Facebook posts? CVBT is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit entity. We exist only because of the generosity of our members and donors. Please consider giving or joining to support our efforts.
https://cvbt.org/support-us/

09/22/2026

Soldiers placed great trust in their officers. However, that trust had to be earned through competent leadership and demonstrated in sound decision making, fair treatment, and perhaps most importantly, displays of courage on the battlefield.
This reciprocal relationship comes through in a letter by the 119th Pennsylvania’s Capt. Andrew Goodman to his wife following the Battle of Fredericksburg.

Although the regiment did not see much fighting, their position endured shelling. Goodman ended his letter by praising his colonel, Peter Ellmaker, noting, “One thing we have reason to congratulate ourselves upon [is that] Col. Ellmaker has been tried, and has been as brave and cool under fire as any man can be. Every confidence is placed in him and the men are truly enthusiastic about him. This is capital and rest assured the 119th Rgt will be heard from.”

Capt. Goodman survived the war, serving until its end. The 50-year-old Col. Ellmaker resigned in January 1864, due to health issues.

Image of Col. Ellmaker courtesy of Find A Grave.
Source from: Letters Home

Like our Facebook posts? CVBT is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit entity. We exist only because of the generosity of our members and donors. Please consider giving or joining to support our efforts.
https://cvbt.org/support-us/

09/21/2026

CVBT's newest preservation campaign is for a two-acre tract, which we call "Jackson’s Flank Attack—First Wave." It is a vital parcel along modern Route 3.

This land marks the position where many XI Corps troops of the Army of the Potomac first encountered the opening wave of Jackson’s flank attack. It will help link the many properties CVBT has preserved to the east with land saved by our friends at the American Battlefield Trust to the west.

Please consider making a donation to help us reach our $125,000 goal to purchase this property. To give, visit: https://bit.ly/4hjoscg

09/18/2026

Sgt. (later Capt.) Richard W. Musgrove, 12th New Hampshire, remembered his regiment’s grueling ordeal at Chancellorsville. Fighting virtually alone in an extended position after receiving orders to hold “until the last man falls,” the Granite State men gathered cartridges as the battle raged.

“Our men had sixty rounds of am******on when we went into the fight, and we stood in our tracks for nearly two hours and expended all of our am******on, and then hastily gathered more from the cartridge boxes of the dead and from the hands of the wounded. Those muskets remaining whole became so foul that the cartridges could only be driven down their barrels by punching the ramrods against a rock or tree,” Sgt. Musgrove recalled.

Like our Facebook posts? CVBT is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit entity. We exist only because of the generosity of our members and donors. Please consider giving or joining to support our efforts.
https://cvbt.org/support-us/

09/17/2026

There are only 18 tickets left for this fantastic presentation and tour combination event on November 1, 2026, from 1:00pm to 4:00pm. A copy of the book is free with your paid admission. Seats are limited! Reserve your spot today to learn about the famous 20th Maine's experience at Fredericksburg. https://bit.ly/4fXCFer

09/16/2026

When one thinks about logistics during the campaigns in central Virginia, pontoon boat bridges figure prominently. With so many rivers and streams in the area, the armies needed effective and efficient ways to get across these water obstacles. What doesn’t often receive mention is the host of required materials and animals needed to transport and build pontoon bridges.

According to one source, a common wagon train arrangement for pontoon bridge building included 34 pontoon wagons, 22 chess (planking) and balking wagons, four tool wagons, and two forge wagons. Each wagon typically required six horses or mules to pull it. For the wagon train in the previous example, 372 animals were needed to put it in motion. Additionally, more wagons and equines were required to supply the engineers and animals with food, equipment, and shelter.

Image courtesy of the Library of Congress.

Like our Facebook posts? CVBT is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit entity. We exist only because of the generosity of our members and donors. Please consider giving or joining to support our efforts.
https://cvbt.org/support-us/

Address

1115 A Tyler Street
Fredericksburg, VA
22401

Website

https://www.cvbt.org/spotsylvania

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Spotsylvania Battlefields posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Organization

Send a message to Spotsylvania Battlefields:

Want your organization to be the top-listed Government Service in Fredericksburg?