2 Introduction to the Parker Store Road

Transcription

Walking in Their Footsteps
The American Civil War
Wilderness Battlefield
May 5-6, 1864
04 Parker Store Road
Version 02.001
May 5, 2013
Copyright
Copyright 2011, Robert H. (Bob) Johnson; all rights reserved. Permission is granted to private individuals and non‐
profit organizations (including the National Park Service) to publish, distribute, and store this document in its entirety. Anyone may use the GPS coordinates for personal use. In agreement with Trail Head Graphics, they have rights to the information in this document. This document must remain in the free‐ware environment as a non‐profit entity. All other brand and product names mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies. Acknowledgements
First and foremost I give all the credit for these works to God and my savior Jesus Christ. He blessed me to be born and live in this country with all these resources at my disposal. I am free to walk in the Footsteps of the God‐fearing ancestors. Jesus’ blood ensures me everlasting life. Our ancestors’ blood ensures we are free here and now. It is up to us to remember and protect what we have. Next, I must thank my wife, Marie, who has yet again put up with my new obsession—MAPS! She helped me go out on walks yet again to “get a few more GPS coordinates and pictures” for my maps. Well I have sat through a number of quilt shows in our long journey together. Many contributed to this venture and gave me input and assistance writing these Footsteps papers. Dorse Counts and Paul Alderman provided much of the “boots on the ground” information. Paul is an expert on ExpertGPS and just produces miracles combining GPS waypoints from today merged with drawings and maps from the last 150 years. Dorse and Paul regularly walk these trails and actually found most of the important information. Frank Haas is our leader from the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club (PATC). Frank Walker, esteemed Orange County Historian, provided insight into the best books for me to begin. Stephen Cushman, author of Bloody Promenade, excited me to publish what I know. For the Parker Store Road and the Longstreet’s Wounding/Unfinished Railroad, thanks go to the Battle Walkers which include Bob Rouse, Craig Rutler, and Don Bowers. That said, any errors in this paper are mine and unintentional. Speaking of: Disclaimer
The information in this document is presented as‐is and where‐is. You are responsible for your actions while using the information in this document. You are responsible for following all rules and regulations of the National Park Service (NPS). See www.nps.gov for details. You are responsible for your safety while using the information in this document. You are responsible for avoiding trespassing on private property. While the information presented here will attempt to keep you on the path, by using the information in this document you accept all these responsibilities. Notices
If you walk in these woods, remember the admonitions from the National Park Service and the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club (PATC), when you walk in these woods:  You are walking on hallowed ground. Many organizations and individuals worked to provide proper burial for the combatants who died on this hallowed ground. They did not find them all. Walk as if you were walking on the bones of your Great‐grandfathers. Walking in Their Footsteps - 04 Parker Store Road v02 001.docx
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Leave nothing but footprints1, and take nothing but memories. The NPS does not allow relic collection2 or “Geocaching”3 on their property. This is a wonderful area for you to walk and take your dogs for exercise. The NPS requires you to have your dog on a leash. While some might want their animals to “run free.” Remember that right around a blind corner might be a small child or elderly visitor who does not know your dog. Also pack small bags to cart out your dog’s “business.” Many of the Battle of the Wilderness areas are now private land. The Lake of the Woods and Fawn Lake are two gated communities that prohibit entrance unless you are accompanied by a resident. Many other extensions of vital roads and trails are private property. Do not violate private property without getting permission from the land owners. The Gordon Flank Attack Loop Trail and the Federal Line Trail are marked with PATC “blue blazes.” These are 2” x 6” blue paint strips on trees to show you the trail. You should be able to see the next place on the trail from any one blaze. Two blazes mean you will turn near this point so be aware. Contact information for the Wilderness Battlefield (http://www.nps.gov/frsp/index.htm ): o Report problems at the battlefield (for example, downed trees and limbs or other hazardous problems) to the NPS at the Chancellorsville visitors center (540 786 2880). o Law Enforcement: (540) 899‐2698 o Maintenance Facility: (540) 371‐1882 o Weather Closing Information: (540) 373‐6122 1
Don’t even leave footprints on the Earthworks in the National Park Service. These earthen structures are very fragile and
therefore do not walk or put anything onto them.
2
Relic collection is heavily frowned upon by NPS and there are healthy fines if you even are carrying metal detection equipment
on park property.
3
Geocaching is controlled by a community that “hides” small containers” for fellow geocache participants to find. See
http://www.geocaching.com/ . While many caches are just hung on trees or fences or hidden inside things on the site both
Geocache.com and NPS do not allow this.
Walking in Their Footsteps - 04 Parker Store Road v02 001.docx
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Table of Contents
I. Introduction to Walking in their Footsteps ................................................................................................. 6 1.1 FSNMP Overview................................................................................................................................ 6 1.2 Goal: Wilderness Battlefield. ............................................................................................................... 6 2 Introduction to the Parker Store Road ........................................................................................................ 8 3 Importance of the Parker Store Road ......................................................................................................... 8 4 Parker Store Road Overview ...................................................................................................................... 9 5 From Orange Turnpike to NPS property .................................................................................................. 11 5.1 Ellwood (Lacy) house to Route 20 .................................................................................................... 14 5.1.1 Walk towards the beginning – Route 20 .................................................................................... 16 5.1.2 The start of the Parker Store Road– Route 20 ............................................................................ 17 5.1.3 Wilderness Tavern ...................................................................................................................... 18 5.2 Ellwood to NPS ................................................................................................................................. 19 5.2.1 Walk back past Ellwood. ............................................................................................................ 19 5.2.2 Stonewall Jackson’s Arm ........................................................................................................... 20 5.2.2.1 The Markers ........................................................................................................................ 21 5.2.2.2 Looking back toward Lacy/Ellwood ................................................................................... 23 6 Through the Federal Line trail and Lake Wilderness Community. .......................................................... 24 6.1 Maps of the middle portion ................................................................................................................ 25 6.2 Pictorial view of middle section ........................................................................................................ 29 7 Hill Ewell to Route 621. ........................................................................................................................... 34 7.1 GPS map of Hill-Ewell to Parker ...................................................................................................... 34 7.2 Third section, first part-PSR 22 to PSR 26 ........................................................................................ 36 7.2.1 Walking the long way ................................................................................................................. 37 7.2.2 The short way ............................................................................................................................. 49 7.3 Third Section, middle part ................................................................................................................. 50 7.4 Third Section, last part ....................................................................................................................... 51 7.5 Pictorial view of third leg .................................................................................................................. 52 8 Where to Walk .......................................................................................................................................... 74 8.1 On Public land ................................................................................................................................... 74 8.2 Elevation Profile ................................................................................................................................ 75 9 Waypoints for Parker Store Road ............................................................................................................. 76 Walking in Their Footsteps - 04 Parker Store Road v02 001.docx
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Figure 1. In case you need a visual reminder!
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I.
Introduction to Walking in their Footsteps
This is one of a series of papers on the May 1864 Civil War Battle of the Wilderness Battlefield in in Orange
and Spotsylvania Counties of Virginia. The Wilderness is part of the National Park Service, Fredericksburg
& Spotsylvania National Military Park (FSNMP) at http://www.nps.gov/frsp/index.htm
1.1 FSNMP Overview
The National Park Service, Fredericksburg & Spotsylvania National Military Park actually covers a large
part of the city of Fredericksburg, Spotsylvania County and Orange County Virginia. Fredericksburg and
Spotsylvania National Military Park has four major Civil War Battlefields and four historic buildings.
Figure 2. Fredericksburg & Spotsylvania National Military Park from a 1986 diagram.
These four battlefields were an important part of the Civil War from 1862 through 1865. Both
Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville were disasters for the Union. The Wilderness was a draw but losses
were huge to both sides and the losses were a greater portion to the Confederates. These losses continued in
Spotsylvania Court House.
1.2 Goal: Wilderness Battlefield.
The Walk in their Footsteps series concentrates on the Battle of the Wilderness in May 1864. The goal for
these papers is to aid 21st Century visitors to the park. It includes Global Position Sensing (GPS) technology.
If you are new to GPS, you may want to start with the tutorial paper on GPS technology.
These papers do not discuss troop movements unless they are important to the discussion of what to see. I’ll
try to get you there and let people like Gordon Rhea and the other 50,000 authors describe the battle.
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These papers are virtual tours designed to be used by the reader before and during their visit to the walking
tours in the Park. Two of these papers extend the NPS documentation for the two walking trails on the
Battlefield. The other papers document areas in the battlefield which were important in the battle.
The following are papers in this “Walking in their Footsteps” series. Each of the following papers is an
Adobe PDF file4. The GPS coordinates for the paper are also available in comma separated value (CSV)5
format for ease of moving to your GPS device. See the GPS tutorial for more information.
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01 Introduction. This paper should be read before the rest. It included information assumed by the others. 02 Gordon Flank Attack Trail 03 Federal Line Trail 04 Parker Store Road – this paper 05 Culpeper Mine Road 06 Longstreet ‐ Unfinished Railroad Bed 07 Burned Cedars. 08 GPS tutorial and Reference Tutorial 09 Vermont Monument Trail 10 Wilderness Battlefield Driving Tour The American Civil War was fought from 1861 through 1865. Virginia will celebrate the sesquicentennial
(150th) anniversary from 2011 through 2015. See http://virginiacivilwar.org/
These papers are published in 2011 but will be updated from time to time. If you start now, you will have
ample time to learn more about this historical time for our country. Happy Trails!
You might be interested in some of the YouTube features:
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MIJaxu3w4‐U shows a 1913 reunion in Gettysburg. You will be able to look into the eyes of the survivors. If you have questions or comments, contact Bob Johnson at [email protected]
4
Adobe’s PDF file format is a universal format that can be opened in almost every computer system. There are a large number of
“PDF reader programs.” If you wish to use Adobe’s free program, go to http://get.adobe.com/reader/ and select “Download,” Note
that this download also defaults to downloading McAfee’s Security Scan Plus. You should uncheck the box if you already have
security software on your computer or this will likely mess your system up.
5
CSV is also a universal format for sharing information between programs on almost every platform. Each data field is in text
format and is separated by a comma. This format is used to “import” information into most GPS software on your PC. Then the
waypoints can be downloaded to your GPS device.
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2 Introduction to the Parker Store Road
As you read accounts of the war in North Central Virginia, a term often pops up--“Parker Store Road.”
Parker’s Store was located southeast of Chancellorsville on Orange Plank Road (today’s Route 621). The
small road –Parker Store Road-- ran from Orange Turnpike through fields and woods to Parker’s Store.
Those who wrote about this battle refer to the “cow-path” or Parker Store Road play as an important part in
these battles.
One of the places the road served was the Lacy property (now Ellwood) which was a plantation house on the
Orange Turnpike (current Route 20), east of Chancellorsville. You probably know that house as General
Warren’s headquarters for the battle. General Grant’s headquarters was just across the Orange Turnpike
(today’s Route 20).
Back then the road served these farm houses as it did the combatants during the battle. Today you can read
about this forgotten road, vital to the Battle of the Wilderness, but you probably can’t find the road itself.
The reason is that the road ran through areas that became our back yards or continued in use as farms. As
other roads were created, the Parker Store Road was just plowed under or covered by building houses—some
of it runs through the Lake Wilderness community.
In Virginia we say that our roads are so random because we “paved over the cow paths.” This was not the
case with the Parker Store Road. The Parker Store Road has been built upon or plowed under!
The research for this paper was developed by a team of guys called the “Battle-Walkers” Paul Alderman and
Dorse Counts led the team to trace and learn about the Parker Store Road.
3 Importance of the Parker Store Road
Let’s look at the importance of the Parker Store Road. Gordon Rhea’s The Battle of the Wilderness has many
notations of the Parker Store road. Here is one that mentions the Parker Store Road and states its importance:
[May 4] According to Humphrey’s Plan, Warren’s corps was to proceed early the next morning
[May 5] to the little settlement of Parker’s Store, on Orange Plank Road. The route followed a
remote farm track that meandered southwest for about five miles through extremely dense woods.
During the afternoon of the 4th, Wilson was to make sure the way was cleared of all rebels.
[Rhea, 72]6
In addition to Rhea’s book, you may also want to see:
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http://americancivilwar.com/statepic/va/va046.html on Todd’s Tavern. http://www.civilwarhome.com/Hancockwilderness.htm on Major General Hancock’s report of the battle. http://www.bpmlegal.com/76NY/76atWilderness.html for the 76th New York. http://thomaslegion.net/battleofthewildernessvirginia.html to view it from the Thomas Legion site. Another interesting item I found was Charles S. Wainwright’s A DIARY OF BATTLE, 7
May 5…
The road to Parker’s Store is a narrow country road, most of the way through a dense wood. I
reached Crawford just as the head of his column came into an opening of some twenty or thirty acres
around the house belonging to one Savarra, about two miles from the Lacy house in a straight line,
and one from Parker’s Store. It stands on high ground so that we could plainly see the store and the
6
7
Rhea, Gordon C.’ The Battle of the Wilderness May 5-6 1864 Louisiana State University Press, ISBN 0-8071-3021-4
Wainwright, Charles S. A Diary of Battle-the Battles of Wilderness and Spotsylvania, Chapter 15. Pp. 349-351.
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Orange Plank Road that runs by it. So soon as I learned that Griffin was to attack on the turnpike, I
hurried back to that point. On reaching an opening about half a mile back, I found Wadsworth going
into position there. It was a pretty good spot though small…..There was evidently a woods road
which led from this opening to the turnpike near where the firing was going on.
A Google or IXSEARCH for “Parker Store Road Orange VA” will give you many more.
4 Parker Store Road Overview
The Parker Store road was well known at the start of the Civil War. It began near the intersection of
Germanna Plank Road (today’s Route 3) and Orange Turnpike (today’s Route 20). As you see from the next
picture, it runs right past the Lacy house (today “Ellwood”), over the hill (passing the Union Artillery
placements), down to past the Chewning’s farm (crossing today’s Hill Ewell Drive), and on to Orange Plank
Road (today’s route 621). The Parker Store was on Orange Plank Road at this location.
The Parker Store Road served the Lacy house. A coach road to Lacy comes off the Parker Store Road. The
volunteers at Ellwood have recreated this coach road to enable you to walk the start of the Parker Store
Road.
Other than a piece at the beginning and a piece at the end of the road, most of the road was either plowed
under or built upon. The methodology used to develop the route was developed by Paul Alderman. He used
ExpertGPS8 to import an image of a Civil War (or later) map, calibrated that image using known common
locations, and then transferring locations and information to the GPS maps. Many people use this type of
“development” but only Paul and Dorse Counts then get out into the field and look for traces of the roadway.
Since I used his work as the basis for this paper and drew the lines you will see, I’ll take the heat if they are
not accurate.
Note also that the Parker Store Road intersects the Federal Line Trail just about where the Federal cannon
batteries are located. The Parker Store Road is probably how the Army of the Potomac moved their batteries
to the “front” See the paper Walking in their Footsteps – 03 Federal Line Trail.
8
See http://www.expertgps.com/
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WBDT 115 is
Higgerson’s Farm
pull-off on Hill
Ewell Drive
WBDT 118 is
Chewning’s Farm
pull-off on Hill
Ewell Drive
Figure 3. Parker Store Road big picture. The road is in green. The Federal Line Trail is blue.
I will discuss the Parker Store Road in three sections.
1. From Orange Turnpike (old route 20) to NPS property and the Federal Line Trail. 2. Through the Federal line trail and the Lake Wilderness community to the current Hill‐Ewell Drive near Chewning’s Farm. 3. From Hill Ewell Drive to Orange Plank Road (current Route 621). Walking in Their Footsteps - 04 Parker Store Road v02 001.docx
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5 From Orange Turnpike to NPS property
The first section (north) begins at the old Route 20. As you can see from the map below route 20 (Orange
Turnpike then, Constitution Highway now) intersected with route 3 (Germanna Plank Road then, Germanna
highway now) in a different spot than today. When the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT)
widened route 3 (sometime in the 1960’s) they changed the intersection. There still is some pavement visible
on the old section. The road ran past the Lacy (now Ellwood) place and across the fields to the NPS property
line for the Federal Line.
State route 720
(Brigadier Lane) and
Alexander Chapel
Cemetery (lots of
Dempsey Family)
Old Route 20
not accessible
unless you walk
through
Lacy/Ellwood.
Lacy
house
Lacy House
(Ellwood). The lane
on current maps
was not there in
1864.
Figure 4. North east portion of PSR.
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To see the beginning of the Parker Store Road, you have two opportunities:
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Pull off onto State route 720 (Brigadier Lane) and park at the end of the road – Alexander Chapel (ruins) and Cemetery (sometimes called Alexander Chapel Cemetery)9. You can then walk down the hill to the end of the Parker Store Road. From the Lacy (now Ellwood) house. The Lacy (now Ellwood) house was conscripted as General Warren’s headquarters and served as a hospital.
It is easy to see how Parker Store Road was used by the Ambulances and supply wagons for the Federal Line
trenches. Edwin A. Forbes illustration for Frank Leslie’s magazine depicts the parker store road curving
around the hill below Lacy/Ellwood with troops and wagons on it.
The Friends of the Wilderness organization open the house for the NPS but it is not open very much of the
year. I recommend you get onto the website and see if they are open— http://www.fowb.org/ellwoodhours .
If it is open, drive up the lane (this was not there during the battle). Park in the designated areas behind
Ellwood.
If Ellwood is not open, the good news is that you can still walk this section of the Parker Store Road. Stop at
the National Park Service Chancellorsville Visitor Center and ask for a pass to put in your car window. Then
drive to Ellwood and park outside the locked gate. Do not block the gate as workers often go in and out of
the gate even when the house is not open.
Walk about one half mile up the road to the house. The Parker store Road is to the right of the house--down
the hill from the house. When you reach the road, turn left to the beginning of the road—old route 20. Turn
to the right is the Federal Line Trail and the artillery batteries. Note as you walk to the right/south you will
pass the Lacy cemetery where Stonewall Jacksons arm is buried.
Surrounding this section of the Parker Store Road (East and south) is a huge field that is farmed for corn. It
will either be muddy or filled with corn. Your best bet is to just look in the direction the Parker Store Road
enters the woods. Got binoculars? The USGS topographical map shows a better picture. The Parker Store
Road passes through a gap in the strip of trees across the middle of the field.
9
The Wilderness Chapel or the Alexander Chapel was built shortly after the death of William Jones Lacy in 1884 by Major Horace Lacy of Chatham in Fredericksburg and Ellwood in Orange. It is located on the Ellwood Estate, now owned by the National Park Service, on Route 720 off Route 20 in Orange County. The chapel fell to ruin in circa 1970, with just the vestibule left standing. See http://files.usgwarchives.net/va/orange/cemeteries/alexander.txt and
http://www.interment.net/data/us/va/orange/wilderness/
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Lacy House
(Ellwood) current
driveway. The
Izzard 1862 and
other maps show
this section of
driveway also.
The beginning of the
Parker Store Road is not
accessible from either
Route 20 or route 3. It is
best to walk from Lacy
(Ellwood).
Lacy (Ellwood)
cemetery. Look
southwest to
where the road
enters the woods.
Current
entrance to
Ellwood off
Route 20.
Figure 5. USGS map of the beginning of the Parker Store Road.
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5.1 Ellwood (Lacy) house to Route 20
To view this part of the Parker Store Road, enter at the Ellwood property. The following is a picture of the
house. If it is open, be sure to go in and talk to the interpreters and see the information area.
Figure 6. Front of Ellwood (Lacy) House. Parking can be seen at the far left of the picture. (You come into the back of the
house).
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Next walk to the right from the front porch. You will be walking on the “carriage path” to Parker Store Road.
This picture is looking back up the hill to the house. When this picture was taken, the maintenance crew had
a “burn pile” of tree trimmings. Over the past few years the Park Service burned this pile. Maybe it will be
gone when you get there.
Lacy (Ellwood
House) at top of
the hill.
Carriage road
down to the
parker Store
Road.
Figure 7. Looking up the carriage path to Ellwood. You are standing on the Parker Store Road that ran by the house. To
your right is the beginning -- Route 20 today.
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5.1.1 Walk towards the beginning – Route 20
If you turn left (northeast) you will walk beside a large corn field on the right. Lacy/Ellwood is up the hill
past the woods. You are walking toward the beginning of the Parker Store Road on Route 20 (Orange
Turnpike).
The old road bed is along
the trees on the left.
Figure 8. Parker Store road below Ellwood. Note the corn field on the right.
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5.1.2 The start of the Parker Store Road– Route 20
The picture below the old road bed of Route 20 as it is in 2011. Some old asphalt can still be seen.
Figure 9. Old Route 20 at the beginning of the Parker Store Road.
If you could turn right (northeast) and walk toward route 3 (Germanna Plank Road), you would be near the
site of the Wilderness Tavern. Imagine the population gathering here for a pint and to discuss the war that
was brewing. Walking in Their Footsteps - 04 Parker Store Road v02 001.docx
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5.1.3 Wilderness Tavern
All that is left is a pile of bricks! This site can be accessed by returning via route 20 (north), turning right
(east) on route 3, crossing Wilderness Run bridge (did you miss it?), and pulling off at the small parking lot.
The view to the right of the site is where the parker Store Road intersected old route 20.
Standing on Schaff’s Wilderness
Tavern “lonely dooryard” you could
look at Lacy (Ellwood) in the distance.
Figure 10. Wilderness Tavern site on Route 3 (Germanna Plank Road).
Morris Schaff describes it:
Some of the batteries parked on the Lacy farm, others with the trains in the fields back of the deserted old Wilderness Tavern. This old stage‐house, indicated on all the maps and mentioned many times in orders and reports, was a two‐storied, hewn‐log house in its day, standing on the north side of the Pike, at the top of the ridge about three hundred yards east of Wilderness Run. It overlooked all the Lacy estate, and had the reader stood in its lonely dooryard as the sun was going down and the shadows of the woods were reaching into the fields, the men of Crawford's and Wadsworth's divisions, all preparing their evening meals, the smoke of their little fires lifting softly over them, would have been in full view below him. From the same point, should someone have directed his eye to a banner with a white field and a red Maltese cross in the centre, a mile or so to the west, at the edge of the woods, it would have been Griffin's.10
10
Schaff, Morris; The Battle of the Wilderness; General Books; ISBN 9781458861092. Pages129-130 (original)
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5.2 Ellwood to NPS
The second part of the first section of the Parker Store Road is to the Southeast of Ellwood.
If you walked to the beginning of the Parker Store Road, turn around and retrace your footsteps back to
Ellwood. Think of the thousands of men and equipment that must have traveled over this road in such a short
time as the battle.
5.2.1 Walk back past Ellwood.
As you walk back to Ellwood, notice the carriage path coming down from the right. The picture below shows
a very steep incline back up to Ellwood. This probably is where the carriage came off the Parker Store Road
to enter Ellwood. The volunteers at Ellwood are in in the process of clearing this carriage road in the spring
of 2011.
Figure 11. Carriage Path to Ellwood off the Parker Store Road.
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5.2.2 Stonewall Jackson’s Arm
As you pass the carriage path you started on, you travel south and east to follow the Parker Store Road. To
your left is a path to the Lacy (Ellwood) cemetery. The only meaningful thing in it is the stone monument to
Stonewell Jackson’s arm.
Figure 12. Stone marker for Stonewall Jackson's arm in the Lacy (Ellwood) cemetery.
See http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM1VRD :
During the Battle of Chancellorsville as Stonewall Jackson was riding back to his lines in the darkness,
friendly fire from a North Carolina troop caught the general in the arm. It was shattered beyond repair
and was amputated at a field hospital, located at Wilderness Tavern, on May 3, 1863.
The normal method for disposing of severed limbs was cremation. However, in General Jackson's case,
Reverend Beverly Tucker Lacy, chaplain of Jackson's Corps and J. Horace Lacy's brother, buried the
arm in the Lacy family cemetery at Ellwood. The Jackson marker was added in 1903 by a former
Jackson staff member, the Rev. James Power Smith.
From time to time you will hear different versions of ‘where the arm is buried.” One version has the arm
being dug up and moved to where Jackson now lies. The other one (I believe) is that the arm is indeed buried
here. It was dug up when maneuvers took place on the Ellwood property, but it was reburied here.
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5.2.2.1
The Markers
In 1902 and 1903, ten markers were placed on these hallowed grounds by a group led by Mr. Thomas F.
Ryan of New York and Nelson County. Two markers (number 2 and 3 below) are on this battlefield. Now
we know how they got here!
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5.2.2.2 Looking back toward Lacy/Ellwood
This picture was taken from the Lacy/Ellwood cemetery. In the center is the house. There is a path that
comes from the house past lovely boxwoods and up to the top of this hill. The Parker Store Road runs along
the bottom of this hill.
Lacy/Ellwood
house is here.
Parker
Store
Road.
Figure 13. Looking from the cemetery back toward Ellwood. The parker Store Road runs along here.
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6 Through the Federal Line trail and Lake Wilderness Community.
The middle section of the Parker Store Road starts in the National Park Service’s property line containing the
Federal Line Trail and crosses through the Lake Wilderness community. It is a private community, but not
gated.
This section is approximately 1.8 miles in length.
There are two ways to walk this part of the Parker Store Road. The first is to walk in through the entrance to
the Federal Line off Route 20. Parking on route 20 is very dangerous as there is no parking area on route 20.
A second, better way, is to park at the Federal Line Trail and walk to FLT 022 which intersects with the
Parker Store Road.
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6.1 Maps of the middle portion
Entrance to FLT
off Route 20.
Dangerous!
Lacy/Ellwood
Walk to
intersection
of PSR and
FLT.
Best: park at Hill
Ewell
picnic/parking and
walk in.
Figure 14. Two ways to enter the PSR middle section.
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When you reach the intersection of the Parker Store Road and the Federal Line trail, you can walk northeast
(toward Lacy/Ellwood) to reach the NPS boundary and look northeast toward the Lacy house. The road
probably was a straight line from the house to approximately this point.
The road ran through
what is a corn field
today.
Figure 15. Photo 159. Telephoto picture from the NPS property line back to the Lacy (Ellwood) cemetery.
The Parker Store Road passes through the gaps in these trees and to the right of the cemetery.
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Figure 16. PSR middle section from waypoint PSR 16 to PSR 23 where PSR meets today’s Hill Ewell Drive.
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Edge of NPS
property that
looks over at
Lacy (Ellwood)
and cemetery.
Hill Ewell
Drive end of
middle portion
of PSR.
Figure 17. Middle portion of PSR through NPS and Lake Wilderness Property.
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6.2 Pictorial view of middle section
Figure 18. Picture 152. Road going downhill from Federal Line trail.
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Figure 19. Picture 157 crossing Mill Branch (or North Wilderness Run as it is on some maps0. This picture was taken in
2009 before the Wilderness Battlefield Grounds Force (WBGF) built a bridge near this location to make walking the trail
much easier.
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May 30, 2011
Figure 20. Picture 162. After the crossing looking where the road probably ran. It is thought that this is where the Lacy
(Jones) family had a bridge across the Wilderness run in the early 20th century.
As we crossed North Wilderness Run just prior to entering the Lacy (Ellwood) Farm clearing, we noticed
some substantial rock pilings on the north bank. We speculated that this could have been one of the
places where Gordon Rhea documented the battle in this area:
"As soon as daylight filtered through the pine boughs, Warren’s engineers began laying three bridges over Wilderness Run, near the turnpike. From there they cleared a twenty‐foot roadway along the trail to Parker’s Store, wide enough for the corps’ guns and ‘fighting wagons.’ Leaving the turnpike near the Lacy plantation, the trail wound along the steep wooded western rim of Wilderness Run’s watershed."
‐Rhea, Gordon. The Battle of the Wilderness, p. 97. Walking in Their Footsteps - 04 Parker Store Road v02 001.docx
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May 30, 2011
Figure 21. Picture 164 second crossing of South Wilderness Run (also known as Mill Branch).
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May 30, 2011
Figure 22. Picture 167. Wilderness Shores cut a road (Jackson’s Ford Road) across the path of Parker Store Road. This is
looking toward today’s Millers Farm (about where Parker Store was located).
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May 30, 2011
7 Hill Ewell to Route 621.
The third section of the road starts on Hill-Ewell Drive and goes to Orange Plank Road (todays Route 621).
This is the most accessible portion as you can park here and walk this long section—almost all on NPS
property. (The last part of the road is on Miller property – if you wish to walk it, please ask permission11.)
The road was used in the early history of Orange County, but as farms and subdivisions came into being, the
road was leveled, covered, or ignored.
The best place to enter this section is a farm-road access to the “Jones/Carver” property at waypoint PSR 23
01.
Figure 23. P1030532. Starting place for the PSR complete third section--a farm road to the fields.
7.1 GPS map of Hill-Ewell to Parker
The “big picture” of this portion is a BIG picture:
11
See http://millerfarmsmarket.com/ for information. Go in and meet Joe or Wayne and get some ice cream, goodies, or other
refreshments!
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May 30, 2011
Beginning of third
portion of Parker
Store Road – Hill
Ewell Drive.
End of third portion of
Parker Store Road –
Route 621 Orange Plank
Road. This last leg is
private property owned by
the Miller’s.
Figure 24. Third (southern) part of Parker Store Road.
As you can see, this section is relatively long so I will discuss this section of the Parker Store Road in three
parts:
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May 30, 2011
7.2 Third section, first part-PSR 22 to PSR 26
The first part of the third section of the PSR includes the area from where PSR crosses the current Hill-Ewell
Drive, goes across Jones/Carver field, and up to what was Mr. Carver’s farm house.
There is another
road that comes
down the hill from
Higgerson’s to meet
the Parker Store
Road.
The green line is where we think the
Parker Store Road left what is now Hill
Ewell Drive crosses South Wilderness
Run and went up the hill to what is now
the Carver farm house.
A spur of the road
follows South
Wilderness run to
another toad – the
Higgerson road.
The turquoise line is
a piece of the road
that ran from
Higgerson’s to
Chewning.
Figure 25. ExpertGPS Arial photo map view of walk.
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May 30, 2011
7.2.1 Walking the long way
This first part of the third section of the Parker Store road covers a large hay field today. In the middle of it is
the South Wilderness Run guarded by barbed-wire fences bogs, and thorns big enough to open tin cans. To
complete it you will walk through the hay fields (watch for ticks), slosh across the creek, and get bit by
mosquitoes if you are there in the spring or summer. Hmm. That is what the combatants had to do – except
for the fence.
If you do walk this part of the road, you probably will want to park at driveway near where the PSR crosses
Hill Ewell Drive (PSR 22). There is an entrance to the field there that the farmer uses today to cut and
harvest hay. You will walk to the top of the hill and down to the South Wilderness Run. That is an easy walk.
It gets a bit harder if you try to cross the Run to go up the hill to the Carver house.
Let’s look at Michler’s 1867 map. 12
Figure 26. Michler's 1867 map. Paul Alderman captured this map image from Michler’s map. This drawing seems to show
the PSR is bridged.
Note the earthworks on the ridges. The “U” shaped areas may be artillery pits.
When you are standing on this part of the battlefield, let’s remember what Schaff said about this land.
“Wadsworth was just forming his division, to the right of the Parker's Store Road which at that
point and for quite a distance runs almost west, following up the main branch of Wilderness Run.
Warren said to him, "Find out what is in there," indicating the deep woods. And did they find
something? Yes, indeed they did — many their eternal rest. We then went back to the Lacy house,
and Warren soon set off to see Griffin. By the time Warren's aide overtook Crawford (it was just
eight o'clock), the head of his division had reached the Chewning farm which lies somewhat
12
All of these drawings were calibrated by Paul Alderman so that we can see how these Civil War maps overlay the area we can
see today.
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May 30, 2011
beyond where Wadsworth was forming. The ground from the run rises up sharply to its rather
high, dipping, and swerving fields, which, when I saw them last, were beginning to clothe
themselves in springtime green. The heaving plateau is on swings eastward around the valley
of Wilderness Run, like the rim of a great kettle, falling away at last in the angle between the
Brock and the Plank roads into many zigzag, swampy ravines, the heads of the easterly
branches of the Run. Two roads connect Chewning's with the Plank, one through the woods to
the Store about a mile south; the other follows the rim of the kettle for a while and then breaks
away to the Widow Tapp's. Let anyone stand on the rolling fields now and he will recognize at
once their value to us could we have held them”. :13
And its importance:
“Roebling, who was coming back from Crawford, says in his notes: — "I found the little road
(the Parker's store road) crowded with stragglers and large crowds of soldiers pouring out of
the woods in great confusion and almost panic-stricken. Some said they were flanked, others
said they had suddenly come upon the enemy lying concealed in two lines of battle in the thick
underbrush, and that our men had broken at the first volley. Cutler's brigade came back in good
order bringing a number of prisoners; the 2nd Division Baxter's brigade came back in much less
confusion."Mr. G. M. Woodward, adjutant of the Second Wisconsin of Cutler's brigade, writes
me that just after he had given orders for the regiment to break ranks, and fall back to the
Parker's Store Road from which they had moved, all the field officers and two of the captains
being either killed or wounded and the regiment outflanked by Gordon's or Dole's countercharge, he concluded he would stay behind a little and discover, if he could, the enemy's line of
advance. While peering around, he suddenly heard a deep bass voice: "Adjutant, what be I going
to do with this flag?" Turning, he saw Davidson the color-bearer standing bolt upright in the
woods, all alone, grasping the flagstaff. Of course Woodward gave the necessary orders which
the brave color-sergeant was waiting for, and together, under a rattling fire, they rejoined the
regiment”. 14
And
“Knowing that at five o'clock battle was to be renewed by vigorous attack all along the lines, the
little colony of orderlies, cooks, and teamsters about Warren's headquarters were astir before
daylight. When I aroused, some of the stars were still glowing and belated detachments from the
train guards were still coming on to the field on their way to their respective commands, moving
through the disappearing mist that had stolen into the Wilderness, and, as we would fain believe,
to moisten the cheeks and eyelashes of its living and dead as they slept, and to wrap the latter in
its cool gray shrouds. Up near the woods, dimly visible, were a couple of brigades — the
Marylanders among them — which Warren had had assembled there during the night as a
reserve behind Griffin, to whom, as on the day before, the initiative of the serious work was
intrusted. The places of these troops in line had been made good by closing Crawford to the right
and abreast of Griffin, on the assumption that Burnside would be up and take the ground he had
occupied, that is, across the Parker's Store Road, near where it leaves Wilderness Run for the
rolling plateau of the Chewning farm”.15
13
15
14
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May 30, 2011
Looking back at Hill-Ewell Drive (PSR 23 02, this is probably where the road came onto what was labeled
“Jones Field” and is now Carver field. Mr. Carver transferred his property to the NPS upon his death.
Figure 27. P1030489. The arrow points to a culvert that may have had a log bridge over it or just have been forded as
people use the road.
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May 30, 2011
Once you walk up the hill and look southeast (PSR 23 05) toward the Carver house, you get an idea where
the PSR crossed South Wilderness Run. Now might be a good time to tell you that following the road across
fields that have been plowed and cut and trampled for 150 years is nearly impossible. However there are still
traces of high spots and lower cuts where a roadbed might have been. Adding these to the battle maps gives
us a better chance than most others at finding the road. Remember that hundreds or thousands of soldiers
were here and they probably did not walk down the road two-by-two!
Figure 28. P1030494. From the top of the hill you can see the straight-line path of the PSR as it goes down the hill, across
South Wilderness Run and up behind the current Carver house.
The field beyond South Wilderness Run was wooded in 1864.
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May 30, 2011
As you approach the South Wilderness Run, you will notice it is overgrown and ravaged by flood waters.
There are two theories about how this was crossed: fording and bridge. PSR 23 09 is an area on the South
Wilderness run that could be an area for fording the creek. The banks are relatively high today so it is
questionable.
The banks are not too steep but it still would be a problem in very wet weather. This picture was taken after a
relatively dry spring—in April 2011.
Figure 29. P1030495 Possible area to ford South Wilderness Run.
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May 30, 2011
Today, after 150 years, “progress” gets in our way. The following picture shows PSR 23 10 through PSR 23
12 are where the straight fence has about a 10’ section (“bump out”) moved up the hill. I do not know why
that was done that way.
Figure 30. P1030496. Barbed wire fence. This runs quite a way along the creek and has a “bump-out” area.
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May 30, 2011
Waypoint PSR 23 13 is a spot on the west bank that we believe was a bridge over the South Wilderness Run.
Figure 31. P1030499. South Wilderness Run -- possible bridge site. The arrow points across the Run to behind Carver’s
house. As you will see, the PSR does not go in a straight line.
The Parker Store Road passed through the woods in this area.
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May 30, 2011
The following picture is a close-up of the creek bed. There are several stacked stones that might indicate they
were part of a bridge abutment. Dorse Counts remembers a bridge here some time ago. It is not surprising
that the bridge would be washed away because the volume flowing in the South Wilderness Run stream
becomes a torrent during times of the year. It may be and it may not be that a bridge was here during the
battle.
Figure 32. P1030500 Creek bed with stacked rocks along the bank.
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May 30, 2011
Waypoint PSR 23 S1 is where this picture is taken—up the hill from the probable crossing. This road joined
the Parker Store road as it turns to cross the creek. This is actually a “T” intersection. Refer to Schaff’s
statement about roads joining “Parker Store Road.” We don’t know their name, but they certainly were, and
are, there.
Figure 33. P1030498. This is from the hill top where another road intersects the crossing place. Paul is standing where we
believe the bridge was and you can see the Carver place in the distance.
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May 30, 2011
If you cross the South Wilderness Run to the field to the east of South Wilderness Run, the road runs back
parallel with the run before it starts up the hill to pass behind what is now the Carver farm. The following
picture was taken at Waypoint PSR 23 17.
Figure 34, P1030517. After the road crosses the bridge it runs to the east of what we call a ‘chick barn” and a well.
Page 46 of 83
May 30, 2011

2 Introduction to the Parker Store Road

Transcription

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