STUDY OF CIVIL WAR SITES IN THE SHENANDOAH VALLEY OF VIRGINIA

PURSUANT TO PUBLIC LAW 101-628

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
SEPTEMBER 1992

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Study Team and Acknowledgments
Executive Summary

PART ONE: OVERVIEW

1. Introduction
2. Structure of the Report
3. Battlefield Selection
4. Study Concepts
5. Battlefield Resources
6. Archaeological Resources and Battlefield Burials
7. Surveying Battlefield Resources
8. Threats to Battlefield Resources

Population Trends
Loss of Agricultural Land

9. Private Ownership, Preservation, and Public Access
10. Summary

PART TWO: CIVIL WAR IN THE SHENANDOAH VALLEY, THE HISTORIC CONTEXT

1. ``The Crossroads of Our Being...''
2. Geography and Strategic Importance of the Valley

Streams and Rivers
Valley Turnpikes, Roads, and Gaps
Valley Railroads

3. Overview of Military Strategy in the Shenandoah Valley
4. Valley Campaigns 1861-1865

Actions in 1861
Jackson's Valley Campaign (March-June 1862)
Lee's Maryland Campaign (September 1862)
Gettysburg Campaign (June-July 1863)
Lynchburg Campaigns (May-June 1864)
Early's Maryland Campaign (June-August 1864)
Sheridan's Valley Campaign (August 1864-March 1865)

5. Valley Battlefields: The Magnitude of Conflict

PART THREE: SHENANDOAH VALLEY BATTLEFIELDS

1. First Kernstown (23 March 1862)
2. McDowell (8 May 1862)
3. Front Royal (23 May 1862)
4. First Winchester (25 May 1862)
5. Cross Keys (8 June 1862)
6. Port Republic (9 June 1862)
7. Second Winchester (13-15 June 1863)
8. New Market (15 May 1864)
9. Piedmont (5 June 1864)
10. Cool Spring (18 July 1864)
11. Second Kernstown (24 July 1864)
12. Opequon or Third Winchester (19 September 1864)
13. Fisher's Hill (21-22 September 1864)
14. Tom's Brook (9 October 1864)
15. Cedar Creek (19 October 1864)

PART FOUR: BATTLEFIELD INTEGRITY, THREAT, RISK, AND RELATIVE SIGNIFICANCE

1. Field Survey of Battlefield Integrity
2. GIS Analysis of Battlefield Integrity
3. Relative Importance of the Battlefields
4. Threat Assessment
5. Risk Classification
6. Preservation and Interpretation Potential
7. Summary

PART FIVE: HERITAGE TOURISM

1. Heritage Tourism
2. Heritage Tourism Revenue Potential
3. The Valley's Tourism Infrastructure
4. Attitudes of County Planners Toward Developing Tourism
5. The Potential for State Assistance in Promoting Tourism
6. Conclusion

PART SIX: ALTERNATIVES TO PRESERVATION AND INTERPRETATION

1. Background
2. Preservation Priorities
3. Alternatives

I. No Action, Continuation of Status Quo
II. Enhanced Public Funding and Technical Assistance
III. Creation of One or More Affiliated Areas of the National Park System
IV. Acquisition of Selected Battlefields for a Unit of the National Park System with Satellite Areas
V. Acquisition of 15 Battlefields as a Unit of the National Park System

BIBLIOGRAPHY AND MAP SOURCES

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1. Shenandoah Valley Study Battlefields
Figure 2. The Shenandoah Valley, Jackson's 1862 Campaign
Figure 3. Population of Shenandoah Valley Virginia Counties and Independent Cities (1860-2020)
Figure 4. Approximate Population Density Per Square Mile
Figure 5. Agricultural Land, Shenandoah Valley Virginia Counties
Figure 6. Battlefields, Showing Public Access, Estimated Number of Landowners, and Acres in Preservation
Figure 7. A Chronology of Armed Conflict in the Shenandoah Valley
Figure 8. Historic Features of the Lower Valley
Figure 9. Historic Features of the Upper Valley
Figure 10. Battles Ranked by Estimated Number of Troops Engaged
Figure 11. Battles Ranked by Estimated Number of Fatalities
Figure 12. Battles Ranked by Estimated Combined Attrition
Figure 13. Field-Survey Ranking of Battlefield Integrity
Figure 14. GIS Ranking of Battlefield Integrity
Figure 15. Battlefield Core Areas: Comparison of Field Survey and GIS Integrity Assessments
Figure 16. Summary of Battlefield Size and Rankings
Figure 17. Level of Threat to the Valley's Battlefields
Figure 18. Risk Categories: Summary of Integrity and Threat
Figure 19. Summary of Risk Categories and Preservation Tools
Figure 20. Preservation and Interpretation Activities for Battlefields in the Shenandoah Valley
Figure 21. Criteria for Parklands
Figure 22. Cost Estimates for Alternatives I-IV

LIST OF TABLES

Table A. Shenandoah Valley, 1973 Land Use/Land Cover
Table 1. First Kernstown, Land Use/Land Cover 1991
Table 2. McDowell, Land Use/Land Cover 1991
Table 3. Front Royal, Land Use/Land Cover 1991
Table 4. First Winchester, Land Use/Land Cover 1991
Table 5. Cross Keys, Land Use/Land Cover 1991
Table 6. Port Republic, Land Use/Land Cover 1991
Table 7. Second Winchester, Land Use/Land Cover 1991
Table 8. New Market, Land Use/Land Cover 1991
Table 9. Piedmont, Land Use/Land Cover 1991
Table 10. Cool Spring, Land Use/Land Cover 1991
Table 11. Second Kernstown, Land Use/Land Cover 1991
Table 12. Opequon, Land Use/Land Cover 1991
Table 13. Fisher's Hill, Land Use/Land Cover 1991
Table 14. Tom's Brook, Land Use/Land Cover 1991
Table 15. Cedar Creek, Land Use/Land Cover 1991

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