URGENT: Save Threatened Battlefield Acres at Fredericksburg

Preservation Update: December 2024

Thanks to Trust supporters, we came up with the down payment earlier this year so we could save this land from the bulldozer and the steam roller!

But we still need to raise $100,000 more before December 31st to see the first part of this transaction through.  

Please make your year-end gift now. There’s no better way to commemorate the anniversary of the First Battle of Fredericksburg than to finish what we started and ensure this twice-hallowed ground is permanently protected!

The Opportunity

We have the opportunity to save seven and a half acres of twice-hallowed ground. The tract is entirely inside the authorized boundary of the Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park. Yet it is now unprotected and features several 20th century structures.

It has major significance in the two battles of Fredericksburg – it's the site of artillery positions, observation areas, and command posts. It’s only a short walk from Lee’s Headquarters.

The current zoning for this property allows for development into 34 residential townhouse lots, and developers have been chewing at the bit to acquire it. We were able to negotiate a sale with the landowner, but it won’t come cheap.  

It’s going to cost us $1.525 million over three years. And the first $500,000 is due soon! Please make a gift today to save this twice-hallowed land. Help us save it before they pave it! 

Donate now

The History

Two significant battles took place on this sacred land, making this land twice hallowed.

The first, in December of 1862, was one of the largest and deadliest battles of the Civil War.

It featured the first opposed river crossing in American military history, as well as some of the deadliest urban combat of the Civil War.

It was also a decisive Confederate victory that served as a catalyst for a Federal command change within Lincoln’s principal army, while setting the stage for the spring 1863 campaign in northern Virginia.

The second battle took place in April of 1863, when Union General Joseph Hooker split his army into three pieces, leaving one in the vicinity of Fredericksburg to hold the Confederates in place, while his other wings cut into the rear of the Confederates. Hooker planned to smash the Southerners in his Northern vice.

Undaunted, Robert E. Lee, too, split his forces to meet these threats, leaving some 56 cannons and 11,000 soldiers at Fredericksburg to hold the Federals in place, while Lee and Stonewall Jackson led the remainder of the army west to thwart Hooker. On May 3, 1863, Union forces overwhelmed Lee’s rear guard at the Second Battle of Fredericksburg.

Help Save Twice-Hallowed Ground

Today, we need your support for the first step in this preservation project. Please help us raise $500,000 to save 7.5 acres of twice-hallowed ground before it’s too late!

Donate now