Manassas Battle Field

As we drove to D.C. we had a request for a bathroom break.  We took the next exit, which was under construction!  We ended up on a highway that ran parallel with the freeway.  As we continued on the highway we came to this sign.

We decided to stop and next it out since it is one of the more famous of the Civil War battles.

It is also know as the Battle of Bull Run.

This map shows how large Manassas park is.  After using the bathroom here we headed for the Henry Hill Visitor Center up the road a couple miles.

This is a picture of the New York Monument to the 14TH REGIMENT N.Y.S.M.

                                                       (84TH REGIMENT N.Y. VOLS.)

This monument is erected in commemoration of the dead of
the regiment in the battles of First Bull Run,

 July 21, 1861
Gainesville, August 28, 1862

 Groveton, August 29, 1862
Second Bull Run, August 30, 1862.
In these and other engagements in which the regiment participated until
mustered out of the United States service June 6, 1864, the loss in killed
and wounded aggregated about six hundred officers and enlisted men.

At the visitor center we saw a short video retelling the accounts of both battles at Manassas a.k.a Battle of Bull Run.  This display shows different types of ammo used during that time frame.

Then we walked out on the battle field to see where the cannons for both sides were positioned.

It was still a little chilly.

Making tracks...leaving a mark...having fun!

These ammunition wagons are cannons on ridge were the North side...

Daniel, Eliza, Andy, Nathan and Bradley

This is the bloodiest ground of the first significant land battle of the Civil War. Henry Hill is where the battle reached its apex, and the Union suffered its first serious repulse.

This family was sent from their home both times the fighting came here.

This sign tells of James B. Ricketts' duel against Stone Wall Jackson's artillery directly across from them.  Up to this point the Confederates appeared to be loosing the battle and possibly the war.  This is where the momentum shifted!  Capt. Ricketts was wounded in the leg and taken prisoner by the Confederates.

This is where General Jackson earned his name "Stone Wall Jackson".

This picture shows the confederate cannons in the background to the left of the Stone Wall Jackson monument.  It would have been a terrifying battle to have the cannons so close to each other blasting each other to high heavens!  The pain and suffering those men endured is in comprehensible.  

This is my "Tyler" shot.

This monument is to another brave general in the civil war.

I love to hear stories of men showing honor and courage in the face of death.  Not that I like to hear about people dying...I just like to hear of the extraordinary things they did.

It is very sobering to visit these historic sites were so many lives where lost fighting for something they all equally believed in.  It is good to remember their sacrifices and learn from their pain.

March 27, 2014