An Encyclopedia of Early Civil War Virginia
When a brief Civil War skirmish near Alexandria left two men dead, its aftermath sparked outrage on both sides. A Virginia woman’s diary captured the moment in gut-wrenching detail. Before sunrise on the morning of Sunday, June 30, 1861, a brief but deadly clash unfolded just southwest of Alexandria, Virginia, where Confederate scouts encountered Union…
Continue reading ➞ Account of the Action at Pike’s Creek in the Diary of Anne S. Frobel
At the end of June 1861, a small expedition of Alabama and Virginia troops scouted the southern approaches to Shuter's Hill and Alexandria, which Union forces had occupied since May. Captain Walter H. Weems’ force included 48 men from the 6th Alabama Infantry Regiment and 10 cavalrymen from the Governor’s Mounted Guard and Goochland Cavalry.…
Once an obscure Civil War outpost, the importance of Cloud’s Mill has resurfaced through original research, offering a rare glimpse into Northern Virginia’s lost wartime landscape. Earlier this year, we completely revised our entry on the Skirmish at Arlington Mills after original research revealed the action actually took place three miles south, at Cloud's Mill.…
As June 1861 dragged on with little progress in northeast Virginia, restless Union and Confederate troops found themselves locked in a brief but bloody skirmish near Alexandria. A late-night clash between Pennsylvania infantry and Southern cavalry left men dead on both sides, yet did nothing to alter the course of the campaign. June 1861 passed…
Continue reading ➞ In the Shadow of Shuter’s Hill: A Deadly Night on the Picket Line
This unfinished pencil drawing by famed artist Alfred Rudolph Waud (1828-1891) depicts Fort Ellsworth on Shuter’s (or Shooter’s) Hill, west of Alexandria in late June / early July 1861. Illustration has been enhanced to show details. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division. Click on the image to expand. The illustration is titled, Earthwork fort…
Continue reading ➞ Earthwork Fort at Alexandria Protecting the Left of the Line of the Grand Army
In the twilight hours of May 24, 1861, Union forces crossed the Potomac into Virginia, marking the first federal invasion of Confederate territory. As troops secured key locations in Alexandria, Colonel Elmer E. Ellsworth, a rising star and personal friend of President Lincoln, led his Fire Zouaves into the city—only to meet a tragic fate…
Continue reading ➞ Crossing into Conflict: The Union’s First Movements into Virginia in 1861
In the late spring and early summer of 1861, all eyes were on northeastern Virginia as both sides contemplated their first moves in a war they predicted would be over in a single climactic battle. The small skirmishes that took place on the road to First Manassas were few in number but received outsized attention…
Over the previous weeks, a tense standoff between federal forces and the Commonwealth of Virginia had threatened to spill over into all out war. On April 17, 1861, delegates at the Virginia Secession Convention in Richmond passed an ordinance of secession, pending the results of a popular referendum to be held on May 23rd. U.S.…
Continue reading ➞ 160 Years Ago Today: Alexandria Occupied; Col. Elmer E. Ellsworth Killed
Spirit of '61 