Little_Nolan

iTrader: (3)

Been a while since I have done one of these.

Early this week I had the opportunity to take out 97 #305 and took a tour the Wilderness Battlefield. Many of you already know I am a huge Civil War History nut, and this was not the first time I have been to this battlefield. Its the first time I have really gotten to walk the battlefield in a few years and the first time since becoming a Marine.

The area has had many updates and improvements since my last visit and it was a real honor and pleasure to get to see these hallowed grounds again.

Seems that the National Military Park Service did some nice work, probably for the 150th Anniversary of the battle two years ago. Lots of new signs, instructional/educational bits and nice new roads.


Here is some baseline info on the Battle:

When: May 5-7 1864

Who:
-Confederate States- Army of Northern Virginia- Commander: General R. E. Lee
-Union Army- Army of the Potomac- Commander: General U.S. Grant

Where: Spotsylvania and Orange Counties Virginia

What Occurred: The first meeting of Lee and Grant as commanders in battle. Grant had taken command of the Army of the Potomac and began to push south into Virginia with the ultimate goal of taking Richmond VA, the capitol of the Confederate States, this was Grants "Overland Campaign". Lee and the Army of Northern VA, intercept and repel the "Northern Aggression" into the South.

This battle occurred in the dense wooded area of Spotsylvania Co VA, an area just West of Fredericksburg VA. Some of this area had been contested almost exactly a year earlier during the Battle of Chancellorsville may 1863- where the Union Army was decisively defeated and repelled by Lee/Jackson in an almost mythical lop-sided Confederate Victory.

This area is important because it is located almost exactly halfway in-between the Richmond and DC. It is also a major hub of trade, business, and travel. it also holds historical significance to most americans because Fredericksburg is well known as the place George Washington was born/grew up and Pocahontas met English explorers at the "rapids of the Rappahannock".

The two Armies engaged in a massive full scale battle that is almost unfathomable by todays standards, with over 180,000 Americans engaged at one time at the same place.

Union Army: 124,000+ Troops
Confederate Army: 60,000+ Troops

Total Casualties: 28,000+
Union: 17000+
Confederate: 11,000+

Staggering numbers to say the least. Most of the battle was fought at extremely close range with several large night time engagements. The terrain is pretty much about as bad as you can imagine, steep hills and thick thick under growth with mixed large hardwoods. This area had been logged to fuel iron smelting furnaces in the years prior and had grown up as extremely dense thickets.

Here is a good description of the terrain and its effect, directly from Col. Vincent J. Esposito's diary:

"In the Wilderness numbers meant little—in fact, they were frequently an encumbrance on the narrow trails. Visibility was limited, making it extremely difficult for officers to exercise effective control. Attackers could only thrash noisily and blindly forward through the underbrush, perfect targets for the concealed defenders. In attack or retreat, formations could rarely be maintained. In this near-jungle, the Confederates had the advantages of being, on the whole, better woodsmen than their opponents and of being far more familiar with the terrain. Federal commanders were forced to rely upon maps, which soon proved thoroughly unreliable."


Ultimately, it ended with Grant and US forces disengaging and attempting to maneuver around Confederate forces. This failed and the Battle of Spotsylvania Courthouse was the result immediately following this for the rest of May 1864.

On to the pics!!


Here is a pic at the infamous "Widow tapp" Field-- a spot where Confederate put up a brilliant resistance and Union Army showed unreal bravery. Union Forces charged entrenched confederate forces, up hill, multiple times. Massive casualties for Union forces estimated 1000+. General Lee famously rallied his troops and road up front during the battle at this area, putting himself at great risk. Union General Wadsworth was killed near this location, shot through the head.











Here is what the area looked like after the battle, when the field was "cleaned up" This picture was taken about 300 yards from the location of the R. Take notice of the skulls piled up. Many of the wounded near this area burnt to death when a portion of the underbrush caught fire and many men were trapped. Numerous troops wrote about hearing the screams and being able to do nothing.







The following pictures were taken at "Saunders Field", located on the Western side of the Confederate defensive position. This was the scene of an intense hour long struggle with close range direct artillery fire and hand to hand combat. This field and surrounding field also caught fire. The confederate general commanding in this area, Brig. Gen. Leroy A. Stafford was shot through the shoulder blade, the bullet severing his spine. Despite being paralyzed from the waist down and in bleeding out, he managed to still urge his troops forward, ultimately succeeding in this area. The night here hosted a serious night time attack attempt, which resulted in hand to hand fighting and terrible casualties and numerous lost and disoriented soldiers.

Pics!














I will leave you with this famous quote from Private Frank Wilkeson:

"I saw many wounded soldiers in the Wilderness who hung on to their rifles, and whose intention was clearly stamped on their pallid faces. I saw one man, both of whose legs were broken, lying on the ground with his cocked rifle by his side and his ramrod in his hand, and his eyes set on the front. I knew he meant to kill himself in case of fire—knew it as surely as though I could read his thoughts."










Pic of Confederate Earth Works- take notice of how the trees are all shot down at head level. Makes you think twice about the effectiveness of rifled musketry. Terrible.






I hope everyone enjoys this! Please ask questions if you have any.

CW-ITR

iTrader: (11)

I visited here back in '98 on one of my business trips to East Coast. I walked every where hoping to find a simple/minor artifact like a bullet shell but nada . I know what you are going to say. Those in the gift shop probably made in China. LOL!

Thanks for sharing.

Little_Nolan

iTrader: (3)

Hah, occasionally I stumble upon something on private property. Sometimes visitors come across things on park ground and turn them in, but those areas get walked a lot.

timmybilt

This is a awesome post man! a beautiful 97R and early east coast american history, i love it!

I live in New Bern, NC and we have quite a bit of early colonial history and some civil war history in this area that I love learning about but I am unfortunately not as well versed on the subject as you seem to be and I have not yet acquired a complete type r lol.

CW-ITR

iTrader: (11)

Do folks around there still telling ghost stories of marching band and or marching soldiers at night?

Little_Nolan

iTrader: (3)

^Yes, ghost stories are still told frequently and I believe there is a "Fredericksburg ghost tour"... I have only had one or two creepy encounters.


Thanks for the kind words.

I believe I traveled through the New Bern area on my way to and from Camp Lejeune... There is some solid civil war history in that neck of the woods.

Tetanus

First of all, it's not very often I log in. But I am now just to reply to your post. Thanks for sharing your knowledge on The American Civil war, it's something I know a little about, and I've never been to any of the battlefields in person, just have seen them through pictures. It's really cool that you included pictures from that era in your post
Beautiful 97 Type R, it looks great with the factory wheels and slight drop in ride height. 1997s are my favourite because of the low build number, pre-facelift styling and for nostalgic reasons.
Regards

Little_Nolan

iTrader: (3)

Thank you for the kind words sir and I am pleased that you enjoyed the post.

Theres just something about 97's!

Little_Nolan

iTrader: (3)

I went and visited this battlefield again recently, though not in my R and took my wife and dog on a nice long walk.

If you are in the DMV area you should really consider hitting some of the battlefields while "staying at home" for COVID-19.

AndyD

iTrader: (1)

VERY cool! I will check it out with my GF. We are always looking for cool things like this to experience.

When I was younger, I didn't care about history. As I got older. I realized how important it is.

Also, are those the wheels I bought off you or are they a different set? I cleaned them and plan on getting them power coated in the future.

Little_Nolan

iTrader: (3)

Those are different wheels on the car in the picture. No need to powder coat them - you will never get the color the same as NH-0. Just repaint them and they will be fine for a long time.

Any of the battlefields around Fredericksburg are a great experience - still lots of trenches and things to see.