06-09 Gettysburg 3

From 06-09 Gettysburg 3

Monday we returned for our final visit to the Gettysburg battlefield. This time we visited Spangler’s Spring

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Culp’s Hill

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and the site of the climatic battle known as Pickett’s Charge. The lanes mowed in the grass mark the approximate route the Confederate Troops converged on the Union lines.

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General George Pickett’s troops were the spearhead of the attack. Pickett commanded about 1/3 of the 12,500 Confederate soldiers who attacked that final day. They were spread along a front about 1 mile wide and marched 3/4 mile across the field under constant artillery fire. When they reached the road in front of the Union lines, constant rifle fire was added. After the battle, Union soldiers counted over 800 bullet holes in one 16 foot section of rail fence the Confederates had to cross.

The High Water Mark was the point where a few Confederate Troops crossed the Union low stone wall at a point know as “The Angle”.

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This monument marks where Confederate General Armistead was killed and the attack faltered with Confederate troops retreating back across the field again under enemy fire.

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Confederates suffered over 50% casualties with some of Pickett’s Divisions over 90%. There were about 93,000 Union soldiers and 73,000 Confederate soldiers in the Battle of Gettysburg. Somewhere around 50,000 casualties were reported. It is hard to imagine that many people being killed, wounded and/or captured. What a different scene it would have been in the days after the battle than the beautiful landscape Monique and I have viewed. But it is fitting that such peace and beauty should be seen across this hallowed ground. We have been saddened by much of what we have learned, yet we have learned much about the bravery of our ancestors who fought on both sides. We are very glad we came and highly recommend your coming to Gettysburg for a visit.

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06-09 Ash Lawn-Highland

From 06-09 Ashlawn-Highland

Our time in Virginia seems to have been the tour of Presidential homes. Friday we drove over to James Monroe’s home, Ash Lawn-Highland. Monroe lived about 2 miles from his good friend Thomas Jefferson and about 25 miles from James Madison another good friend. His family lived at Highland from 1799-1823. Later owners changed the name of the plantation to Ash Lawn because of the Ash trees that lined the driveway.

Monroe was not nearly as wealthy as Jefferson and Madison so his home was not as grand, but it was still lovely. Unlike the other homes we have toured, Ash Lawn-Highland has not been restored to the way it looked in Monroe’s time. Instead it still has the additions and changes made by other owners. In the photo below, the white portion dates to Monroe’s time, and the yellow is a subsequent addition.

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It is set up to display life in the 19th century. It is furnished with beautiful period antiques. Many are from the Monroe family, but others are from the succeeding owners or were added to represent similar furnishings to the Monroe’s. Again we could not take interior shots.

There are several slave dwellings and the overseer’s house in the back of the house.

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There was a small formal garden in the rear. It was aligned so that at one time you could look down the distant walk way and see the dome of Monticello. Trees block the view now.

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There were pretty lilies in bloom.

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From 06-09 Ashlawn-Highland

There was a boxwood garden with a statue of Monroe in one alcove. (See picture at the beginning of this post)

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The Monroe’s had a vegetable garden but only about 1/5 the size of the one at Monticello.

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This tree dates from Monroe’s time.

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The views across the pastures were lovely,

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and along the entrance drive.

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We enjoyed our time at Ashj Lawn-Highland. It is well worth a stop when you are visiting nearby Monticello. Allow 1 1/2 to 2 hours for your visit. The house tour lasts about 45 minutes.

06-09 Virginia Scenic Views

From 06-09 Virginia Scenic Views

I have talked about the beautiful scenery we have enjoyed in our drives while in Virginia. Before we headed to James Monroe’s home, we drove arounf the area near the campground. Here are some photos from our drive.

This is a farm across the road from the Campground. Note the tall grass ready for mowing after all the rain we have had for the past few weeks.

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This is a large horse farm.

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This is a view of the same farm from the opposite direction. The white building to the right is a huge barn. The farm’s mansion was just down the road. It looked like it had more rooms than all the combined rooms in the President’s homes we have visited. It was huge.

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This is an overlook off nearby I-64. It is very near where the Blue Ridge Parkway ends and Skyline Drive begins.

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When we saw this sign at the overlook, we thought about our friend Tony at the Barnyard RV Park who flew sport gliders when he lived in England.

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This is another overlook a few miles further along I-64.

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This overlook also had a memorial to workers from the Virginia Department of Transportation who were killed in accidents while working on Virginia Highways. We were saddened to see how many names were listed. It is a reminder to slow down in construction areas.

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