--(1) Shiloh Receives $1 Million Enhancement Grant -----------------------------------------------------
Shiloh Park awarded $1M grant
09/23/2008
The Jackson Sun (MS)
http://www.jacksonsun.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008809230314
Gov. Phil Bredesen joined state and local leaders at the Shiloh National Park Monday to award a transportation enhancement grant totaling $1 million for Phase 1 of the preservation and interpretation of the Battle of Shiloh in Hardin and McNairy counties, according to a press release.
The grant funds will be used to acquire additional areas of the battlefield at both Shiloh and Fallen Timbers, properties considered to be in the core and study area of the battlefield as defined by the Civil War Sites Advisory Council, the release said.
"The Battle of Shiloh site is not just an important piece of Tennessee history, it is one of the most significant battlefields in the nation," Bredesen said in the release. "It is imperative that we preserve these areas and I'm pleased the state can contribute to those efforts."
State Rep. Randy Rinks, D-Savannah, stated, "This battlefield draws visitors from around the nation and has a positive impact on the economies of both Hardin and McNairy counties. This is an important investment in preserving our nation's history for future generations."
"The preservation of this battlefield will ensure that future visitors will learn about this pivotal point in the Civil War and how this battle had a direct impact on the course of American history," said state Sen. John Wilder, D-Mason.
The Tennessee Wars Commission, a division of the Tennessee Historical Commission, will oversee the project.
"This grant will allow us to acquire and interpret some of the most endangered Civil War battlefield property in Tennessee ," said Fred Prouty, director of programs for the Tennessee Wars Commission. "We're thrilled to be able to partner as co-applicants with the Civil Wars Preservation Trust and utilize this grant to protect these significant sites for future generations."
The grant is made possible through a federally funded program administered by the Tennessee Department of Transportation.
"TDOT has funded more than $189 million in transportation related projects through our Enhancement Grant Program," said TDOT Commissioner Gerald Nicely. "This program provides funds to cities, counties and state organizations to fund activities such as the restoration of historic facilities, bike and pedestrian trails, landscaping, streetscaping and other non-traditional transportation projects."
The federal grant program was established by Congress in the early 1990's to fund activities designed to strengthen the cultural, aesthetic and environmental aspects of the nation's transportation system.
--(2) Gettysburg Cyclorama Is Larger-Than-Life -----------------------------------------------------
Gettysburg Gallery Creates Larger-Than-Life Experience
By Paul Peirce
9/21/2008
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/focus/s_588335.html
It is said Battle of Gettysburg veterans were so overwhelmed by the reality of French artist Paul Philippoteaux's colossal 377-foot Cyclorama painting at its 1884 unveiling in Chicago that some openly wept.
On Friday, when the Gettysburg Foundation and the National Park Service welcome visitors to the new Battle of Gettysburg Cyclorama Gallery as part of the grand opening of the $103 million museum and visitors complex, those in attendance may not weep, but Civil War aficionados and tourists likely will be stunned by the work.
The Cyclorama, which depicts Pickett's Charge, is the United States ' largest oil painting. At $15 million, it has undergone the most expensive refurbishment of an oil painting in the nation's history. As part of the five-year project, it was cleaned, repaired and restored to its original dimension; approximately 12 feet of sky was added, stretching its height to 42 feet.
While a team of about 20 conservators headed by David L. Olin of Great Falls, Va., were working on the painting, which depicts the decisive battle where Union armies beat back Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's assault on Northern territories, they uncovered more than 20 soldiers who disappeared under "gobs of paint that were splashed to cover up imperfections," according to Sue Boardman, a historian for the conservation project.
"It weighs about six tons, and I'm told four tons of it is oil paint," Gettysburg National Park spokeswoman Katie Lawhon says.
But the real shock is the painting's new home, which gives observers the illusion they are standing in the middle of the battlefield as the third day of the renowned battle is taking place. To give viewers that feeling, the painting was designed to include a three-dimensional diorama, a lifelike landscape stretching into the painting and a sky that disappears into an overhead canopy.
Visitors view the work atop a 30-foot platform.
"These features have not been seen for more than a century when it was originally displayed. This building actually fits the painting, whereas the old building was too small," Boardman says.
"It actually hung there like a shower curtain. Some parts were on the floor," she says.
"The roof had a lot of leaks. And the air conditioning intake actually was in the corner behind a portion of the painting, so for about 40 years, the painting was utilized as an air conditioning filter," Lawhon says.
Olin, who operates Olin Conservation, says that the Cyclorama never was intended to "stand on its own as a painting or as a snapshot of the battle's landmarks."
"It was to be an experience -- to be wholly absorbed and felt. It was to inspire awe and amazement. Now, for the first time in more than a century, viewers will once again enter a realm in which their senses will, if just for a moment, place them in the midst of the battle," Olin says.
A three-day grand opening weekend Friday through Sept. 28 not only will celebrate completion of the Cyclorama painting, but also bring together a variety of three-dimensional, interactive, hands-on experiences that immerse visitors throughout the 139,000-square-foot museum. The old center was about 78,000 square feet.
The new museum opened in April.
The fate of the Cyclorama's former building and museum, built in the 1960s, has spawned a federal lawsuit from preservationists who argued that it should be maintained as a memorial and historical landmark.
Despite the ongoing litigation, park officials are optimistic that demolition of both buildings will begin in the fall.
Also during this week's opening, one of five known manuscripts of the Gettysburg Address will be on display, on loan from the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum in Springfield , Ill.
"While most of our museum and visitors center offers a 21st century museum experience, the new Cyclorama painting presents a unique opportunity; the opportunity to view the 1863 battle in the same context that battle veterans did when they first saw the painting toward the end of the 19th century," says Robert C. Wilburn, president and CEO of the Gettysburg Foundation.
Tickets to the Cyclorama Gallery also will include the film "A New Birth of Freedom" narrated by Morgan Freeman and featuring the voices of Sam Waterston and Marcia Gay Harden. The film tells the story of the Battle of Gettysburg.
The new museum is about two-thirds of a mile from the old location, according to Dru Ann Neil, director of communications at the museum. The old site was in an important battle area; the new one is on land that saw no major battle action.
"This was a staging area," Neil says.
The center is a red and gray stone structure that resembles a barn. Neil says the museum is dedicated to preserving and presenting the story of the battle and its context in the Civil War.
On display are the National Park Service's priceless collections of objects, artifacts and archival materials.
In addition to the museum, with its 12 exhibit galleries and interactive and multimedia stations, the facility includes a resource room and bookstore. The Refreshment Saloon includes Civil War-era menu items such as hardtack -- hard biscuits made of flour, salt and water.
The artifacts include rifles, handguns and knives recovered from the battlefields, field camp equipment used by Lee, uniforms and musical instruments of Confederate and Union troops recovered after the battle, and a display of other artillery shell fragments.
Visitors can peek at original letters sent to loved ones by soldiers and personal diaries of Gettysburg residents.
Another change is that visitors can use touch-screen computers to learn how to decipher bugle calls, decode signal corps flag messages and locate battlefield monuments.
The Gettysburg National Military Park preserves the 6,000-acre Gettysburg Battlefield, site of the largest battle fought in North America . It was at the dedication of the Soldiers' National Cemetery , adjacent to the battlefield, that Abraham Lincoln delivered his Gettysburg Address Nov. 19,1863.
On Feb. 12, 2009, the 200th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln's birth, the National Park Service will open the David Wills House in Gettysburg . Lincoln put the finishing touches on the speech at the house.
The Gettysburg Foundation is a private, nonprofit educational organization working in partnership with the National Park Service to enhance preservation and understanding of the heritage and lasting significance of Gettysburg .
--(3) Prince William Prepares for Civil War Anniversary-----------------------------------------------------
Prince William Prepares for Civil War Anniversary
By Nick Miroff
9/21/2008
Washington Post (DC)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/20/AR2008092000106_pf.html
With the 150th anniversary of the Civil War approaching in 2011, Prince William County officials and historians have begun meeting to determine how the war should be commemorated.
The county played a key role in the war's early stages, hosting the first major battle -- the First Battle of Bull Run, or First Battle of Manassas -- at what is now Manassas National Battlefield Park . Although that event and other large battles in Prince William are more well known, there are other, smaller events to commemorate in the county that will help deepen knowledge of the war and its social, political and economic significance, said Brendon Hanafin, director of the county's historical preservation office.
"The county has a wonderful opportunity to enrich folks' understanding of the war," said Hanafin, who is leading a committee composed of Prince William and Manassas representatives. The group has been meeting monthly to identify the county's key historic sites and plan events for residents, students and tourists.
"I'd say we're at the forefront in the state," Hanafin said. "We're very well positioned from a tourism standpoint."
The committee will work with the state-level Sesquicentennial of the American Civil War Commission, created by the General Assembly in 2006 to coordinate and promote events in the state through its Web site, http://www.virginiacivilwar.org. The site also features an interactive map with a county-by-county account of each battle fought in Virginia .
No state played a more central role in the war than Virginia . The Old Dominion was host to the war's first and last major battles and the Confederate capital, Richmond . Many of the rebel army's top officers were Virginians, notably Gen. Robert E. Lee. Hundreds of thousands of Union and Confederate soldiers were cut down on Virginia soil.
The conflict's major fighting came first to Prince William, when Union forces were defeated in an attempt to seize control of a strategic railroad junction near Manassas . Soldiers returned to the same site in 1862 for an even bloodier clash, and the two armies also fought at Bristoe Station in 1863, where the county recently opened the 133-acre Bristoe Station Battlefield Heritage Park .
"Prince William was the front line," Hanafin said.
Battles aren't all that local officials are planning to commemorate, though, and there were other local events that factored into the war's origins and aftermath, Hanafin said.
Some of the first Virginia militias to organize after Abraham Lincoln was elected president in 1860 did so at the recently renovated historic Brentsville Courthouse. And Dangerfield Newby, a former slave killed in John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry , W.Va. , in 1859 while trying to win freedom for his wife and children, had been enslaved in the Brentsville area.
In 1911, 50 years after the war, elderly Union and Confederate veterans came together for the first time at the Manassas courthouse, along with President William Howard Taft, for the National Jubilee of Peace.
"It's going to be a time when we can talk about this very important time in our history, and the social and political issues that created a great divide," said John Verrill, director of the Manassas Museum and a committee member. "It's important to know the history so we don't repeat it."
Patricia Jones, chief of interpretation at Manassas National Battlefield Park , has been representing the park at the meetings in hopes of creating a "signature event" to commemorate the First Battle of Bull Run in July 1861. Jones said that although several possibilities were under discussion, a large-scale reenactment was not one of them. "This is hallowed ground," Jones said. "Let's move those [reenactment] activities elsewhere."
Jones said the park is planning to open a new interpretive center in time for the 2011 commemoration in a historic house at Brawner Farm. The $155,000 facility will be entirely devoted to the Second Battle of Bull Run, she said.
Others involved in the planning emphasized that the 150th anniversary would be a solemn observance, not a celebration. "It was a great tragedy, and we need to let people know what happened," said Sen. Charles J. Colgan (D-Prince William), vice chairman of the state Sesquicentennial Commission.
When he moved to the Prince William area in the early 1960s, said Colgan, 81, a Confederate flag flew above Manassas 's town hall and the local radio station heralded Prince William as the "Gateway to Dixie ."
These days, he doesn't hear as much about the war, he said, and he figures local schoolchildren could stand to learn something. The commemoration "is going to be a lesson in history," he said.
Plans are also in the works for a Civil War exhibit in a tractor-trailer that would travel around the state, Colgan said.
--(4) Proposed Visitor Center Fee Causes Contention -----------------------------------------------------
Contentious: Proposed Visitor Center Admission Fee Produces Spirited Objections at Hearing
By Scott Andrew Pitzer
9/19/2008
Gettysburg Times (PA)
http://www.gettysburgtimes.com/articles/2008/09/20/news/local/doc48d383dd1711f367952405.txt
A standing-room-only crowd attended a public meeting Thursday night at the new Gettysburg National Military Park Visitor Center to learn about an admissions proposal that the park and its management partner are considering for the three major attractions at the $103 million complex.
The proposal is contentious because it includes charging visitors a $7.50 admission to see the previously free artifact museum, with the Cyclorama painting and feature film.
“I feel that the collection of artifacts should be free to the American people,” said Walt Jones, representing the Rosensteel family whose donation of nearly 40,000 artifacts is the foundation of the park’s collection. “When they donated those relics, they specified that the relics should be passed onto the people of the United States free of charge.”
Many of the 100 or so people in attendance criticized the proposal, and suggested cost-cutting alternatives.
*
“At a salary of $392,735, it would take 52,364 people paying $7.50 just to pay (Gettysburg Foundation President) Bob Wilburn’s salary,” said Gettysburg businessman Gene Golden.
GNMP Supt. Dr. John A. Latschar replied: “In a small community like this, you get what you pay for. Mr. Wilburn has raised $115 million for us and this project. There are only a certain amount of people that can raise that kind of money.”
Revenue projections are not being reached at the new 139,000 square-foot facility, which opened in April, so the park and its nonprofit partner, the Gettysburg Foundation, are considering an all-inclusive $7.50 ticket to see the museum, a 22-minute movie and the restored Cyclorama painting.
“If anyone here believes that the decision hasn’t been made, you’re naive,” said park critic Franklin Silbey. “Nothing that anyone says here tonight will change their decision. How many promises have they made and now broken?”
Latschar admitted during a recent press briefing that the figures used by consultants during the planning stages of the project, which dates back 14 years, were flawed, so the park and foundation are now mulling revenue generating solutions. The foundation is responsible for paying down the project’s debt ($15 million), as well as covering the facility’s operational costs.
“The whole concept was that there wasn’t to be one cent of taxpayer money used to fund anything,” said developer Bob Monahan Jr., whose visitor center proposal was vetoed in the late 1990s in favor of York area businessman Robert Kinsley’s proposal. “Two reasons were given to me why my proposal wasn’t selected — I was proposing a $3 fee to see portions of the museum, and my project was $40 million, which I thought was reasonable at the time. Now look at the costs.”
About $36 million in state and federal funding are being used to subsidize the project.
“There is a lot of reason for skepticism when it has to do with money within these walls,” said Gettysburg businessman Eric Uberman. “We were sold on no commercialism or tax dollars, but as Dr. Latschar has said, that is no longer true. We also had Mr. Kinsley stand up before Congress and say that this was his gift to America — it’s the gift that keeps on giving.”
The park’s General Management Plan of 1999 does not forecast a fee to the museum. Gettysburg National Military Park is home to one million Civil War artifacts, and about 1,500 relics are on display in the new exhibit gallery.
“That’s why we’re here tonight,” explained Latschar. “Anything we consider that’s not in (the plan) must be taken before public comment.”
Only 23 percent out of about one million people who have visited the facility since it opened in April have paid to see the film. The park’s original revenue projections counted on about 33 percent of the facility’s visitors watching the movie, which had been priced at $8.
“The film is very good, but it is no substitute for the Electric Map,” said Jones, whose remarks were punctuated by a boisterous round of applause.
Many of the 100 people who sat through the 2.5 hour meeting represented the Gettysburg business community.
“Most of the attractions in town are in the $7.25-$7.50 range,” said Tammy Myers, of the American Civil War Museum on Steinwehr Avenue . “It just seems like some of the local businesses might be undercut. I’d like to see you be a good neighbor.”
If the current fee proposal is not approved by the National Park Service, Wilburn acknowledged that there is a Plan B.
“Cut expenses as much as we can, and market the other venues that we have as much as we possibly can,” Wilburn said. “We’re going to have to cut costs to the bone.”
Written comment on the proposal is being accepted through the end of the month, and a decision could be made as early as the first week in October.
--(5) Civil War Trails Program Expected to Boost Tourism -----------------------------------------------------
Civil War Trails Program Expected to Boost Tourism
By Mindy Tate
9/19/2008
Williamson Herald (TN)
http://www.williamsonherald.com/home?id=59294
It was a celebratory mood Wednesday as state tourism and transportation officials unveiled the first marker in the state’s new Tennessee Civil War Trails program in front of the Williamson County Courthouse.
Franklin’s gateway marker acts as a map to other Civil War sites in the Franklin/Williamson County area, which highlight Hood’s 1864 campaign. Williamson County will have 13 markers as part of the program and installation in Maury and Giles Counties , as well as throughout West Tennessee , will continue throughout the fall.
Tennessee Department of Tourist Development Commissioner Susan Whitaker was joined by Tennessee Department of Transportation Commissioner Gerald Nicely for the unveiling.
Mitch Bowman, executive director, Civil War Trails Inc., called Franklin his “adopted home” and thanked the community on behalf of the 189 other counties throughout Virginia, North Carolina, Maryland and West Virginia which participate in the program.
“Although we should and certainly do have a great sense of accomplishment, so many of you have gone to the landowners and it is that opening of the landscape, that is the difficult part,” Bowman said.
“In every true sense of the word, today is but the beginning of the program because now Tennessee Civil War Trails can act as a local, regional, statewide and multi-state marketing effort to bring travelers from literally around the nation and the world,” Bowman said.
Also speaking Wednesday was Tod Sedgwick, chairman of the Civil War Preservation Trust, who said the agency doesn’t have “any better partners than we have in Tennessee .”
“It is really remarkable when you think a few years ago that Franklin was known as a poster child for what goes wrong in historic preservation,” Sedgwick said. “We used to make a lot of money showing a picture of that Pizza Hut and now look what’s happened,” referring to Eastern Flank Battlefield Park, the demolition of the Pizza Hut on the Cotton Gin battlefield site and the additional acreage recently attained by The Carter House.
“I really think from a national perspective, Franklin is really on a par with Gettysburg and there is no reason the tourism shouldn’t escalate exponentially based on the commitment you have.”
He congratulated Tennessee and its officials for using “every tool in their tool kit to preserve battlefield land.”
The Civil War Trails is a multi-state program that identifies, interprets and creates driving tours of both the great campaigns and the lesser-known Civil War sites. The initiative has been identified by the National Trust for Historic Preservation as one of the most successful and sustainable heritage tourism programs in the nation. The Tennessee Department of Tourist Development was awarded a federal enhancement grant which is an 80/20 match through the Tennessee Department of Transportation to be a part of this program.
Subsequent markers will be installed throughout the week in Maury County (2), Giles County (1), and Sullivan County (3). Additional markers will be installed in West Tennessee in late October.
--(6) Trevilian Station Landmark Saved -----------------------------------------------------
Battlefield Home Saved
By Shayna Strang
9/16/2008
Louisa Central Virginian (VA)
http://www.thecentralvirginian.com/news/view_sections.asp?idcategory=47&idarticle=2088
More than 144 years after General George A. Custer positioned his headquarters on its front porch, the Charles Goodall Trevilian House will cement its permanent place in the battle's history for future generations.
After some negotiations, the sprawling antebellum homeplace on Danne Road was recently purchased by the Civil War Preservation Trust with the assistance of the Trevilian Station Battlefield Foundation.
"People see different things when they look at a house," said Gerald W. Harlow, president of TSBF. "When I see this house, I get excited. It's a great house by itself."
The Foundation arranged an agreement with the current homeowner and the CWPT allowing the Preservation Trust to purchase the historical property.
"For the short term, it's to stabilize it," Thomas M. Gilmore, director of real estate for the CWPT, said of the purchase. "In the longer term, I think that a group like the Foundation would be ideal to have this site as an interpretative center of the entire Trevilian Station Battlefield."
There is currently more than 2,000 acres related to the battle that have been preserved by TSBF in Louisa. The group has been actively working with CWPT and will continue its efforts to save the battlefield for future recreational uses.
"The mission continues against mounting development pressures and soaring land prices," said Kathy Stiles, vice president of TSBF. "We are still working for core portions of the battlefield. We are just trying to preserve it."
The CWPT has preserved over 25,000 acres of battlefield land across the country, nearly half of which is in Virginia .
"Our goal, for all the property that we acquire, is to make it publicly accessible," Gilmore said. "We normally just buy battlefield land, but we bought this house because of its importance to the battlefield and the community."
While there are still questions as to the year the house was constructed, many have suggested the house dates to the 1830s.
Several decades later, during the Battle of Trevilian, Harlow said the house was used by Gen. Custer throughout the night of June 11, 1864.
"The Trevilian House was the center of this little community," he said. "Charles Goodall Trevilian was pretty prominent in the community. There was tremendous fighting around here. That night Custer put his headquarters here on the front porch."
At the same time, Trevilian's daughter, Martha, was sick with typhoid fever inside the house. "He didn't believe the Trevilian daughter was sick, so he had his own surgeon examine her and found out that she had typhoid," Harlow said.
According to historical records, the general stationed himself on the porch to provide the young girl with the quiet she needed to recover. However, during the battle a bullet passed through the house, striking a mirror in the room adjoining Martha's.
The CWPT will begin fundraising efforts to cover the costs of repairs on the house and the acquisition. According to Gilmore, funds could also come from the Civil War Sites Historic Preservation Fund, a two-to-one matching fund specifically for battlefield preservation approved during this year's General Assembly session.
"Because this property obviously is part of the Trevilian Station Battlefield, we'll apply to that fund," Gilmore said. "We're going to get a firm to come in and take a look at it and tell us what needs to be done. The first thing we always try to do is stabilize it so it doesn't further deteriorate."
During the renovations, the house's current tenant, Greg Early, will be allowed to remain on the property. Early's family has lived in the residence on and off since the early 1970's.
"I've always loved the old house and its historical value," Early said. "I was just glad that they got it. I wanted to see it preserved."
This is one of many properties in the area that the TSBF has worked to acquire with the CWPT, totaling approximately $300,000 for the trust.
"We've worked with the Foundation on over 1,400 acres at Trevilian Station," Gilmore said, "For us, that's probably the largest amount at any one battlefield in the U.S. that we've helped preserve."
While a schedule for the stabilization has not yet been set, the group is open to several options for the final restoration of the building.
"We don't have any plans at this point," Gilmore said "Ultimately, we'll want to turn it over to a group like the Foundation that could use it as an interpretative center or a museum or a headquarters or a combination of all that."
--(7) West Virginia Battlefields See New Fighting -----------------------------------------------------
Some of West Virginia ’s Civil War Battlefields Are Scenes of New Fighting
By Paul Darst
9/11/2008
Charleston State Journal (WV)
http://www.statejournal.com/story.cfm?func=viewstory&storyid=43841&printview=1
Some of West Virginia 's Civil War battlefields are scenes of new fighting.
For the past four years, a group of Jefferson County residents has been fighting to save an historic battlefield there, said Edward Dunleavy, president of the Shepherdstown Battlefield Preservation Association Inc.
"It's been difficult for the past four years," he said. "(A developer) bought a 122-acre farm and proposed building 152 houses on it."
The problem as association members see it is that much of the development will be on hallowed ground that was the site of the 1862 Battle of Shepherstown. The battle took place Sept. 19-20 of that year, two days after the Battle of Antietam -- the bloodiest single-day battle in American history with a combined 24,000 killed, wounded or missing.
On the evening of Sept. 19, a Union force crossed the Potomac River at Shepherdstown and attacked the retiring Army of Northern Virginia of Gen. Robert E. Lee. The troops captured artillery pieces and retreated. The next morning, they established a bridgehead over the river as Confederate units headed back toward Shepherdstown to counterattack.
The Union units on the Shepherdstown side of the river were outnumbered and were ordered to retreat. One inexperienced unit, however, was cut off and suffered heavy losses.
Today, Dunleavy's association is fighting a different kind of battle, he said.
"We're fighting a developer," he said. "We're trying to save the core of the battlefield. (The battle) took place over one square mile. (The battlefield) is bisected by a road. It's as it was in 1862. Most of the battle took place west of the road. We're trying to save half of the core of the battlefield. So far, we have 84 acres."
An effort to save another of the state's Civil War battlefields has been going on for the past 17 years in Randolph County . The Rich Mountain Battlefield Foundation has been working to save a site since 1991, said Michelle Depp, executive director of the organization. Like the Shepherdstown group, Depp's organization was founded in response to a threat to the battlefield, she said.
"It started as a grassroots effort to save the endangered Rich Mountain site," Depp said. "There was timbering and mining -- it was pretty close to mountaintop removal."
During the past nearly two decades, the foundation has been able to raise funds through grant writing and other means to purchase much of the battlefield, Depp said. To date, the organization has bought 435 acres of battlefield grounds, she said.
"We worked with a variety of state and federal agencies to make it happen," she said. "... There's always more work to be done. We've probably acquired everything we're able to acquire for that battleground."
Much of the work now involves preserving and maintaining the battlefield, she said.
But the Shepherdstown group still has a lot of uncertainty surrounding its efforts, Dunleavy said. The group now is awaiting a decision by the U.S. Supreme Court. The Jefferson County Board of Zoning appeals denied the developer a conditional use permit for the property, and that decision was upheld at the Circuit Court level. The West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals this past June overturned that decision, however, and now the association is appealing to the nation's high court.
The association has asked the Supreme Court for a summary judgment in the case, he said. A decision could be handed down any day now.
In the meantime, the Shepherdstown group will continue working to preserve the historic site, Dunleavy said.
One recent development is a bill sponsored by U.S. Sen. Robert C. Byrd, D-W.Va., that would put the Shepherdstown battlefield under the jurisdiction of nearby Harpers Ferry National Historic Park or the Antietam National Battlefield, both of which are part of the U.S. National Park Service.
Senate Bill 1633 has passed committee and now is awaiting a floor vote. Dunleavy said he hopes the bill will pass, and the Shepherdstown site can be placed under federal jurisdiction before any development takes place.
--(8) More Tourists Expected for 150th Anniversary -----------------------------------------------------
Civil War Heritage: West Virginia Prepares for Influx of Tourists as 150th Anniversary of the War Between the States Nears
By Paul Darst
9/11/2008
Charleston State Journal (WV)
http://www.statejournal.com/story.cfm?func=viewstory&storyid=43811
Fighting a battle in the rugged mountains of West Virginia is no easy task.
Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee found out just how daunting a job it could be Sept. 12, 1861. It was on that day 147 years ago that Lee launched the Confederates' first offensive operation of the Civil War at Cheat Summit Fort in Randolph County . It ended as an unmitigated failure for the South.
"Robert E. Lee came to Cheat Mountain to see if he could drive the Union out of the area," said C. Stuart McGehee, professor of history at West Virginia State University . "He went home in defeat. ... He said northwestern Virginia is lost."
From 2011 to 2015, the United States will observe the 150th anniversary of the Civil War. West Virginia in particular will mark the occasion in numerous ways, and state officials are expecting an increase in tourists, said Justin Gaull, a marketing specialist with the state's Division of Tourism.
"Our only way of measuring (Civil War heritage interest) is that it's the number one cultural heritage piece requested from visitors outside the state," he said. "(Overall) it's right behind whitewater rafting."
And the number of tourists interested in the state's role in the Civil War is expected to increase during the next few years because of the upcoming anniversary, he said.
Remembering John Brown
The first series of events in the lead up to the Civil War sesquicentennial is that of John Brown's raid on the federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry , which took place Oct. 16, 1859. On that night, the ardent abolitionist and a group of followers seized the arsenal with the intent of using the weapons stored there to start a rebellion within the slave population. Brown's attempt failed, and he was captured. The following December, he was hanged in Charles Town.
Jefferson County and the surrounding area have plenty in store throughout 2009, said Paulette Sprinkle, executive director of the Jefferson County Convention and Visitors Bureau.
"We've already had a couple of events," she said. "The entire effort is being coordinated through the Tri-State Area up here. We have three states within one mile."
The Harpers Ferry effort is part of a larger one being coordinated with the help of the National Parks Service, Sprinkle said. It involves West Virginia , Pennsylvania , Maryland and Virginia . The John Brown 150th Anniversary Quad-State Committee has several activities scheduled through December 2009.
The anniversary will give Harpers Ferry a chance to show off all of its historical treasures, Sprinkle said.
"We have quite a heritage here," she said. "... We have a lot of black history. We were part of the Underground Railroad. And this was a rail town."
The community also has ties to George Washington, who once lived there, Sprinkle said.
A schedule of next year's events in Harpers Ferry is available online at www.johnbrownraid.org.
Birth of a State
Because the Civil War gave impetus to West Virginia 's statehood efforts, Independence Hall in Wheeling is sure to be a busy place as the sesquicentennial approaches, said Adam Hodges, director of museums for the West Virginia Division of Culture and History.
"At Independence Hall, we're doing exterior improvements," he said. "We're on the cusp of a major restoration of the hall. The governor has graciously, with the help of the Legislature, found the money to do a major restoration that's been needed for a long time."
Independence Hall was the site of the First and Second Wheeling Conventions in 1861. Those conventions repealed the Virginia Ordinance of Succession and established the Restored Government of Virginia, which was recognized by the Union to be the legitimate government of that state. The Restored Government authorized the western counties of Virginia to organize and form West Virginia .
In addition to the restoration project, the state is busy preparing a new display that will be exhibited at Independence Hall, Hodges said.
"We have one of the largest collections of Civil War battle flags in the country," he said. "... We're working with a company on preserving them now."
Ironically, the collection of about 30 battle flags still is in good shape because the state did not have the money in previous years to restore them, Hodges said. Some states with larger collections, and larger budgets, attempted to restore their flags several years ago. But the methods in use at the time were destructive. So West Virginia 's collection was left intact and in relatively good condition, he said.
And more Civil War exhibits are on the way to Charleston , Hodges said. In 2009, a renovated West Virginia State Museum is scheduled to open at the Cultural Center . The 23,000-square-foot museum will house exhibits and artifacts from throughout the state's history, including the Civil War.
"We're going to have a scale replica of the Philippi Bridge ," he said. "People will be able to walk across it."
The bridge played a key role in the Battle of Philippi June 3, 1861.
Although there is no scheduled opening date, Hodges said the renovated museum should be open the first half of 2009. The American Association of Museums is scheduled to have a meeting there in October of that year.
Strategic Marketing
Much of the effort to prepare for the sesquicentennial involves getting the state's message out, Gaull said. The state recently joined the Civil War Trails project, which already has a presence in North Carolina , Tennessee , Maryland and Virginia , he said.
"It's a good way for us to cross promote with other states in the region," he said. "It's identified as one of the top culture and heritage programs by the National Trust for Historic Preservation."
In April, the state erected its first sign for the trails project at the Robert McNutt House in Princeton , Gaull said. Rutherford B. Hayes, the future president, used that house as a headquarters while he was an officer in the Union army.
Such a marketing technique also is part of the Quad-State Committee's work, Sprinkle said.
"We like to consider ourselves a hub and spokes kind of area," she said. "We're not the only history here. Antietam ... Gettysburg , South Cedar Creek are not far from here. To the south and east, there is Manassas and other major areas. That's not including the smaller areas that had skirmishes."
Associating those lesser-known areas with national sites like Antietam National Battlefield or Gettysburg National Military Park helps promote tourism in the region. That is beneficial to smaller sites, which have much less money to spend on advertising, Sprinkle said.
Buying Power
Bringing tourists to town can have a big economic impact, said Michelle Depp executive director of the Rich Mountain Battlefield Foundation.
"Civil War tourists stay," she said. "They buy gas, food -- they want to take home something about their visit, like books. Civil War books are $20 to $70 in general."
Depp said her community of Beverly in Randolph County hopes to benefit economically from an increase in tourism for the next five to seven years. To prepare, the community has been making improvements to the visitors center and the old building that once served as the headquarters for Gen. George B. McClellan.
They also have built new pavilions on the battlefield complex, made improvements to the Rich Mountain Interpretation Center and have plans for a heritage center.
And it appears the work is paying off.
"I've been here since 1998," Depp said. "In the 10 years I've been here, I've seen the number of visitors go from 200 to 2,000 per year. That's just the ones who come into the visitors center. A lot of people just go up on the mountain themselves."
The visitors center already has booked bus tours for Civil War roundtable groups interested in visiting during the sesquicentennial, Depp said.
"What's going to happen is that people are going to want to experience it in an anniversary year," she said.
And the communities with Civil War attractions should benefit economically, Gaull said.
"The average Civil War tourist spends 30 percent more than other leisure travelers," he said. "They stay longer and have a greater economic impact."
According to information from Gaull, culture and heritage tourists stay an average of 5.2 nights compared to 3.4 nights for other tourists.
--(9) Civil War Is ‘Story of a War about Freedom’ ----------------------------------------------------
‘Story of a war about freedom’: Finally recovered from Jamestown 2007? Virginia gears up for Civil War’s 150th anniversary
By Bentley Boyd
9/10/2008
Hampton Roads Daily Press (VA)
http://www.dailypress.com/news/local/dp-local_civwar150th_0910sep10,0,227816.story
WILLIAMSBURG, VA - It's not much of a war between the states — Virginia is clearly winning.
The Old Dominion was the first to start planning for the 150th anniversary of the Civil War, and it continues to lead as the Congress holds back, wary of a misstep in commemorating a war that still causes arguments.
"The whole country is looking to us to see what we'll do. North Carolina has just created a commission, and West Virginia is working with us, but we're moving and shifting gears. We're rounding first and heading for second," said James Robertson, historian and head of the Virginia Center for Civil War Studies at Virginia Tech.
It's not much of a stretch. The war crisscrossed the state, and many re-enactors still trace the footsteps of the troops. Virginia had the first major battle of the war, hosted the capital of the Confederate States of America and witnessed the surrender of Gen. Robert E. Lee's army. More than 60 percent of all the battles in the war were fought in Virginia .
Kicking up the intensity of Civil War events already held each year in Virginia shouldn't be too hard. But is there a risk that the 150th events will cement a stereotype that Dakotans or Californians hold of Virginia — that the Old Dominion is still fixated on "the Lost Cause?"
"This is not about getting into that debate of whether the war was about slavery or about states' rights," said state Sen. Mamie Locke, D-Hampton, who sits on the commission.
"We can't say that it didn't happen. We can just say we will look at every aspect. It's not just the battles. It's about the people. We're going to look at it from a real human perspective, because it's also about the people who stayed home to protect their families."
John Quarstein, historian for the city of Hampton and a consultant to Newport News , said: "It's going to be marketed differently. It's the story of a war about freedom. We're not waving the same old flag."
The six years of anniversary events begin in April with a free conference in Richmond to describe America in 1859. In June, John Brown's raid on Harper's Ferry will be remembered. From there it becomes a marathon of memorials to the battles and skirmishes that affected every locality in Virginia .
"When you say 'Civil War,' we can put you in 30 different sites in just Hampton and Newport News ," Quarstein said.
That geographic scope and the length of the anniversary make this a different undertaking from last year's commemoration of the 400th anniversary of Jamestown . There were local committees and events tied to the Jamestown marketing, but those were hampered by a scarcity of 1607 touchstones.
" Jamestown 's commemoration was instructive, but it's not exactly the same," said William J. Howell, speaker of the Virginia House of Delegates and chairman of the 150th committee.
"Not to downgrade the significance of the 400th, but it was one point in time in one place in Virginia . The Civil War was four years and covered almost every point in Virginia ."
The Civil War remains in the soil here. Virginia has more than 400 Civil War sites linked by the signage of a Civil War Trails program. Already, 79 cities and counties in the state have formed sesquicentennial committees to plan events.
Those committees will be the engine driving the 150th. Whereas the local events for Jamestown hung off of centralized planning and marketing of Peninsula museums, there is no one Civil War museum that will be the focus of Virginia 's efforts.
"For example, on May 5 we will do something about the Battle of Williamsburg. The extent of it is going to depend on the local committee and what they want to do," Quarstein said.
"We need to get organized and market what we already have. Every year, I celebrate the Battle of the Ironclads and the Battle of Big Bethel, but now the glare of the spotlight will be on us. It gives us a chance to do more."
And do more through mobility. Last month, the commission announced it received $40,000 from the National Endowment for the Humanities to make traveling exhibits about the war. One version will cover 4,000 square feet and visit seven sites in Virginia through 2015; a second will fit into a tractor-trailer truck and go across Virginia and into other states.
That truck fills a gap left open so far by the federal government. Unlike with Jamestown 's anniversary, there is no national planning body for the 150th. A bill to establish a federal Civil War Sesquicentennial Commission was introduced in the House of Representatives in February 2007 but has languished in committee ever since.
Robertson was part of the planning for the centennial of the Civil War back in the early 1960s. He sees important differences in the mood of the country, which may explain the reluctance of Congress.
"The nation is not in the mood to mark its past now, as it was in the centennial. We're divisive politically, racially and ethnically," he said. "It's hard to get five Americans to agree on anything for any length of time. We're more negative now. It's going to be tough."
But he also sees opportunity. The centennial commemoration didn't do enough to educate young people about the war and its legacy, he said. Now his Virginia Center for Civil War Studies is working with a public television station to make videos about the war that will go to each school in the state next year.
"We're going to tell the facts without embellishment and tell the story of Virginia during the war. We hope it will spur other states to make their own films. North Carolina has a great story to tell. South Carolina has a great story. Kids don't read books anymore. From the moment they're weaned they have a screen in front of them. Someone wanted to write a book for this but we decided a film would be better."
Locke said the Civil War committee is moving so well now because it learned from Jamestown 2007 to begin planning early, to be inclusive and to be ready for the inevitable criticism.
"We're going to touch on every aspect of the event and not focus on one or two things. The inclusiveness will help generate the audience," Locke said.
--(10) Kids Pick History over Video Games -----------------------------------------------------
Kids Pick History over Video Games
By Jeff Morris, For the Daily Mail
9/9/2008
Charleston Daily Mail (WV)
http://www.dailymail.com/News/Kanawha/200809090151
Many 11-year-olds breathe and live video games. Zane Samples chooses to spend his time wearing Confederate gray and living history.
A fifth-grader at St. Francis Assisi School in St. Albans, Zane shared his love for Civil War history last weekend by hosting a re-enactment at St. Albans City Park . With the help of adult re-enactors, Zane and about 20 of his classmates staged The Battle of the Wilderness, a bloody Civil War skirmish in central Virginia that was a draw between Confederate and Union troops.
"I wanted to show all the history and why the military is so important," Zane said Sunday. "I also like playing war."
Wearing his wool gray jacket and cap and waving his sword as he helped lead the rebel charge, Zane was clearly in his element. His mother, Angela Samples, helped make the experience authentic by cooking Civil War-era food - hardtack, johnnycake and beef jerky.
"This was his idea; this was his dream," she said of the re-enactment. "My son is not one of those athletic children. He doesn't play basketball. When he was really into this, he wanted to share it with his friends."
Zane's interest in the Civil War was sparked last year when he saw the movie, "National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets." He liked the stylish caps donned by some limping Union soldiers in one of the scenes. Zane also tried his hand at a Civil War video game.
This history buff was really hooked after trips to historic battlefield sites and museums in Fredericksburg, Va., and re-enactments at Gettysburg, Pa., and Hurricane, W.Va., where he shot a muzzleloader at The Battle of Scary Creek. He used his birthday money to buy his uniform at Gettysburg , and his grandfather made him a musket.
Now Zane, who can spout favorite Confederate generals faster than you can say Gen. Robert E. Lee, has about a dozen books on the Civil War and has watched multiple movies on the subject. He read a book about Civil War re-enactments for children that gave him ideas.
Bill Pleau of South Charleston , who participates in 40 to 50 re-enactments each year, set up a tent complete with a campfire and boiling pot of coffee. He was joined by his wife, Angela, and mother-in-law, Janet McCallister, who wore period gowns. Pleau said he was happy to wear his Confederate gray uniform and assist Zane.
"It excites me to see children this age who want to be involved with a re-enactment group and history instead of video games and other stuff," he said.
Zane's school principal, Erin Sikora, was among the group of adult spectators who lined the bank above the mock battlefield, where children whooped as they tried to gain strategic advantage over adversaries. She said Zane has inspired other children who study the Civil War as part of the fifth-grade curriculum.
"I think it's wonderful that he has this historical interest. He has been able to share this interest with other children in the school," Sikora said. "What better way to learn about the Civil War than to actually see it firsthand and live it through a re-enactment?"
Zane, an imaginative, bighearted kid, said he is excited to share his knowledge. When asked what he enjoys the most about portraying a Confederate soldier, he doesn't hesitate. "The rebel yell," he said with a big grin.
--(11) Opinion: The PATH of least resistance -----------------------------------------------------
Opinion: The PATH of least resistance
By Donalda & Camilo Toro
9/9/2008
Frederick News Post (MD)
http://www.fredericknewspost.com/sections/opinion/display_letters.htm?runDate=09/09/08
Recently, Allegheny Power unveiled details of the Potomac-Appalachian Transmission Highline, a large project to reinforce the electrical infrastructure to the eastern U.S.
The project intends to link a substation in Bedington , W.Va. , to another in Kemptown using two sets of high-power lines running independently through Frederick County . The project’s filing date by late 2008 makes it no less than a “run-away train.” Decisions on where to locate these two giant-scale lines scarring the county’s landscape and history are being made as you read this piece and will be completed before we have a chance to offer much input.
Understanding this project’s scale and the unavoidable fact that the lines eventually will go into someone’s property, it becomes imperative that the routing process be transparent and in the best interest of future generations. Among the many riches of Frederick County , its proud American Civil War history and its beautiful farming landscapes are unique. In this context, we take this opportunity to voice concerns about a potential segment of the PATH Project in Southern Frederick County.
This segment overbuilds smaller lines traveling over the northern part of Historic Buckeystown before crossing the Monocacy River . In the Urbana district, it traverses Baker Valley and the Hope Hill neighborhood; it follows Park Mills Road until crossing I-270, where it heads south along I-270 to and through the township of Urbana .
Should this segment be used by the PATH Project, an irreparable injury of the region would occur with a price to be paid by this and future generations as we all will stare at a desecrated historic and agricultural landscape dominated by high-power electrical towers.
Amongst the most important historical landmarks impacted by this line segment is the Monocacy Battlefield. The National Park Service, at significant cost to taxpayers (all of us), has purchased land, restored property and created networks of trails over Brooks Hill east of the Worthington Farm.
Brooks Hill is a small range separating the Monocracy River from Baker Valley . Wave after wave of Confederate troops advanced on the side of this hill about 150 years ago after crossing the Monocacy River to attack Union troops positioned between the Worthington and Thomas farms. This same range could now be the site for intrusive high-power towers placed on the adjacent Snow Hill Farm, degrading the view shed and historic value of the park and limiting any potential for future improvement or expansion.
The Snow Hill Farm itself has its own historic value, serving as encampment grounds to Gen. Ricketts’ retreating Union troops. The property is under easement by the Maryland Historic Trust by a grant from the Civil War Preservation Trust calling for the restoration of the property to conditions circa the Battle of the Monocacy (1864) and to protect the rural character of Baker Valley . To allow deployment of such power lines will set a dangerous precedent, diminishing future assurances for protection of any property entrusted to a state or federal agency.
Several properties listed in the Maryland Historic Trust will also be impacted by the project, including the David O. Thomas Farmstead, the Hope Hill Methodist Church , and the two-classroom African-American School , the Hampton School and Hope Hill Cemetery . The cemetery remains a testimony to the segregated nature of the original Hope Hill church by the concentration of African-American family names in the northeast corner of the lot.
AP claims their mission is to keep the electricity flowing. We are troubled to say that in AP’s corporate environment, where decisions are made at levels far removed from the ground, outsourced to out-of-state contractors or guided by time and budget constraints, what we value as our history might register to AP executives as noise.
We urge readers to visit the park and see the wonders of this unique piece of American history and visit the PATH website (www.pathtransmission.com) and voice opposition to attempts to degrade its quality and future. To state and federal officials, custodians of our natural resources and history, we urge them to execute their duties by protecting this unique piece of land and history on behalf of future generations.
---------------------------------------------------------
Jim Campi
Policy and Communications Director
Civil War Preservation Trust
1331 H Street NW, Suite 1001
Washington, DC 20005
Phone: 202-367-1861
Fax: 202-367-1865
http://www.civilwar.org