
The city of
Winchester, Virginia
Winchester is the northwesternmost Administrative divisions of Virginia#Independent cities, independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. It is the county seat of Frederick County, Virginia, Frederi ...
, and the surrounding area, were the site of numerous battles during the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...
, as contending armies strove to control the lower
Shenandoah Valley
The Shenandoah Valley () is a geographic valley and cultural region of western Virginia and the eastern panhandle of West Virginia in the United States. The Valley is bounded to the east by the Blue Ridge Mountains, to the west by the east ...
. Winchester changed hands more often than any other Confederate city.
Background
John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry

Ties between Winchester and the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...
are considered to have begun with the suppression of
John Brown's raid in October 1859, in nearby
Harpers Ferry
Harpers Ferry is a historic town in Jefferson County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 269 at the 2020 United States census. Situated at the confluence of the Potomac River, Potomac and Shenandoah River, Shenandoah Rivers in the ...
. Colonel Lewis Tilghman Moore, of the 31st
Virginia Militia
The Virginia militia is an armed force composed of all citizens of the Commonwealth of Virginia capable of bearing arms. The Virginia militia was established in 1607 as part of the English militia system. Militia service in Virginia was compulso ...
of
Frederick County, assembled 150 militiamen from the Marion Guards, the Morgan Continentals, and the Mount Vernon Riflemen, and moved them on the
Winchester and Potomac Railroad to Harpers Ferry, to the east. Ironically, the first death of Brown's raid was
Heyward Shepherd, a free black from Winchester who worked for the
B&O Railroad
The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was the oldest railroad in the United States and the first steam-operated common carrier. Construction of the line began in 1828, and it operated as B&O from 1830 until 1987, when it was merged into the Chessie ...
; he was buried in Winchester's colored cemetery with military honors. Following the raid, Judge
Richard Parker of Winchester presided over the trial of John Brown, sentencing the insurrectionist to hang.
The bodies of a son of
John Brown John Brown most often refers to:
*John Brown (abolitionist) (1800–1859), American who led an anti-slavery raid on Harpers Ferry, Virginia, in 1859
John Brown or Johnny Brown may also refer to:
Academia
* John Brown (educator) (1763–1842), Ir ...
and three other raiders, one white (Jeremiah Anderson) and two Blacks (
John Anthony Copeland and
Shields Green
Shields Green (1836? – December 16, 1859), who also referred to himself as "Emperor", was, according to Frederick Douglass, an escaped slave from Charleston, South Carolina, and a leader in John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry, in October 1859. He ...
), were taken to the
Winchester Medical College for use in medical education. During the two months of the first Union occupation (March 12–May 25, 1862), the Union forces would certainly have learned of this. The bodies of the three dissected bodies were long vanished when Union forces arrived two years later; the only remains were unlabeled bones, taken out in the country and tossed haphazardly into a pit.
In contrast, the body of
Watson Brown had not been dissected but had been turned into a medical specimen. Half the skull and the brain had been removed, but the muscles and blood vessels had been preserved and
stain
A stain is a discoloration that can be clearly distinguished from the surface, material, or medium it is found upon. They are caused by the chemical or physical interaction of two dissimilar materials. Accidental staining may make materials app ...
ed. When Union troops arrived his body was on display in the one-room museum of the college, with a label that read: "John Brown's son—thus always with Abolitionists", and the lips "purposely distorted in disrespect". It has been skinned, with the skin made into
moccasin
A moccasin is a shoe, made of deerskin or other soft leather, consisting of a sole (made with leather that has not been "worked") and sides made of one piece of leather, stitched together at the top, and sometimes with a vamp (additional pane ...
s and the scraps given out as souvenirs. The troops were also surely informed of the Black community's fear of and hatred for the college, because it regularly robbed Black graves.
John Brown was the Union's hero and the Confederacy's villain in the Civil War. He died to end slavery. Union soldiers marched to ''
John Brown's Body
"John Brown's Body" ( Roud 771), originally known as "John Brown's Song", is a United States marching song about the abolitionist John Brown. The song was popular in the Union during the American Civil War. The song arose out of the folk hymn ...
'', which became the ''
Battle Hymn of the Republic
The "Battle Hymn of the Republic" is an American patriotic music, American patriotic song written by the abolitionist writer Julia Ward Howe during the American Civil War.
Howe adapted her song from the soldiers' song "John Brown's Body" in N ...
''. It was the
assassination of Lincoln that displaced Brown from the nation's consciousness. To dishonor a son of Brown, who also died fighting slavery, and displaying the body as a crude lesson to abolitionists, was deeply offensive to the Union officers.
The Union officers
set the college's building on fire on May 16, 1862. They did not allow fire engines to extinguish the blaze, and the building burned to the ground. The college never reopened.
Secession deliberations
Neither Winchester nor the Commonwealth of Virginia were particularly fond of secession from the Union. Virginia was not a cotton state, and the Valley's economy and culture centered around small family-owned farms producing wheat and cattle. However pro-Union sentiment was often conditional. Historian William A. Link writes:
At the same time, the resolutions renounced secession, promised "unfaltering attachment" to the Union, proposed boycotting imports from some Northern states, and called for, if necessary, a national convention to resolve the sectional issues.
In January 1861, Virginia's Governor
John Letcher
John Letcher (March 29, 1813January 26, 1884) was an American lawyer, journalist, and politician. He served as a Representative in the United States Congress, was the 34th Governor of Virginia during the American Civil War, and later served in ...
and the State Assembly called for and sponsored the
Peace Conference of 1861
The Peace Conference of 1861 was a meeting of 131 leading American politicians in February 1861, at the Willard Hotel in Washington, D.C., on the eve of the American Civil War. The conference's purpose was to avoid, if possible, the secession of ...
, which ended up failing in its purpose to get the U.S. Congress to review an agreed upon compromise. Virginia ran an election on February 4, 1861, to elect delegates to a special state convention to deliberate on the question of secession. Of four candidates (two pro-union and two pro-secession), Winchester and Frederick County elected two pro-union delegates:
* Robert Y. Conrad
* James Marshall
Two-thirds of the votes went to the two pro-Union candidates, revealing the strong Union sentiments of the town and county at that time. On April 4, the convention voted, and secession was defeated by a vote of 88 to 45. However, later that month the firing upon Fort Sumter prompted newly elected President
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the 16th president of the United States, serving from 1861 until Assassination of Abraham Lincoln, his assassination in 1865. He led the United States through the American Civil War ...
to issue a call for 75,000 volunteers, including a call to Virginia to provide troops. Governor Letcher responded on April 15 on behalf of the state refusing Lincoln's request. In response, the convention passed an ordinance of secession on April 17 by a vote of 88 to 55, which was ratified by popular vote on May 23, 1861. Immediately after this vote, Governor Letcher ordered the capture of the federal arsenal at Harper's Ferry, and Winchester companies of the Virginia militia were among the first to arrive, under the command of Colonel Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson.
Winchester's strategic location
Located at the north end of the lower Shenandoah Valley at a latitude north of the Federal capital city of Washington, D.C., Winchester's location was the hub of key roadways linking the Ohio Valley to the eastern United States coastal plains. Sitting just south of the Potomac River, Winchester lay on the only route between the east and western United States with direct connections to Washington, D.C. Passing through or nearby Winchester are these major transportation and communications routes:
* The
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was the oldest railroads in North America, oldest railroad in the United States and the first steam engine, steam-operated common carrier. Construction of the line began in 1828, and it operated as B&O from 1830 ...
* The
Chesapeake and Ohio Canal
The Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, abbreviated as the C&O Canal and occasionally called the Grand Old Ditch, operated from 1831 until 1924 along the Potomac River between Washington, D.C., and Cumberland, Maryland. It replaced the Patowmack Canal ...
* The
Winchester and Potomac Railroad
* The
Manassas Gap Railroad
The Manassas Gap Railroad (MGRR) ran from Mount Jackson, Virginia, to the Orange and Alexandria Railroad's Manassas Junction, which later became the city of Manassas, Virginia. Chartered by the Virginia General Assembly in 1850, the MGRR was a n ...
and
Manassas Gap
Manassas Gap is a wind gap of the Blue Ridge Mountains on the border of Fauquier County and Warren County in Virginia. At an elevation of 887 feet above sea level, it is the lowest crossing of the Blue Ridge Mountains in the state. The origins of ...
* The
Valley Pike
Valley Pike or Valley Turnpike is the traditional name given for the Indian trail and roadway which is now approximated by U.S. Route 11 in Virginia, U.S. Route 11 in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia.
Long before the arrival of English colonist ...
and
Martinsburg Pike
* The
Pughtown Pike
* The
Northwestern Grade and
Petticoat Gap to
Romney, West Virginia
Romney is a town in Hampshire County, West Virginia, United States, and its county seat. The population was 1,722 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. It is part of the Winchester, VA–WV MSA, Winchester, Virginia metropolitan area. T ...
* The
Berryville Pike,
Castleman's Ferry and
Snickers Gap
Snickers Gap, originally William's Gap, is a wind gap in the Blue Ridge Mountain on the border of Loudoun County and Clarke County in Virginia. The gap is traversed by Virginia State Route 7. The Appalachian Trail also passes across the gap. ...
* The
Millwood Pike,
Berry's Ferry and
Ashby's Gap
* The
Front Royal Pike and
Chester Gap
Chester Gap, sometimes referred to as Happy Creek Gap for the creek that runs down its western slope, is a wind gap in the Blue Ridge Mountains on the border of Rappahannock County, Fauquier County, and Warren County in Virginia. The gap is ...
Winchester was a base of operations for several
Confederate
A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...
incursions into the Northern United States, at times threatening the Federal capital city. Winchester also served as a central point for troops conducting raids against the
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was the oldest railroads in North America, oldest railroad in the United States and the first steam engine, steam-operated common carrier. Construction of the line began in 1828, and it operated as B&O from 1830 ...
,
Chesapeake and Ohio Canal
The Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, abbreviated as the C&O Canal and occasionally called the Grand Old Ditch, operated from 1831 until 1924 along the Potomac River between Washington, D.C., and Cumberland, Maryland. It replaced the Patowmack Canal ...
, and turnpike and telegraph paths along those routes and the
Potomac River
The Potomac River () is in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States and flows from the Potomac Highlands in West Virginia to Chesapeake Bay in Maryland. It is long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography D ...
Valley. For instance, in 1861,
Col. Thomas J. Jackson
Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson (January 21, 1824 – May 10, 1863) was a Confederate general and military officer who served during the American Civil War. He played a prominent role in nearly all military engagements in the eastern thea ...
removed 56 locomotives and 386 railroad cars, along with miles of track, from the B&O Railroad and ultimately closed down the B&O's main line for ten months. Much of the effort to transport this equipment by horse and carriage centered in Winchester.
Winchester in the Eastern Theater
Winchester was a key strategic position for the
Confederate States Army
The Confederate States Army (CSA), also called the Confederate army or the Southern army, was the Military forces of the Confederate States, military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) duri ...
during the war. It was an important operational objective in
Gen. Joseph E. Johnston
Joseph Eggleston Johnston (February 3, 1807 – March 21, 1891) was an American military officer who served in the United States Army during the Mexican–American War (1846–1848) and the Seminole Wars. After Virginia declared secession from ...
's and Jackson's defense of the Shenandoah Valley in 1861, Stonewall Jackson's
Valley Campaign of 1862, the
Gettysburg Campaign of 1863, and the
Valley Campaigns of 1864.
Battles fought around or involving Winchester
* Colonel Jackson's Defense of the Lower Valley of 1861
** The
Great Train Raid of 1861, May 23 – June 23, 1861
** The
Skirmish of Falling Waters, July 2, 1861
* General Jackson's
Valley Campaign of 1862
** The
Romney Expedition
The Romney Expedition was a military expedition of the Confederate States Army during the early part of the American Civil War. It is named for Romney, West Virginia, which at the time was still in the state of Virginia. The expedition was conduc ...
, January 1–24, 1862
** The
First Battle of Kernstown
The First Battle of Kernstown was fought on March 23, 1862, in Frederick County and Winchester, Virginia, the opening battle of Confederate Maj. Gen. Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson's campaign through the Shenandoah Valley during the American ...
, March 23, 1862
** The
First Battle of Winchester
The First Battle of Winchester, fought on May 25, 1862, in and around Frederick County, Virginia, and Winchester, Virginia, was a major victory in Confederate Army Maj. Gen. Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson's Campaign through the Shenandoah Vall ...
, May 25, 1862
* General Robert E. Lee's
Maryland Campaign
The Maryland campaign (or Antietam campaign) occurred September 4–20, 1862, during the American Civil War. The campaign was Confederate States Army, Confederate General (CSA), General Robert E. Lee's first invasion of the Northern United Stat ...
of 1862
** The
Battle of Harpers Ferry
The Battle of Harpers Ferry was fought September 12–15, 1862, as part of the Maryland Campaign of the American Civil War. As Confederate Army General Robert E. Lee's Confederate States Army, Confederate army invaded Maryland, a portion of his ...
, September 12–15, 1862
* General Robert E. Lee's
Gettysburg Campaign of 1863
** The
Second Battle of Winchester
The Second Battle of Winchester was fought between June 13 and June 15, 1863, in Frederick County and Winchester, Virginia as part of the Gettysburg Campaign during the American Civil War. As Confederate Lieutenant General Richard S. Ewell mo ...
, June 13–15, 1863
* General Early's
Valley Campaign and Washington, D.C. Raid of 1864
** The
Battle of Snicker's Ferry, July 17–18, 1864
** The
Battle of Rutherford's Farm
The Battle of Rutherford's Farm, also known as Carter's Farm and Stephenson's Depot, was a small engagement between Confederate forces under Maj. Gen. Stephen D. Ramseur and Union forces under Brig. Gen. William W. Averell on July 20, 1864, ...
, July 20, 1864
** The
Second Battle of Kernstown
The Second Battle of Kernstown was fought on July 24, 1864, at Kernstown, Virginia, outside Winchester, Virginia, as part of the Valley Campaigns of 1864 in the American Civil War. The Confederate Army of the Valley under Lt. Gen. Jubal A. Early ...
, July 24, 1864
** The
Battle of Berryville
The Battle of Berryville was fought September 3 and September 4, 1864, in Clarke County, Virginia. It took place toward the end of the American Civil War.
After taking control of Smithfield Summit on August 29, Union Maj. Gen. Philip H. S ...
, September 3–4, 1864
** The
Third Battle of Winchester
The Third Battle of Winchester, also known as the Battle of Opequon or Battle of Opequon Creek, was an American Civil War battle fought near Winchester, Virginia, on September 19, 1864. Union Army Major General Philip Sheridan defeated Confed ...
, September 19, 1864
** The
Battle of Belle Grove (or Cedar Creek), October 19, 1864
The occupations of Winchester
Including minor
cavalry
Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from ''cheval'' meaning "horse") are groups of soldiers or warriors who Horses in warfare, fight mounted on horseback. Until the 20th century, cavalry were the most mob ...
raids and patrols, and occasional reconnaissances by various forces, it is claimed that Winchester changed hands as many as 72 times during the course of the war, and 13 times in one day. Battles raged all along Main Street at different points in the war. Both Union General
Sheridan and Stonewall Jackson located their headquarters just one block apart at various times. During the war, Winchester suffered greatly under five major periods of Union occupation:
* The Occupation of Major General
Nathaniel Banks
Nathaniel Prentice (or Prentiss) Banks (January 30, 1816 – September 1, 1894) was an American politician from Massachusetts and a Union general during the Civil War. A millworker, Banks became prominent in local debating societies and entered ...
– (March 12 to May 25, 1862, and June 4 to September 2, 1862)
* The Occupation of Major General
Robert Milroy – (December 24, 1862, to June 15, 1863)
* The Burning and Occupation of Major General
Philip Sheridan
Philip Henry Sheridan (March 6, 1831 – August 5, 1888) was a career United States Army officer and a Union general in the American Civil War. His career was noted for his rapid rise to major general and his close association with General-i ...
– (September 19, 1864, to February 27, 1865)
* The Occupation of Major General
Winfield Scott Hancock
Winfield Scott Hancock (February 14, 1824 – February 9, 1886) was a United States Army officer and the Democratic nominee for President of the United States in 1880. He served with distinction in the Army for four decades, including service ...
– February 27, 1865, to June 27, 1865
* The Occupation of the
First Military District
The First Military District of the U.S. Army was one of five temporary administrative units of the U.S. War Department that existed in the American South. The district was stipulated by the Reconstruction Acts during the Reconstruction period fo ...
of Major General
John Schofield
John McAllister Schofield (; September 29, 1831 – March 4, 1906) was an American soldier who held major commands during the American Civil War. He was appointed U.S. Secretary of War (1868–1869) under President Andrew Johnson and later serve ...
– (End of War to January 26, 1870)
During the Federal occupation of Winchester, many residents were exiled from town, personal property was stolen, citizens rendering medical assistance to wounded soldiers were shot and murdered, homes were illegally stolen, occupied and destroyed, a medical school was burned down, and the citizens of the Commonwealth were not allowed to vote on re-admittance to the Union under the reign of Major General Schofield.
The occupations of Major General Nathaniel Banks (1862)

MajGen. Banks primary objective in the Shenandoah Valley from 1861 to 1862 was to defend Washington, D.C., from possible attack by the Confederates, as well as defend and protect the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. During the winter of 1861, Banks headquartered his troops of the
V Corps 5th Corps, Fifth Corps, or V Corps may refer to:
France
* 5th Army Corps (France)
* V Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars
* V Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French Arm ...
in Frederick, Maryland. A pontoon bridge crossing the Potomac River was completed in early March 1862, allowing Banks to begin crossing and marching up the Shenandoah Valley with superior forces against Major General Stonewall Jackson. MajGen. Jackson evacuated Winchester, retreating up the Valley.
During the summer of 1862, two major battles were fought in Winchester between Banks and Jackson:
During Banks first occupation from (March May 12 to 25, 1862):
* The
First Battle of Kernstown
The First Battle of Kernstown was fought on March 23, 1862, in Frederick County and Winchester, Virginia, the opening battle of Confederate Maj. Gen. Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson's campaign through the Shenandoah Valley during the American ...
, March 23, 1862
* The
First Battle of Winchester
The First Battle of Winchester, fought on May 25, 1862, in and around Frederick County, Virginia, and Winchester, Virginia, was a major victory in Confederate Army Maj. Gen. Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson's Campaign through the Shenandoah Vall ...
, May 25, 1862
Following the First Battle of Winchester, Banks retreated down the Valley. Shortly thereafter, by May 31, Major Gen. Jackson departed Winchester up the Valley (southwest) and Banks re-entered the town, occupying it with forces from June 4 to September 2, 1862).
The occupation of Major General Robert Milroy (1862–63)

Winchester was occupied by the 2nd Division of the
VIII Corps 8th Corps, Eighth Corps, or VIII Corps may refer to:
* VIII Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French army during the Napoleonic Wars
* VIII Army Corps (German Confederation)
* VIII Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial German Arm ...
of the Federal
Middle Department
The Middle Department was an administrative military district created by the United States War Department early in the American Civil War to administer the troops in the Middle Atlantic states.
The department was created on March 22, 1862 by the ...
from December 24, 1862, until the Second Battle of Winchester on June 15, 1863. The primary objective of the Federals during this period was to protect and defend military approaches to Washington, D.C., and especially to guard and defend the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad from Confederate Raids. Major General Robert Milroy, commander of the 2nd Division, entered in force at the beginning of the year in 1863, coincidental with the enactment of the Emancipation Proclamation. Milroy, a radical abolitionist, was intent on using Winchester as a place to enforce this new proclamation in the strictest and harshest terms possible. MajGen. Milroy is most famous for his edict that:
Milroy was noted for his harsh treatment of women. When Milroy felt that a lady had "insulted Gen Closeret ... her fine mansion was immediately taken for a hospital". In one particularly disturbing incident, on April 4, MajGen. Milroy arrested Mrs. Logan on charges of possessing contraband, and had her and her daughters escorted to the outskirts of town, without time to even gather medicine for one ill daughter, and "exiled" from Winchester. He then moved his wife, Mrs. Milroy, into what was one of the finest and most exquisite homes in Winchester. Ladies of Winchester eventually took to walking in the middle of the streets rather than risk accidentally brushing up against Federal soldiers. Milroy summarized his sentiments toward the ladies in town by noting that:
Most notably, Milroy was feared for his rash desire to execute Virginians, and his reputation for this from previous Alleghany campaigning precede him, striking great trepidation in the town, as Milroy set up his tribunals, without constitutional authority, and sentenced townsfolk to execution by firing squad.
Many of the local blacks freed in January 1863 under the
Emancipation Proclamation
The Emancipation Proclamation, officially Proclamation 95, was a presidential proclamation and executive order issued by United States President Abraham Lincoln on January 1, 1863, during the American Civil War. The Proclamation had the eff ...
fled the area, presumably fearing reconquest by the Confederates (as in fact happened later in the year).
The "burning" and occupation of Major General Philip Sheridan (1864)

Major General
Philip Sheridan
Philip Henry Sheridan (March 6, 1831 – August 5, 1888) was a career United States Army officer and a Union general in the American Civil War. His career was noted for his rapid rise to major general and his close association with General-i ...
aggressively marched up the Valley from Winchester and destroyed "2,000 barns filled with grain and implements, not to mention other outbuildings, 70 mills filled with wheat and flour" and "numerous head of livestock," according to the
Official Records
The ''Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies in the War of the Rebellion'', commonly known as the ''Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies'' or Official Records (OR or ORs), is the most extensive collection of Americ ...
. At the end of 1864, Maj. Gen. Sheridan stated that ''"The crow that flies over the Valley of Virginia must henceforth carry his rations with him".''
People and events
Confederate units
Winchester and Frederick County fielded five infantry companies, six cavalry companies and one artillery battery, as well as two regiments of militia. These units were either assigned to or operated under the auspices of what was ultimately called the
Army of Northern Virginia
The Army of Northern Virginia was a field army of the Confederate States Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. It was also the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. It was most often arrayed agains ...
which was also known as the Department of Northern Virginia:
Infantry:
*
2nd Virginia Infantry
The 2nd Virginia Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment raised in today's western Virginia and what became West Virginia during the American Civil War for service in the Confederate States Army. It would combine with the 4th, 5th, 27th, an ...
, Company F (Winchester Riflemen)
*
5th Virginia Infantry
The 5th Virginia Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment raised in Virginia for service in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. It fought in the Stonewall Brigade, mostly with the Army of Northern Virginia. The regimen ...
, Company A (Marion Rifles)
*
5th Virginia Infantry
The 5th Virginia Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment raised in Virginia for service in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. It fought in the Stonewall Brigade, mostly with the Army of Northern Virginia. The regimen ...
, Company K (Continental Morgan Guards)
*
13th Virginia Infantry
The 13th Virginia Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment raised in central and western Virginia for service in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. It fought mostly with the Army of Northern Virginia.
Its commanders ...
, Company H (Fort Loudoun Guards)
*
33rd Virginia Infantry
The 33rd Virginia Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment raised in the Virginia, Commonwealth of Virginia for service in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. It was a part of the famed "Stonewall Brigade," named for Ge ...
, Company D (Mountain Rangers)
Cavalry:
*
1st Virginia Cavalry
The 1st Virginia Cavalry Regiment was a cavalry regiment raised in Virginia for service in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. It fought mostly with the Army of Northern Virginia.
Organization
The 1st Virginia Cavalry co ...
, Company A (Newtown Light Dragoons)
*
11th Virginia Cavalry
The 11th Virginia Cavalry Regiment was a cavalry regiment raised in Virginia for service in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. It fought mostly with the Army of Northern Virginia.
The men were primarily recruited from Hard ...
, Company H
*
12th Virginia Cavalry
The 12th Virginia Cavalry Regiment was a cavalry regiment raised in Virginia for service in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. It fought mostly with the Army of Northern Virginia.
History
Virginia's 12th Cavalry Regiment ...
, Company C
*
18th Virginia Cavalry
The 18th Virginia Cavalry Regiment was a cavalry regiment raised in Virginia for service in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. It fought with the Army of Northern Virginia, in southwest Virginia, and in the Shenandoah Valle ...
, Company F
*
23rd Virginia Cavalry
The 23rd Virginia Cavalry Regiment was a cavalry regiment raised in Virginia for service in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. The regiment was recruited primarily in the counties of Hampshire, Hardy, Morgan, Berkeley, Fred ...
, Company K
*
39th Virginia Cavalry, Company A
Artillery
* Jackson Virginia (Winchester) Artillery Company (Cutshaw's Battery)
Militia
* 31st Regiment, Virginia Militia
* 51st Regiment, Virginia Militia
Contribution to military medicine
In spite of Winchester's wartime hardships, a few residents made great contributions to the Confederate cause, such as Dr.
Hunter McGuire
Hunter Holmes McGuire (October 11, 1835 – September 19, 1900) was an American soldier, physician, teacher, and orator. McGuire was a surgeon in the Confederate Army attached to Stonewall Jackson's command, and he continued serving with the Army ...
, chief surgeon of the Second Corps of the
Army of Northern Virginia
The Army of Northern Virginia was a field army of the Confederate States Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. It was also the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. It was most often arrayed agains ...
, who laid foundations for the future
Geneva convention
upright=1.15, The original document in single pages, 1864
The Geneva Conventions are international humanitarian laws consisting of four treaties and three additional protocols that establish international legal standards for humanitarian t ...
s regarding the treatment of medical doctors during warfare. Winchester served as a major center for Confederate medical operations, particularly after the
Battle of Sharpsburg
The Battle of Antietam ( ), also called the Battle of Sharpsburg, particularly in the Southern United States, took place during the American Civil War on September 17, 1862, between Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virgin ...
in 1862 and the
Battle of Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg () was a three-day battle in the American Civil War, which was fought between the Union and Confederate armies between July 1 and July 3, 1863, in and around Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The battle, won by the Union, ...
in 1863, and set the stage for advancements in the practice of medicine, internationally and during combat operations.
Winchester Medical College, at which Hunter McGuire was a professor and his father the founder president, was deliberately burned in 1862 by the Union troops of Gen.
Nathaniel Banks
Nathaniel Prentice (or Prentiss) Banks (January 30, 1816 – September 1, 1894) was an American politician from Massachusetts and a Union general during the Civil War. A millworker, Banks became prominent in local debating societies and entered ...
in retaliation for what happened to John Brown and his men. It never reopened.
The "Devil Diarists" of Winchester
Many citizens of Winchester recorded diaries of events during the war. The Federal Secretary of War
Edwin Stanton
Edwin McMasters Stanton (December 19, 1814December 24, 1869) was an American lawyer and politician who served as U.S. Secretary of War, U.S. secretary of war under the Lincoln Administration during most of the American Civil War. Stanton's manag ...
summarized his impression of Winchester after visiting there by noting that "the men are all in the army" and "the women are the devil", while Maj. Gen. Milroy said that "Hell is not full enough ... There must be more of these Secession women of Winchester to fill it up." Noted diary accounts include:
* ''Portia Baldwin Baker'' – As the Union Army destroyed the Winchester Academy and a Quaker Church, Portia remarked, "They are foot by foot and plank by plank destroying our property".
* ''Julia Chase'' – Born in Maine in 1831, she moved to Winchester when her father became the U.S. Postmaster, and her home was on Loudoun Street & Fairfax Lane. Julia was a Unionist, and witnessed the mistreatment of Winchester loyalists by Confederate authorities, including the arrest of her elderly father. After three years of witnessing Union defeats and disappointments, she celebrated the "glorious" victory of Sheridan's army at the Third Battle of Winchester in 1864.
* ''Laura Lee'' – Laura was the daughter of Daniel Lee, who served in the Virginia House of Delegates and as the Frederick County Clerk. Laura was Pro-Secession, and resided in the home of her sister-in-law,
Mary Greenhow Lee.
* ''Mary Greenhow Lee'' – Born to a wealthy family in Richmond in 1819, her father, Robert Greenhow was the mayor of
Richmond, Virginia
Richmond ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. Incorporated in 1742, Richmond has been an independent city (United States), independent city since 1871. ...
. She married Laura's brother, Hugh Holmes Lee in 1843, who was a lawyer in Winchester. A pro-Secessionist, Mary was "banished" from Winchester on February 23, 1865, by Maj. Gen. Sheridan, and she never returned, living in Richmond and then
Baltimore
Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...
, Maryland.
* ''
Cornelia Peake McDonald'' – Cornelia was married to a Winchester lawyer, Angus McDonald III, 23 years her senior, and who served as a colonel in the Confederate Army. Cornelia is noted for tenderly caretaking for one of her slaves who had run away to the North, only to willingly return after mistreatment with the Union Army. Her home was ultimately used as a hospital.
* ''Kate Sperry'' – Born in 1843 in Winchester, Kate married Dr. Enoch Hunt who was a regimental surgeon in the
2nd Mississippi Regiment of the Confederate Army. Kate was a Pro-Secessionist, and is famous for her vow, "Surrender? Never Surrender".
Presidential combatants
Among those who took part in battles at Winchester were future U.S. presidents
William McKinley
William McKinley (January 29, 1843September 14, 1901) was the 25th president of the United States, serving from 1897 until Assassination of William McKinley, his assassination in 1901. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Repub ...
and
Rutherford B. Hayes
Rutherford Birchard Hayes (; October 4, 1822 – January 17, 1893) was the 19th president of the United States, serving from 1877 to 1881.
Hayes served as Cincinnati's city solicitor from 1858 to 1861. He was a staunch Abolitionism in the Un ...
, who both were officers in the U. S. Army of West Virginia.
Fortifications and posts in Winchester
Primary redoubts and forts

Winchester was heavily fortified by forts and lunettes circumferencing the town, as well as along the outlying turnpike routes entering town. Within Winchester Milroy constructed or improved upon a total of ten defensive fortifications numbered Battery No. 1 through Battery No. 10, making improvements on many pre-existing forts and fortifications left by prior Confederate and Federal occupations. The fortifications were linked in places with roads and trenches.
*
Fort Collier: Built by Confederate Lieutenant Collier and Virginia militia with the aid of Federal prisoners, this redoubt guarded the north entrance of town on the east side of the Martinsburg Pike. During later Federal occupations, it was known as Battery No. 10. The fort was constructed on low ground and was dependent upon artillery support from other forts in the area to be effective. It served as a fortified position blocking Union forces advancing up the pike. At the Third Battle of Winchester, Sheridan's cavalry flanked this position and overran this fort capturing two artillery pieces from Chapman's Virginia Battery.
* Fort Jackson: Originally built by Confederate troops and called the "fortification on the heights" or the "Main Fort", this was improved under MajGen. Banks and called "Fort Garibaldi" by the 39th New York regiment. The redoubt was improved extensively by Milroy's troops as Battery No. 2 and held 14 guns, including heavy artillery, and renamed Fort Milroy. Its current name was given after the Confederate victory in the Second Battle of Winchester.
* Fort Alabama: This was a large star-shaped lunette built by Federal troops in 1862, improved by Milroy as Battery No. 3 (Star Fort), and equipped with 8 guns and outlying rifle trenches. Its current name was given after the Confederate victory in the Second Battle of Winchester.
* Louisiana Heights: This was a 3 gun lunette and redans located due west of Fort Jackson which was occupied by Milroy as Battery No. 5 (called West Fort). It included a line of rifle trenches. Its current name was given after the assault by Confederate
Louisiana troops in the Second Battle of Winchester.
* Carysbrooke Redoubt: A redoubt on high ground anchoring the east end of approximately two miles of earthworks which guarded the south side of Camp Russell (Union). The earthworks straddled the Valley Pike south of Winchester (south of modern VA 37 termination into Interstate 81), and Carysbrooke Redoubt was located east of the pike.
* Parkins Mill Battery: A lunette with small fort 4 miles south of Winchester at the Opequon river crossing on Front Royal turnpike (modern VA 522).
Fortified batteries
* Bower's Hill: A linear entrenchment along Bower's Hill south of Fort Jackson. MajGen. Banks attempted and failed to hold this defensively in the First Battle of Winchester, and from this hill, MajGen. Jubal Early and LtGen. Ewell surveyed their flanking maneuvers in the Second Battle of Winchester, as well as bombarded MajGen. Milroy's troops.
* Battery No. 1: A 6 gun lunette with infantry flanks on the south end of Fort Jackson (Fort Milroy), co-located on the same ridge line.
* Battery No. 4: A large star 6 gun lunette with rifle entrenchments and minor lunettes, located due north of Fort Alabama (Star Fort) along the same ridge line (north of modern VA 37). The rifle entrenchments between Battery No. 4 and Fort Alabama have been destroyed by the overlaying construction of VA 37.
* Battery No. 6: A small lunette with 3 guns and rifle trenches on a hill peak located in between Louisiana Heights (West Fort) and Battery 7 (located on the southeast corner of VA 37 and VA 522).
* Battery No. 7: A large 8 gun lunette and redans with trench lines on Apple Pie Ridge west of Apple Pie Ridge Road (on modern
James Wood High School
James Wood High School is located at the northern tip of the Shenandoah Valley in Winchester, Virginia and is a part of the Frederick County Public School system. It is located at 161 Apple Pie Ridge Road.
James Wood High School was established ...
grounds).
* Battery No. 8: A grouping of a lunette and redans with infantry works west of Fort Alabama (Battery 3) and east of Battery No. 7.
* Battery No. 9: The location is unknown, however this may have been a lunette
Camps
* Camp Hill: A Confederal and Federal camp located in the modern Overlook Park on the south side of Winchester east of South Loudoun Street.
* Smithfield Trench Line: This was a mile-long Confederate trench line with ramparts built in a 90-degree angle northwest of Winchester and south of Fort Collier, used during the Third Battle of Winchester.
* Camp Russell: Camp Russell was a two mile long encampment with earthworks and trenches straddling the Valley Pike south of Winchester, just south of the intersection of modern VA 37 and Interstate 81. Carysbrooke Redoubt formed a part of this encampment.
* Camp Sheridan: Camp Sheridan and two accompanying small forts were located southwest of Winchester (centered on the intersection of modern Middle Road and Apple Valley Road). One fort was located west of the Middle Road and Apple Valley Road intersection, and the second fort was located just north of modern Firelock Court on Middle Road.
* CSA Camp: A Confederate encampment was located north of the Northwest Turnpike along modern Spinning Wheel Lane.
* Federal Camp: A Federal encampment was located north of the Northwest Turnpike along modern Echo Lane.
Field hospitals
* Sheridan Field Hospital: This was a field hospital used by MajGen. Sheridan on the southeast corner of town on Opequon Avenue near Hollingsworth Drive. It was the largest field hospital operated by the Federals in the Civil War.
* White Sulphur Resort: also known as Jordan Springs, was a hotel and resort facility built by the property owner Branch Jordan in 1843 and 1855. Hotel operations ceased during the war while it was used by both sides as a hospital. The buildings remain to this day on Jordan Springs Road in
Stephenson, Virginia
Stephenson is an unincorporated community in Frederick County, Virginia. Stephenson is located on U.S. Route 11 north of Winchester.
High Banks, a historic home and farm dating from the mid-18th century, was listed on the National Register of ...
just north of Winchester.
Field prisons
* Old Court House: The Old Court House in downtown Winchester was used as both a temporary prison and field hospital by both sides during the war.
Headquarters
* Stonewall Jackson's Headquarters: This house which belonged to Colonel Moore of the Virginia Militia is preserved as the ''Stonewall Jackson Headquarters Museum'' today. Located at 415 North Braddock Street, it served as the winter headquarters for Stonewall Jackson during 1861 and 1862.
* General Philip H. Sheridan's Headquarters: Sheridan utilized the Logan family home as his headquarters during the latter part of the 1864 Shenandoah Valley campaign. Sheridan began his famous ride here to rally his troops to victory at Cedar Creek on October 19, 1864. The home is located at 135 N. Braddock St.
Civil War tourism
Today, Winchester provides a wealth of exploration and tourism for Civil War enthusiasts. Jubal Early Drive snakes around south of downtown Winchester, along the central location for many of the battles.
Civil War Tourism Sites:
*
Cedar Creek and Belle Grove National Historical Park
Cedar Creek and Belle Grove National Historical Park became the 388th unit of the United States National Park Service when it was authorized on December 19, 2002. The National Historical Park was created to protect several historically signifi ...
(1797)
*
Journey Through Hallowed Ground National Heritage Area
The Journey Through Hallowed Ground National Heritage Area is a federally designated National Heritage Area in portions of Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Maryland and Virginia.
History and background
The Journey Through Hallowed Ground National Her ...
*
Museum of the Shenandoah Valley
The Museum of the Shenandoah Valley is located at 901 Amherst Street, Winchester, Virginia. The Museum endeavours to preserve and enrich the cultural life and heritage of the Valley. Located on the largest green space in the city of Winchester, ...
*
Old Court House Civil War Museum (1840)
*
Stonewall Cemetery
Stonewall Confederate Cemetery is a subsection of Mount Hebron Cemetery in Winchester, Virginia, established in 1866 for 2,575 Confederate soldiers who died in battle or in the hospitals in and around the Winchester area. A monument over the ma ...
(1866)
*
Stonewall Jackson's Headquarters Museum
__NOTOC__
The Stonewall Jackson's Headquarters Museum is a historic house located at 415 North Braddock Street in the Historic District of Winchester, Virginia.
History
The Gothic Revival style house was built in 1854 by local dentist William ...
(1861)
*
Winchester Confederate Cemetery
*
Winchester National Cemetery (1866)
*
Kernstown Battlefield (1862–1865)
Interesting facts
The flag of Winchester
The modern flag of the city of Winchester closely resembles the first congressionally proposed national flag of the Confederate States of America. Both flags were composed of a field of red, upon which a
saltire
A saltire, also called Saint Andrew's Cross or the crux decussata, is a Heraldry, heraldic symbol in the form of a diagonal cross. The word comes from the Middle French , Medieval Latin ("stirrup").
From its use as field sign, the saltire cam ...
(
Saint Andrew's Cross
In Christian belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and denomination. In Anglican, Oriental Ortho ...
) is laid, with a heraldic shield in the center of the flag. The primary differences in the flags are the addition of a center blue saltire, and an English "Norman" lion instead of a 13-pointed star on the shield in the Winchester flag. The Confederate congress failed to accept the flag proposal of the Joint Committee on Flag and Seal in April 1862, and went on to adopt the "Stars and Bars" flag.
Notes
See also
*
Burning of Winchester Medical College
The Winchester Medical College (WMC) building, currently located at 302 W. Boscawen Street, Winchester, Virginia, along with all its records, equipment, museum, and library, was burned on May 16, 1862, by Union troops occupying the city. This was ...
*
Journey Through Hallowed Ground National Heritage Area
The Journey Through Hallowed Ground National Heritage Area is a federally designated National Heritage Area in portions of Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Maryland and Virginia.
History and background
The Journey Through Hallowed Ground National Her ...
References
;Winchester Civil War Books and Diaries
* Brown, Kent Masterson. ''Retreat from Gettysburg: Lee, Logistics, and the Pennsylvania Campaign''. The University of North Carolina Press, 2005.
* Delauter, Roger V. Jr. ''Winchester in the Civil War''. Lynchburg, Virginia. H. E. Howard, Inc., 1992.
* Duncan, Richard R. ''Beleaguered Winchester: A Virginia Community at War, 1861–1865.'' (2007) .
* Holsworth, Jerry W., ''Dueling Diarists in Winchester''. Civil War Times, June 2006, pp. 16–23.
* Kinney, Bentley, ''The Devil Diarists of Winchester''.
* Link, William A. ''Roots of Secession: Slavery and Politics in Antebellum Virginia.'' (2003) .
* Mahon, Michael G., Ed.
''Winchester Divided: The Civil War Diaries of Julia Chase & Laura Lee''. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 2002.
* McDonald, Cornelia Peake. ''A Woman's Civil War''. Random House, Inc., 2003.
* Noyalas, Jonathan A.
''Plagued by War: Winchester, Virginia During the Civil War''. Leesburg, VA: Gauley Mount Press, 2003.
* Phipps, Shelia, R. ''Genteel Rebel: The Life of Mary Greenhow Lee''. Baton Rouge, Louisiana State University Press, 2004.
*Quarles, Garland, R., ''Occupied Winchester 1861–1865'', Stephens City, VA, Commercial Press Inc., 3rd printing 2005 (1976).
;Handley Regional Library, Winchester, Virginia
Civil War Manuscripts: Diaries and Letters
;Books on The Second Battle of Winchester
* Beach, William H.
''The First New York (Lincoln) Cavalry: From April 19, 1861 to July 7, 1865''. New York: The Lincoln Cavalry Association, 1902.
* Grunder, Charles S. and Beck, Brandon H.
''The Second Battle of Winchester'' (2nd ed.). Lynchburg, VA: H.E. Howard, Inc., 1989.
* Grunder, Charles S. and Beck, Brandon H.
''The Three Battles of Winchester: A History and Guided Tour'' (2nd ed.). Berryville, VA: The Civil War Foundation, Inc., 1997.
* Maier, Larry B.
''Gateway to Gettysburg: The Second Battle of Winchester''. Burd Street Press: Shippensburg, Pennsylvania, 2002.
;General References
* Early, Lt. Gen. Jubal A.
''Autobiographical Sketch and Narrative of the War Between the States''. With Notes by R.H. Early. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott & Co., 1912.
* Eicher, David J., ''The Longest Night: A Military History of the Civil War'', Simon & Schuster, 2001, .
* Kennedy, Frances H., Ed., ''The Civil War Battlefield Guide'', 2nd ed., Houghton Mifflin Co., 1998, .
External links
Cedar Creek Battlefield Foundation Visitors Center*
Fort Collier Civil War CenterMuseum of the Shenandoah ValleyNewtown History CenterOld Court House Civil War MuseumShenandoah Valley Battlefields National Historic DistrictThe Valley of the Shadow ProjectTurner Ashby CampVirginia Civil War TrailsWinchester-Frederick County Historical SocietyKernstown Battlefield
{{DEFAULTSORT:Winchester, Virginia In The American Civil War
Civil War
A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...
Virginia in the American Civil War
U.S. cities in the American Civil War