Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park

Battles

The Battle of Fredericksburg (December 11–15, 1862) was a failed attempt by General Ambrose Burnside to cross the Rappahannock and take Richmond. Delayed pontoons allowed Robert E. Lee to fortify the high ground, resulting in a one-sided massacre. A visitor center staffed by Park Service rangers is on site. The Battle of Chancellorsville (May 1–3, 1863) saw Lee divide his forces and send Stonewall Jackson on a flanking attack that surprised the Union, causing General Joseph Hooker to lose his nerve and retreat.

A visitor center staffed by Park Service rangers is present. The Battle of the Wilderness (May 5–7, 1864) was Lee's first battle against Grant; dense forest prevented Grant from using his numerical and artillery advantages. Casualties were high on both sides, and the battle is classed as a draw. Grant withdrew to force another battle in open country.

Exhibit shelters are staffed seasonally. The Battle of Spotsylvania (May 8–21, 1864) involved a key crossroads Grant hoped to occupy. Lee reached it first; heavy rain dampened gunpowder, leading to intense hand-to-hand fighting. Exhibit shelters are staffed seasonally.

The park also preserves four historic buildings: Chatham Manor, Salem Church, Ellwood Manor, and the house where Stonewall Jackson died. The ruins of the Chancellor family mansion are included. Chatham Manor in Stafford County is open daily. All sites are free.

Park history

Established on February 14, 1927, this park was originally under the War Department before being transferred on August 10, 1933. Its official name, Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania County Battlefields Memorial National Military Park, holds the record for the longest name in the national park system at 75 letters. The site was added to the National Register of Historic Places on October 15, 1966. Each year, more than half a million people visit.

Cemetery

Fredericksburg National Cemetery was established by Congress in July 1865, after the country was reunited, to honor Union soldiers who died in nearby battles or from illness. The cemetery sits on Marye’s Heights, a position held by Confederate forces during the Battle of Fredericksburg. It holds 15,243 Civil War burials, but only 2,473 of those soldiers have been identified. Known soldiers rest in individual graves marked by rounded headstones that list their name and home state.

Unknown soldiers lie in mass graves, and their headstones display two numbers: the top number identifies the plot, and the bottom number tells how many soldiers are buried there. About 100 soldiers from the 20th century are also buried here, sometimes with their spouses beside them. The cemetery accepted new burials until 1945. A separate cemetery on Marye’s Heights, Willis Cemetery, predates the Civil War and served local residents; it is set apart by a brick wall.

The Willis home burned down before the war began. The ridge was originally called Willis Hill, but the name Marye’s Heights came to describe the entire ridge after national press coverage of the battle in 1863. Throughout the cemetery, plaques display verses from Theodore O’Hara’s 1847 poem, written to honor American dead from the Battle of Buena Vista during the Mexican-American War. Monuments here include the 127th Pennsylvania Volunteer Monument, the Fifth Corps Monument (dedicated 1901), the Humphreys’ Division Monument, the Moesch Monument, and the Parker’s Battery Memorial.