Today is the 163rd anniversary of the Battle of Williamsburg fought on May 2, 1862. Confederate General John Bankhead Magruder had set up his third line of defense here where the peninsula narrows. It consisted of 14 redoubts. Redoubts #1 and #2 are preserved in Redoubt Park at 510 Quarterpath Road. A part of Redoubt #3 is preserved on the grounds of the Fort Magruder Hotel and Conference Center at 6945 Pocahontas Trail. I see no evidence of Redoubts #4, #5, #7, #8 or #9 on LiDAR. A part of Fort Magruder (Redoubt #6) still exists but is inside a chain link fence. Portions of Redoubts #12 and #13 are within New Quarter Park at 1000 Lakeshead Drive. Redoubts #11 and #14 still exist.

The advancing Union army encountered Confederates under General Joseph Johnston as they were retreating up the peninsula toward Richmond. A fierce battle ensued (described at the link) that resulted in the death of 456 Union soldiers, with another 1410 wounded and 373 captured or missing for a total of 2239 casualties. Confederate casualties were a total of 1271 with 167 killed, 757 wounded of which at least 13 would die shortly of their wounds, and 133 missing. Pryor’s Brigade suffered 214 casualties but did not break them down.

Although much of the battlefield has been lost to development the efforts of the American Battlefield Trust, the Williamsburg Battlefield Association, both of which we are proud members, and other groups have resulted in some recent important preservation victories such as: the purchase of 29 acres in the area of the “Bloody Ravine” in 2020 (link); and the 245 acre James Curtis Farm in 2023 (link). Many of the buildings preserved by the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation also played a role in the Civil War as hospitals and headquarters (link). The Wren Building on the William and Mary campus is the oldest building on a college campus still standing that played a role in the Civil War.