The Wilderness Driving Tour Stops 1-6

Before starting the National Park Service auto tour I visited some sites not on the tour prior to stop #1. The image below of the ford site was taken from the bridge on route 3. It is the site of one of the two Union pontoon bridges here. The other pontoon bridge would have been directly below the modern bridge from which I took this picture.

**Germanna Ford**– **38.3794808, -77.7848648**

**War time photo by Timothy O’Sullivan**

The two Civil War Trails signs below are located just outside the Historic Germanna Visitor Center.

Seven regiments of USCT remained at the ford to guard the one pontoon bridge that was left in place. At least three of these men were captured and shot by the 9th VA Cavalry. The Wilderness Tavern site is located off Route 3 just east of the modern day intersection of Routes 3 and 20 at the GPS location 38.3246389, -77.7228611.

**Looking west at the wartime Orange Turnpike. The Germana Plank Road crossed it just on the other side of the farm lane.**

Approaching the old Orange Turnpike- Germanna Plank Road intersection from the east of Wilderness Run moving west on the Wilderness Crossing Trail (brochure).

**Looking west between the bridge and the farm lane this is the location of the Orange Turnpike** **Germanna Plank Road intersection, based on information in an NPS brochure of the walking trail. Even in winter I could not see any vestige of the road**

The NPS auto tour

Stop 1- Grant’s Headquarters

After Generals Grant and Meade met at the intersection of the Germanna Plank Road and the Orange Turnpike on the morning of the 5th they decided to establish their headquarters on a knoll near here.

The headquarters site is about 250 yards from the above marker. To the right there is an opening in the brush leading into the woods. The knoll is straight ahead on park property. See the link showing images of that area from a previous post.

Stop 2- Ellwood Manor (exterior, interior)

Stop 3- Wilderness Battlefield Exhibit Center, interpretation inside the shelter (link) and Gordon’s Flank Attack Trail (link) will be covered in separate future posts.

Saunders Field from the Exhibit Shelter

**View of the north side of Saunders Field looking east. Union forces would be advancing toward the camera**

**View of the north side of Saunders Field looking west toward the Confederate position**

The next images are of the south of the field looking sequentially from west to east.

Stop 4- Saunders Field

There are two lines of earthworks here. The forward line was strengthened after the fighting was over. The rearward line may have been the original line held by General John Jones brigade on the first day of the battle.

Text of the above- Here May 5, 6, 1864, 70,000 Confederates under Lee defeated 120,000 Federals under Grant. Confederate loss 11,500. Federal 18,000. This battle, fought with conspicuous bravery, in a Wilderness on fire, will take it’s place among the great battles of the Civil War.

Stop 5- Higgerson Farm

The family allowed a soldier to convalesce at the home but he turned out to have smallpox. Benjamin Higgerson contracted the disease snd died.

The images below were shot with my back to the tour road from north to south.

**Higgerson farm lane leads down to the ruins of the house**

**All that remains of the Higgerson house**

Stop 5A- Jones Field- 38.3045375, -77.7474325

The images below are looking to the west with my back to the tour road and taken sequentially from north to south.

South Wilderness Run- 38.3027573, -77. 7438920

Stop 6- Chewning Farm

William Chewning owned the farm here called Mountain View. A wartime road connecting Ellwood to Parker’s Store ran through the property. The high point of the plateau seen in the pictures below and the low height of the wartime trees made this an excellent site to view the battle.