Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation Adds 158 Acres
January 23, 2018
WINCHESTER — The Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation announced Saturday it was able to preserve an additional 158 acres of the Cedar Creek Battlefield — a move that the organization touts as a major victory.
The 158-acre parcel lies in Warren County and was where Confederates under Gen. Joseph Kershaw and Gen. John B. Gordon launched a predawn assault on the morning of Oct. 19, 1864 — the day of the Battle of Cedar Creek.
According to a news release from the foundation, the Confederate troops swarmed over this property under cover of darkness and crashed into Union Col. Joseph Thoburn’s division. The Confederates overwhelmed Thoburn’s men, as they were isolated from the other Union defenses.
The Union Army launched a counterattack in the afternoon and ultimately won the battle.
The release states preservation was made possible because the property’s landowners, Tunstall C. “Joe” Powers Jr. and his wife Linda E. Powers, donated the conservation easement on their property.
“Our family welcomes this opportunity to partner with Warren County and the Battlefields Foundation in order to preserve the historic and scenic values of our farm,” Joe Powers said in the release. “My father grew up in Strasburg and was aware of the fords on the property and their role in the Confederate’s early morning advance at Cedar Creek. My mother enjoyed the vistas of Signal Knob and the variety of wildlife that inhabit the farm. We believe that a conservation easement can [ensure] the enjoyment of this property by future generations.”
The nonprofit Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation, based in New Market, now owns 936 acres of the Cedar Creek Battlefield, including the 158 acres donated by the Powers family and the 65 acres originally preserved by the Civil War Trust and given to the foundation in 2015.
The foundation is not the only entity that wants to preserve the battlefield. Eric Campbell, a park ranger with the National Park Service, said the following organizations have also preserved land from the Battle of Cedar Creek:
· The National Park Service has preserved 95 acres of the battlefield.
· Belle Grove Plantation has preserved 107.5 acres.
· The Cedar Creek Battlefield Foundation has preserved 328 acres.
· The National Trust For Historic Preservation has preserved 283.
· Shenandoah County has preserved 151.
“The Powers family has already helped to preserve hundreds of acres of the Cedar Creek battlefield,” foundation CEO Keven M. Walker said in the release. “And this act of extreme generosity forever ensures their legacy as one of the most instrumental families for battlefield preservation the Valley has ever known.”
The foundation’s conservation director, John Hutchinson, said in the release that Warren County co-holds the easement for the 158 acres and it will share responsibility with the foundation for seeing that the property is protected.
The 158-acre parcel lies in Warren County and was where Confederates under Gen. Joseph Kershaw and Gen. John B. Gordon launched a predawn assault on the morning of Oct. 19, 1864 — the day of the Battle of Cedar Creek.
According to a news release from the foundation, the Confederate troops swarmed over this property under cover of darkness and crashed into Union Col. Joseph Thoburn’s division. The Confederates overwhelmed Thoburn’s men, as they were isolated from the other Union defenses.
The Union Army launched a counterattack in the afternoon and ultimately won the battle.
The release states preservation was made possible because the property’s landowners, Tunstall C. “Joe” Powers Jr. and his wife Linda E. Powers, donated the conservation easement on their property.
“Our family welcomes this opportunity to partner with Warren County and the Battlefields Foundation in order to preserve the historic and scenic values of our farm,” Joe Powers said in the release. “My father grew up in Strasburg and was aware of the fords on the property and their role in the Confederate’s early morning advance at Cedar Creek. My mother enjoyed the vistas of Signal Knob and the variety of wildlife that inhabit the farm. We believe that a conservation easement can [ensure] the enjoyment of this property by future generations.”
The nonprofit Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation, based in New Market, now owns 936 acres of the Cedar Creek Battlefield, including the 158 acres donated by the Powers family and the 65 acres originally preserved by the Civil War Trust and given to the foundation in 2015.
The foundation is not the only entity that wants to preserve the battlefield. Eric Campbell, a park ranger with the National Park Service, said the following organizations have also preserved land from the Battle of Cedar Creek:
· The National Park Service has preserved 95 acres of the battlefield.
· Belle Grove Plantation has preserved 107.5 acres.
· The Cedar Creek Battlefield Foundation has preserved 328 acres.
· The National Trust For Historic Preservation has preserved 283.
· Shenandoah County has preserved 151.
“The Powers family has already helped to preserve hundreds of acres of the Cedar Creek battlefield,” foundation CEO Keven M. Walker said in the release. “And this act of extreme generosity forever ensures their legacy as one of the most instrumental families for battlefield preservation the Valley has ever known.”
The foundation’s conservation director, John Hutchinson, said in the release that Warren County co-holds the easement for the 158 acres and it will share responsibility with the foundation for seeing that the property is protected.
