Battle of Chancellorsville • Tour the Battlefield • Monuments & Markers • The Armies
The Artillery Duel wayside marker is on the Fairview walking trail. The trailhead is at Stop 10 on the Battle of Chancellorsville Auto Tour.
Text from the marker:
Artillery Duel
On the morning of May 3, 1863, Union artillery at Fairview suffered the most intense artillery bombardment of the battle. More than 40 Confederate guns at Hazel Grove (visible 1,200 yards in front of you) concentrated their fire on 34 Union cannon here at Fairview. After five hours of fighting, the Union guns withdrew, and the Union infantry slowly fell back into the Chancellorsville clearing. They left behind stunning carnage.
We…reached the brow of the hill where…our own cannon had been in action… [A] gruesome sight met our eyes; it was the bodies of nearly a hundred horses scattered around the field in the rear of where the artillery had been engaged; all were lying on their backs with their feet in the air, their bodies swollen enormously. Not alone had men suffered and died.
Corporal Rice C. Bull, 123rd New York Infantry
From the caption to the drawing:
Fairview during the peak of the artillery duel, about 9 a.m. on May 3.
Location of the Marker
The marker is on the Fairview walking trail about 630 feet from the trailhead. It is behind the last of four artillery pieces that are on display. (38° 18.446′ N, 77° 38.628′ W)
(go to the main Stop 10 page)
(go to the main Chancellorsville Battlefield Auto Tour page)