Winchester, Virginia > Downtown Winchester
The “Winchester – The Valley Campaigns” wayside marker is in downtown Winchester, Virginia.
From the marker:
Winchester
The Valley Campaigns
1862 & 1864 Valley Campaigns
Winchester’s location at the north end of the Shenandoah Valley made it a place of strategic importance during the Civil War.
From here, roads led north and east threatening Washington, D.C. and the Valley Turnpike led south and west endangering the breadbasket of the Confederacy.
Winchester endured a seemingly endless series of occupatons and evacuations as the war ebbed and flowed through the city.
Stonewall Jackson made his headquarters here during the winter of 1861-1862. He fought the Valey’s first major battle at Kernstown, just south of the city on March 23, 1862. The bloody clashes contnued through the years until Unon Gen. Philip Sheridan’s army drove Confederate Gen. Jubal Early’s troops out of Wnchester for the last tme September 19, 1864.
Captions from the print and photos:
1862 – Jackson’s Valley Campaign
A 19th century engraving depicts an “Adventure of Ashby at Winchester,” involving Stonewall Jackson’s Cavalry commander, Turner Ashby. Jackson suffered the only loss of his 1862 campaign just south of here at Kernstown, but the boldness of his attack drew Unon troops from the campaign against Richmond.
1863- Lee’s Gettysburg Campaign
As Confederate General Robert E. Lee began his 1863 “Invasion of the North,” Union forces, fortfed near here, were cleared from the army’s path to prevent harassment from the rear. Unon forces stationed at Fort Milroy (shown here) Fort Collier, West Fort and Star Fort were defeated during Lee’s march north.
1864 – Sheridan’s Valley Campaign
The 2nd Virginia Cavalry, U.S. (West Virgina) encamped at Hackwood on the Third Winchester battlefield, just north of the city.
Location
The marker is on the exterior wall of the Winchester Chamber of Commerce – Kurtz Cultural Center on the northeast corner of Cameron Street and Boscawen Street. (39°11’01.4″N 78°09’50.3″W)