CIVIL WAR BUS TRIP
On Saturday Oct. 25, 2008 I went on a bus trip sponsored by the Mason-Dixon Civil War Roundtable to visit some Civil War sites in the eastern panhandle of W. Va.. Jim Barnes had signed up to go on this trip with me but had to cancel at the last minute due to illness. I arrived at thr rendevous point, the WVU Coliseum parking lot about 7:45 AM on a dark, rainy morning. The tour’s host and tour guide Rick Wolfe greeted me at the tour bus’s steps and handed me a packet of papers with info about the tour stops- Greenland Gap, Fort Mulligan, Moorefield (the Aug. 1864 battle), Romney ( the Oct. 1861 battle) and Fort Mill Ridge. Rick said 26 persons had signed up for the trip but due to several cancellations, sickness and a couple of no shows the actual attendance was only 18 CW buffs. The attendees ranged in age from 70 to 12 years of age, the majority being men with a few women and 2-3 younger kids. The only persons I knew was Rick Wolfe the tour guide and David Cain, a Marion Co. historian.
We left Morgantown about 8:10 AM after waiting for a couple of no shows. We arrived at Greenland Gap in about 2 hours to a downpour of rain. Those of us with umbrella’s or rain coats got off the bus to hear Rick Wolfe tell us about the Battle of Greenland Gap where 87 Union soldiers from the 23rd Illinois Inf. and 14th (West) Virginia Infantry holed up in some stout log buildings held off over 2,000 Confederate Cavalry from the 6th, 7th, 11th & 12th Va. Cav. regiments, the 1st Maryland Cav. regiment, the 34th and 35th Va. Cav. Battalions and McNeil’s Rangers for over 4 hours inflicting numerous casualtes on them before being forced to surrender when the Rebels set the log buildings on fire. Although the CWPT bought the few acres where the battle took place and Greenland Gap itself is owned and protected by the Nature Conservancy this battlefield needs to be interpreted better. The actual battlesite is only accessible by fording Patterson Creek and there are not any signs telling the story of this battle. Some one or some group should adopt this site, build a foot bridge to allow access to the battle field, mow the overgrown clearing, put up interpretive signs and build a small parking lot for visitors. Corridor H is being built very near (about a 1/4 mile away) surely their is Federal money available to better interpret this site.
Our next stop was Fort Mulligan in Petersburg, WV. This Fort was built in the late summer of 1863 by troops from the 1st W. Va. Inf., 23rd Ill. Inf., 54th Pa. Inf. and several other Union troops from W. Va. and Pa. Although no battle ever took place here, Confederate General Jubal Early shelled the Fort on Jan. 31, 1864 before realizing the Union troops had abandoned the Fort and retreated toward New Creek. CWPT bought the site several years ago and the local SCV and SUV Camps along with local historical groups have done a really good job of interpreting the site with numerous signs, a walking path, benches, repro cannons and a small parking lot. They cleared the multiflora rose and underbrush from the trenches and keep the site well mowed. The only detraction is the town’s water tank sitting in one corner of the Fort ( although there is a proposal to remove it on the ballot). Rick had a local historian, ( I believe his name is Bob Mayer?) to give us a tour of the Fort. He was very knowledgeable, answering all of our questions and shwing us some of the CW relics he has aquired over the years. He told us the very interesting story on how Grant Co. came into being . During the CW, the western half of the Hardy Co. was pro-Union while the eastern half and the town of Petersburg was pro-Confederate. After the war the people from the western end of the county formed the new county of Grant ( named after Gen. U.S. Grant) in 1866. He said to this day Grant Co. is 75% Republican and Hardy is 65% Democrat.
We then drove to just north of Moorefield to the Old Fields aread where Rick Wolfe told us about the Aug. 1864 Cavalry battle where Union Gen. Wm. Averell caught up with Confederate Gen.McCausland after the Rebels had burned Chambersburg, Pa. Averell attacked just before daylight on Aug. 7, 1864. He had used “Jessie Scouts”, Union soldiers dressed as Rebels to capture the Confederat picket posts without firing a shot. Averell and his men although slightly outnumbered used surpise to completely rout the Southeners, inflicting over 400 casualties while receiving less than 40 casualties. Rick also told of the heroics of Lt. Kerr of the 14th Pa. Cav. who received the Medal of Honor for his actions in this battle.
We then backtracked slightly and took the Trough road to Romney. Rick pointed out Clifford Hollow where McNeil’s Rangers left from on their successful mission to capture Union Generals Kelley & Crook in Feb. 1865 in Cumberland. He also pointed out a large stone building that used to be the County Poor Farm where Mcneils men took refuge from the cold on the way to Cumberland.
In Romney, Rick had arranged a stop at Taggert Hall Civil War Museum and Visitor Center to view the CW artifacts. The visitor center really threw out the welcome mat with refreshments, food and a sampling of local WV wines. The head of the Fprt Mill Ridge Foundation and the mayor of Romney were on hand to give us welcoming speeches. After partaking of the refreshments our next stop was Indian Mound Cemetery site of one of the earliest Confederate monuments and battle site. Their Rick Wolfe told us about the late Oct. 1861 battle of Romney when Union Gen. Ben Kelley attacked Confederate troops entrenched near the Cemetery and drove them away ( one of approximate 56 times the town of Romney changed hands during the CW). Rick then told us of the lone Union death during this battle, Pvt. Jesse Taylor of the 7th (West) Virginia Inf. , Co. F. Co. F men were mostly from Greene Co. Pa. – just across the Mason – Dixon line from Monongalia Co. WV. His fellow soldiers had his body sent back to his hometown in Jollytown, Pa., near Blacksburg, WV for burial. After the war they erected a statue ( a generic Union soldier statue like the 7th W.Va. Inf. statue at Gettysburg and on the lawn of the Preston Co. Courthouse) with a 1861 Parrot cannon and two coehorn mortars on his gravesite to honor him. Jim Barnes and I plan a roadtrip to Jollytown in the near future to see Pvt. Taylor’s grave since it isn’t to far from Morgantown.
Our last stop was at Fort Mill Ridge, one of the best preserved earthworks of the Civil War. The Fort consists of a central redoubt for artillery with an outer ring of entrenchments. The Fort was bult by troops under the command of Col. Joseph Campbell, the 54th Pa. Inf & the 1st ( West) Virginia Inf., Batt. E of the 1st W. Va. Lt. Artillery and the Ringgold Cav. in March and April 1863 to guard the Mechanicsburg Gap thru which ran the important Northwestern Turnpike (present day Rt. 50). Although no battle was ever fought here the entrenchments are pristine and have numerous interpretive signs.
We arrived back in Morgantown about 6:30 PM. after giving our guide, Rick Wolfe a round of applause for doing a great job in putting the tour together. If Rick does another bus tour next year I plan on being there.
Mark Tennant
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