The site of five Civil War battles, the city of Winchester at the northern (lower) end of the Shenandoah Valley, changed hands over 70 times during the Civil War. Three battles are named Winchester: 1st [25 May 1862 in Jackson's Valley campaign], 2nd [13-15 June 1863, Ewell clears Valley of Yankees prior to Gettysburg] & 3rd [Sheridan pushes Early south]. Two more battles were at adjacent Kernstown: 1st [23 Mar 1862, Jackson defeated in his first Valley fight] & 2nd [July 24 1864, Early beats Crook during raid to D.C.]. In addition, "Stonewall" Jackson and wife lived here early in the War.
      A non-profit NGO is actively attempting to save battlefield parcels, although none were open during our short visit in June 2009. There is a Winchester-Frederick County Civil War Orientation Center with good museum that is worth visiting, and they provide a great brochure. T.J. Jackson's home is operated as a museum with docents in period costume. Our visit was fun and we anticipate seeing actual parts of battlefields in the future.

The fight at Ox Hill (or Chantilly to the North) is almost entirely overlooked in Civil War history. Yet here, in a pouring rainstorm on Sep. 1, 1862, Union Generals Isaac Stevens and Philip Kearny attacked 'Stonewall' Jackson's flank march, intended to cut off the Union retreat from the Second Battle of Manassas, and thwarted that aim. It was an incredible fight over 500 acres of farmland, leaving 800 Confederate and 1300 Union casualties. Both Gen. Stevens and Gen. Kearney were killed.
      A hundred years later, Fairfax County was rapidly being developed. In 1987, a non-profit group managed to save five acres at the heart of the battlefield -- just 1% of the original battle site. It opened as a county park in Aug 2008. Yet, a remarkable site has been created with great maps and signage on the walking tour route and a reconstructed snake rail fence. I rate it very highly for working with what is available.

The public outcry after the skirmish at Balls Bluff on 21 Oct 1861 far exceeded its importance. Col. Edward D. Baker, former Senator and personal friend of Lincoln (who named his second son after Baker), led a "slight demonstration" against "Shanks" Evans rebel forces here. The brave but tactically inept assault got his command ambushed; Baker and 48 Union soldiers were killed. Baker's death shocked official Washington and led to the formation of the Congressional Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War.
      Balls Bluff battlefield is now a very lovely regional park. Trails through the woods to the Potomac bluffs are complemented by excellent modern signs explaining the battle and its participants, including the "California Regiment" (actually the 71st Pa. regiment named to honor Baker, a leading San Francisco lawyer before the War). As I am from California, and physically far removed from Civil War sites, this sign was a nice touch.

Far away from the focus of public attention on Richmond or Atlanta in 1864, Northern forces consolidated gains elsewhere in the Confederacy. Efforts to do so in the Florida panhandle, though, suffered a sharp setback at Olustee, Florida, on 20 Feb 1864. The battle was fought in pine woods and palmetto thickets, with CSA troops under Joseph Finnegan scattering Union forces under Gens. Seymour & Gillmore. The 54th Mass. Infantry, though, of Battery Wagner fame (see below), held the field in a rear guard action, permitting an orderly Union withdrawal. Casualties were ~1850 USA and ~950 CSA (of ~5000 troops on each site, so these are heavy casualties).
      The battlefield site is very nicely preserved as a State Park, and well interpreted with modern signs. Of note to birders (like me), the piney woods has Red-cockaded Woodpeckers, a federally-listed Endangered species.

During U.S. Grant's Vicksburg Campaign, Adm. Porter led seven ironclads in an attack on the Confederate batteries at Grand Gulf on 29 Apr 1863. Although the rebels withstood the Union bombardment, Union steamboats and barges ran the gauntlet after dark, permitting Grant to move his army across the river, disembarking them on the Mississippi shore below Grand Gulf. The set-back here was just a minor delay.
      In March 1997 Rita & I had the extraordinary good luck to run into a tour here led by legendary historian Edwin C. Bearss. He graciously permitted us to tag along. It is said that a "battlefield tour with Ed Bearss is a transcendental experience," and having spent a couple hours listening to him bring history alive, we certainly agree! Those who have watched Ken Burns' Civil War series know his dramatic narratives. The battlefield is a State Park with a nice museum and ruined fortifications. It was partly flooded during our visit , but we — and Ed Bearss' tour bus — plunged right through the flooded road to get there.

In 1865, Union Gen. "Little Phil" Sheridan returned from his Shenandoah Valley campaign to join Grant at the siege of Petersburg. Grant sent Sheridan with 13,000 cavalry to the west in a plan to force Lee out of his Petersburg trenches. R.E. Lee countered by dispatching Gen. George Pickett with 19000 men, including Fitzhugh Lee's cavalry, to hold the Southside railroad, Lee's only means of escape. Sheridan attacked on 1 April while Pickett & Fitzhugh Lee were at a shad bake at Hatchers Run. Pickett ran a gauntlet of enemy fire to reach his army at Five Forks. Union Gen. Warren's troops helped win victory, but Sheridan relieved Warren for "lack of aggressiveness" during the fight. [A Court of Inquiry exonerated Warren in 1881, 16 years later]. The battle cut the last rail line supporting Petersburg, causing Lee to abandon that city and the defense of Richmond. Final surrender was at Appomattox Courthouse two weeks later.
      During our 1997 visit, the battlefield was not yet well-interpreted. There was one monument, a crumbling historic house, and a driving route. I am uncertain if more can be seen today.

On 8 Sep 1863, a Union flotilla of 4 gunboats and 18 troop transports carrying 5000 troops, under the command of Captain Frederick, steamed into Sabine Pass with the intention of reducing Ft. Griffin and begin the occupation of Texas. The Confederate gunners, commanded by Lt. Dick Dowling, had been practicing firing artillery at range markers on the oyster shoals in the river. This practice paid off. The Fort’s force of 44 men sank two gunboats and captured 200 prisoners. The Yankee fleet sailed back to New Orleans. The heroics at Fort Griffin—44 men stopping a Union expedition—inspired other southerners.
      The historic site now sits at the edge of Sabine Pass. In the 150 years since the War, the river has changed course and the original Ft. Griffin is gone. More recent battlements, some of WWII vintage, dot the location. Yet a cleverly designed all-weather walk-in kiosk describes the battle well. There is a path with explanatory signage – including a “1863 view” of the battle through an all-weather viewer – and a statue to the Confederate gunners. Having rather little to work with, the battlefield park is very nicely done.