The Wilderness Battlefield - Civil War Discovery Trail Sites on Waymarking.com

The Battle of the Wilderness in May 1864 was the beginning of the Overland Campaign. Gen. U. S. Grant took over command of the Army of the Potomac and joined Gen. Meade and the Union troops at Wilderness. His plan was to launch an aggressive offensive against Gen. R. E. Lee and the Confederate army and bring the Civil War to an end. The fighting raged through the Wilderness, so named because of its dense, tangled woods, from May 5 - 6. Both sides were battered with no clear victory. Finally Gen. Grant, instead of ordering a retreat back across the Rapidan and Rappahannock Rivers to regroup, ordered the army south on to Richmond. The armies would clash again at Spotsylvania Court House.

The Wilderness Battlefield is a part of the Fredericksburg & Spotsylvania National Military Park which is on the Civil War Trails network. The posted coordinates are to the exhibit shelter on Constitution Hwy. (Rt. 20) in Locust Grove. A driving tour or walking tour takes you to key locations such as Saunders Field, Ellwood, Higgerson's Farm, Widow Tapp's Farm, and Brock Rd/Plank Rd. There are historical markers, maps, monuments, and other informational displays posted along the route. (Hint: A search for nearest waymarks will show many of the related sites.)

The Park and battlefields are open daily from dawn to dusk. Admission is free.

Resources:

• The Wilderness
• Battle of Wilderness (U.S. National Park Service)

Type of site: Battlefield Address: Wilderness Exhibit Shelter VA 20 and Hill-Ewell Drive Locust Grove, VA USA 22508 Admission Charged: No Charge Website: [Web Link] Driving Directions: To reach an exhibit shelter on the Wilderness Battlefield, from I-95 take exit 130 (Route 3) west for approximately eleven miles. Turn left at the traffic light at the intersection with Route 20. Proceed two miles. The shelter is on the right. It is an open air shelter without water or rest rooms. Phone Number: Not listed

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Date Logged Log User Rating   08/13/2023 Don.Morfe visited it 05/21/2014 Moorephun visited it 04/05/2014 BurnsideBridge visited it 07/14/2013 DocDTA visited it

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