Help Save the Piedmont Battlefield

 The Piedmont Battlefield Can Be Saved!

On the Piedmont Battlefield, at this very moment, you and I can save 146 acres before they become a large-scale solar farm. But the two of us and everyone else who cares about saving our battlefields are really up against it, and this moment is slipping away. We’re facing more battlefield threats than at any other time in the last decade, and our resources are stretched to the breaking point. We either pull together massive increases of support or we are going to have to say “no” to critical preservation projects like these 146 acres at Piedmont.

I need your help and there is a real possibility that without it, it will be just a matter of months before this land is turned over to the solar operators, and battlefield acres throughout the Valley slip beyond our reach. It’s not just one or two acres that are at risk; I’m talking about the potential loss of massive swaths of battlefield land that, if lost, would have drastic negative impacts on battlefields that at this moment can still be saved.

At Piedmont we’ve worked for more than a year to negotiate terms and work out an agreement that will forever protect the property and provide permanent interpretive access, designated parking for visitors, and new wayside exhibits. If we can complete this deal, we will have created a small battlefield park almost overnight. This property was the scene of the heaviest fighting during the battle; where the Confederates came close to achieving an unlikely victory in the Shenandoah Valley for a second time in a matter of weeks – following their victory at New Market on May 15, 1864. It’s on these 146 acres where Confederate Gen. Grumble Jones lost his life trying to rally his men, and where two Federal brigades smashed into a Confederate army that was cobbled together with troops from all over the region – bolstered by the old men and young boys of local defense forces.

But as important as this property is to preserve, and as patient as the landowners have been, they can’t wait forever – and they will move forward with development plans if we don’t act quickly.

Here’s the good news: we already have some state funds to put toward the purchase, and we are relatively certain that we will be able to secure even more state funding and money from the Federal government as well. And I know that you and all of our preservation heroes across the country will pitch in to raise the funds needed for the purchase.

But the problem is getting there. Right now, we don’t have the funds – the tens of thousands of dollars – it’s going to take to complete the surveys, appraisal updates, environmental site assessments, historic assessments, legal fees, title work, state processing fees, and all the due diligence required to qualify for the grant funds need to purchase this property. We don’t have the funding needed to get the project moving, and without those funds the project will never happen, and this land will be lost before summer is over.

It’s going to take more than $30,000 to do the work needed to preserve the Piedmont property and that’s before we even begin to think about raising the hundreds of thousands needed to pay the landowner.

And here’s what’s worse: this is just one of the core battlefield properties from one end of the Valley to the other that we are in real and immediate danger of losing, and we are at a point where we just don’t have the money needed to do all of the behind the scenes work it takes to get us to closing and to save these properties before it’s too late. We are pressing forward, but we have stretched our resources as far as they can go.

So first, I’m asking you to contribute towards our goal of raising the $30,000 that we need to get the Piedmont project off the ground and to do all of the behind the scenes works that it takes to preserve properties not only at the Piedmont battlefield, but also at places such as Fisher’s Hill, Second Winchester, and Tom’s Brook.

And the second thing that I’m asking is for you to consider what you might be willing to do to increase your regular support of our efforts long term. You could look into joining as a member or increasing your membership level; you could join the many others who have started giving automatic recurring gifts; or you could make the Valley’s battlefields a part of your legacy by including us in your estate planning.

I am not being dramatic when I tell you that we have reached the point where we will start losing more and more of our battlefields if we don’t do something. I know that expenses are rising. The cost of groceries and gas and just about everything else is soaring; like you, we’re feeling it every day. But we are losing our history. I’m asking you to really look at your involvement with the Battlefields Foundation and to consider a renewed commitment to saving the Valley’s battlefields before it’s too late. Please give what you can now – and give serious thought to making these battlefields a renewed priority in your life.

I’m proud of how we invest your money. We are understaffed, leanly operated, and because of you we accomplish more, day in and day out, than any other Virginia-based battlefield preservation organization. We are second in the nation only to our friends at the American Battlefield Trust in the scope of our operations and the long list of our successes. We are a good investment for anyone who loves our history and cares about our battlefields. Please do what you can to help us at places like Piedmont right now and consider my request to make 2022 the year you renewed your personal fight to save this Valley.

Most Sincerely and Respectfully,

Keven M. Walker Chief Executive Officer

To donate to our mission to preserve the Piedmont Battlefield, simply fill out the form at the bottom of the page

The Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation is a registered Section 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization and contributions are tax-deductible.

The Road to Battle

In the spring of 1864, new Union commander Gen. Ulysses S. Grant organized a huge offensive across the entire front of the embattled Confederacy. Grant’s first push up the Valley under the command of Gen. Franz Sigel had ended in disaster for the Federals when they were driven from the field during the Battle of New Market. Sigel was quickly replaced by Gen. David “Black Dave” Hunter. By late May, the Federals were on the move again, and by early June they were bearing down on their objective – the vital rail and supply center of Staunton, Virginia. Confederate commander Gen. William E. “Grumble” Jones hurriedly gathered a force – from anywhere from which a man, horse, or gun could be spared – to block Hunter’s advance. He brought them first to Staunton and then sent them north to Mt. Crawford, where Gen. John D. Imboden placed them in a formidable defensive position along the North River. Realizing the strength of the Confederate position, Hunter marched his army southeast to Port Republic on June 4, with the intention of moving south to Waynesboro and cutting the Confederates off from Richmond and resupply. But Jones shifted his own force east to block Hunter’s route south, and sent Imboden and his cavalry to Mt. Meridian, three miles south of Port Republic, to delay the Federal advance.

“The Horrible Mass of Fire-Spitting Rifles”

The main part of the Confederate army was in an L-shape, anchored on a bend of Middle River facing north and angling south along the ridge line across the target property. The other part, Confederate reserves consisting of home guards, was in the woods south and east of Piedmont. Between the two parts of Jones’ army was a gap, several hundred yards wide, partially filled by the 60th Virginia. On the Federal side, one brigade of infantry, under Col. Augustus Moor, advanced on the west. Another brigade, under Col. Joseph Thoburn, was to the east. And Union artillery commanded by Capt. Henry DuPont – 22 guns in all – deployed on the heights to the northeast. On the west, Moor’s men attacked and were repulsed with heavy losses by a “withering and steady fire” from Confederates who were positioned behind formidable barricades of logs and rails across the target property. Meanwhile, DuPont’s cannon unleashed a hailstorm of metal at the outnumbered Confederate artillery, overwhelming them and driving them from the field.

The Fatal Gap: “A Stand-Up Fight”

Emboldened by his success in repulsing Moor, the aggressive Jones decided to counterattack, and pulled troops from his right wing to reinforce his left for the assault – including the 60th Virginia, the only force covering the dangerous gap in his line. Seeing the Confederate troops moving, and alerted to the growing gap, Hunter ordered Col. Joseph Thoburn to assault that spot. He also instructed the rest of his force to attack, pressuring the Confederates all along the line and successfully distracting them from Thoburn’s movement. The Confederates belatedly became aware of Thoburn’s advance. Startled, Jones attempted to hurry troops to fill the gap, including the just departed 60th Virginia and the 39th Tennessee, which had been moved from the right flank to the left. They were too late. Only part of the 60th had reached the area when Thoburn’s three regiments surged up the hill and struck the gap. The 34th Massachusetts advanced, absorbed a volley from the Virginians, and charged, letting out a yell “that could have been heard for a mile.” The 60th Virginia “poured lead [like] hail stones” into the Federals, and the two sides “had a fair stand up fight for about twenty minutes,” as one Massachusetts soldier remembered – “when suddenly a heavy fire broke out on our left.”

“Shoot That Officer!”

That fire came from Col. Kenton Harper’s Augusta Reserves hurrying up from the south. They struck the flank of the 34th Massachusetts and “poured a withering fire into our faces,” as one northerner remembered. But the commander of the 34th, Col. George Wells, steadied his troops, who held their ground and fought in two directions. In some places, the two sides engaged in savage hand to-hand fighting. As the 54th Pennsylvania added their fire in support, the pressure on the Confederates became too great, and their line began to give way. Grumble Jones tried to rally his men. Lt. Monroe Blue of the Augusta Reserves responded, shouting, “General, I will lead them – boys follow me!” but a Union officer shouted, “Shoot that officer before he starts a rally!” and, as one Federal remembered, “Several of us cut loose at him and he spun around, dropped his sword, and fell to the ground.” Blue died instantly, along with his abortive charge. As the Confederate line began to crumble, Jones rushed into the confusion, urging his men to hold their ground. It was the last act of his life. A Union bullet struck him in the temple and killed him instantly. The Confederate defense collapsed, and the retreat became a rout, with the Confederates streaming southward.

Post Battle: The Fall of Staunton

As the Confederates retreated south towards Waynesboro, the way to Staunton and Lexington was clear. Hunter set out on “Hunter’s Raid,” marching into Staunton the next day, destroying military stores and seizing Confederate clothing and munitions depots, and then burning the Virginia Military Institute days later. Hunter continued to push south until he was thwarted by Jubal Early at Lynchburg and fled into the mountains of West Virginia – clearing the way for Early to embark on what would be the last great invasion of the North.

“Fridays at the Front” - A Musician’s Medal

A collaboration between Civil War Digital Digest and the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation to bring you great history out of the Shenandoah Valley! Join us as we visit the Battle of Piedmont from June 5, 1864. Meet a young man and learn his actions on that day!

To donate to our mission to preserve the Piedmont Battlefield, simply fill out the form below. Thank you for your support.

The Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation is a registered Section 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization and contributions are tax-deductible.