Preservation Victory at Hupps Hill

36 Acres Preserved at Civil War Battlefield

STRASBURG, Virginia — The Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation (SVBF) has announced the preservation of 36 acres on the Hupps Hill battlefield, just northeast of Strasburg.  This property is situated amid hundreds of acres that have already been preserved, and was the last large parcel of ground that could be saved on the battlefield.

The Battlefields Foundation is announcing this preservation victory in conjunction with National Preservation Month.  This is the first in a series of preservation announcements that the SVBF will be making in the coming weeks.

The Battlefields Foundation was able to preserve this property thanks to a partnership with the Strasburg Express baseball team of the Valley Baseball League.  The property was donated to Strasburg Community Baseball, which owns the Strasburg Express, by the developers of Homewood, with the idea that the land could be developed into a new baseball field.  But when the cost for building that new field proved too high to be raised in a reasonable amount of time, the Express reached out to the Battlefields Foundation.  The Foundation and the Express worked out a deal where the Express would donate the land to the Foundation in exchange for tax credits – which the Express can now sell.  The Express expects to raise between $150,000-$200,000 through the sale of those tax credits.  They plan to use that money to upgrade the Strasburg High School baseball field – which can then be used by both the high school baseball team and the Strasburg Express.

“This is a deal that works for everyone,” said Jay Neal, President and CEO of the Strasburg Express.  “The Battlefields Foundation can preserve the land.  The people who live in the houses near the property will love the unspoiled view.  And we will be able to improve the baseball facilities to benefit the high school baseball team.  It’s a nice result all the way around.”

Target property in yellow

“This is one of the most unique preservation projects in our history,” said Keven Walker, CEO of the Battlefields Foundation.  “It provides permanent protection of this historic land and generates revenue to support the Valley Baseball League.  Saving battlefields and supporting baseball – it doesn’t get much more American than that.”

 Walker added that, now that the land has been preserved, the Battlefields Foundation plans to link this property to other preserved properties with an interpretive trail and create a new battlefield experience.