Civil War Trails
Located along and near the James River, each of the James River plantations, large and small, figured in Civil War History. Berkeley and nearby Westover were the final stop in Union Gen. George McClellan’s campaign to take Richmond in the 1862 Peninsula Campaign. Thousands of soldiers camped on the banks of the river after the battle of Malvern Hill. Shirley Plantationhosted a hospital for a time. Sherwood Forest, home of President John Tyler, was damaged by occupying troops. A restored riverside fort at Wilson’s Wharf (Fort Pocahontas) hosts an annual reenactment and is open for special events and pre-planned tours. Smaller plantations, Edgewood, and North Bend, feature their own Civil War-oriented stories. Gen. U. S. Grant’s remarkable James River crossing in 1864 is told at North Bend and at Lawrence Lewis, Jr. Park, known in the Civil War as Willcox’s landing.
Click for maps and other information about the trails.
Civil War Trails PDFs:
- North Bend
- Stuart’s Ride: Coffee at Rowland’s
- Stuart’s Ride: Safe among Friends and Family
- Westover
- Willcox’s Landing
These Civil War Trails exhibits are used by express permission of the copyright holder. They may be downloaded for personal use and for no other purpose.
Problems viewing the PDFs?
Click here to download the most recent version of Acrobat Reader for Free.