PORT REPUBLIC - NEW MARKET BATTLEFIELDS

Port Republic Battlefield

The Civil War Tour. This was the name of my riveting summer study abroad course at Ferrum College. This morning at 6am, I was not too riveted to be waking up though. I could feel the cold 30 degree temperatures seeping through my window. I seriously couldn't get out of bed. But I forced myself up, to finish packing up the final things for my week long trip through the "Eastern Theatre" of the American Civil War. For the past week, I had been in and out of lectures each day as well as writing papers comparing Lincoln and his administration from the beginning of the war to the end of the war. To say the least, I was ready to hit the road and be able to have tangible learning experiences that my mind could grasp and hold on to. Not just the course book I had been holding the past week. So I finished putting my last few items into my bags and headed to the van, a solid 7am departure time had me arriving 15 minutes early. I was not going to miss this trip. So we loaded our things and off we went. First Stop, Cross Keys. To tell you the truth, I had no clue if we were going to be able to make the trip to Cross Keys alive. The professor who was driving us on the tour was more of a crazy driver than my 16 year old brother. If I was planning on getting any sleep during these drives between Civil War sites, I could just cross that off. It wasn't going to happen. We made stops in Roanoke and Weyers Cave before making it to the first stop on our Civil War Tour, which was Cross Keys.

The tour began with, you guessed it, a lecture right in front of the Cross Keys Cemetery. A Beautiful place that was being destroyed with the sound of educational learning. I'm kidding. But only slightly. My professor is really cool, and is very knowledgeable on the American Civil War. He reminds me of my Pop-Pop. Ask anything on the subject

Port Republic Museum

of the Civil War and you'll have an answer that will blow your mind. It's pretty cool. After leaving Cross Keys, we began on the road to Port Republic. Of course, it wouldn't be the first day of a tour if we didn't get lost at some point. This point was now. It took use probably around 30 minutes to find the town of Port Republic which we literally within hiking distance of Cross Keys. Well, at least for the soldiers back in 1862. We finally found the town and were given a tour of the museum. It was a beautiful museum with a lot of cool little artifacts from the surrounding area from the Civil War period. We were also the only people who were at the museum, so the museum guide was very engaging with us and gave some pretty cool stories. After we checked out the museum, we took a short little walk to the river that ran through Port Republic. Me and some of the guys were definitely down to do some fishing. But I guess they didn't really fish much during leisure time in the Civil War. So that wouldn't be happening today. We made our way back to the van and I heard it was lunch time. Done deal. My stomach seemed to be digesting my spine. Jess' would be the place we had our first meal on the tour. Located in Harrisonburg, VA, this was supposed to be one heck of a little diner. I was told be a local that the thing to order was the famous Jess' Hot Dogs. So I had two of those with some chili and cheese with some fries and a chocolate shake. Now, let me just tell you, that lunch was most definitely one of the top meals I have ever had. It was amazing. And later, I came to find out that my parents, who were dating while my mom lived in Harrisonburg, had gone on dates at this place. Probably one of the coolest things to me. I was following in my parents footsteps from their teenage years. They had good taste. Literally.

Cross Keys Battlefield

  After lunch, it was time to make our way to the final stop of the day, which would be the New Market Battlefield. This was just north of Harrisonburg, VA. Before going on this course, I had talked plenty with my Pop-Pop about this places I would be visiting. As he is a VMI graduate, New Market was a soft place in his heart. These are hallowed grounds for VMI Cadets and Alumni. The Battle of New Market involved many college cadets from VMI, some of which were just 15 to 17 years of age. Cadets younger than me putting their life on the line for their beliefs. That was a tremendously courageous act. So it was very amazing to be experiencing this special place, to be able to connect not only to the battlefield, but to my close grandfather as well. The exhibit and museum at the New Market Battlefield had some interesting things to see and learn about. We were able to watch a video on the battle and learn about the town that the battle thrust itself upon. I feel as though now that I am older, being able to come to places like this give me so much more insight into the way our country was built, and the things that generations before me experienced. I love it.

New Market Battlefield Museum

  After we went around the battlefield for a little bit, we walked to the farm that was directly in the middle of the battle. A beautiful home and property was the place where over a thousand people died. My professor talked about how the day before they were having tea in the dining room, and 24 hours later their dining room was turned into a hospital. I can't even imagine the thoughts and horrors that this family and children even experienced that day. We made our way to the museum store, (of course), as the park was about to close. We have the morning tomorrow to finish seeing the rest of New Market so we weren't in any rush. I ended up finding a New Market patch to start a collection of the places I visit when I'm out exploring the world. It's pretty cool, but that's about the most "touristy" that I was. I'm very excited to be able to learn even more about this battlefield in the morning, but it's time to take a break. Our hotel is just about a 5 minute walk from the battlefield. I can see this being a good thing and a bad thing. I don't know how much sleep I'll be able to get knowing that there were over a thousand people who died within walking distance. Three Civil War sites in one day are a lot to take in though. Especially when my professor is trying to have my head full of lecture notes to begin with. -Rocky

Bushong House at New Market