SURVEY OF CIVIL WAR BATTLEFIELDS FOR THE I-66 CORRIDOR IMPROVEMENTS TIER 2 ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT FAIRFAX AND PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTIES, VIRGINIA VDOT Project No. 0066-96A-297; UPC 105500 MANAGEMENT SUMMARY Prepared by Stephanie A.T. Jacobe, Ph.D. and Kerry S. González Dovetail Cultural Resource Group April 2015 On behalf of the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) and VDOT’s consultant, Parsons Transportation Group, Inc. (Parsons), Dovetail Cultural Resource Group (Dovetail), conducted an assessment of the Civil War battlefields identified within the proposed Interstate 66 (I- 66) study corridor in Prince William and Fairfax Counties, Virginia. The project involves improving I-66 from its interchange with U.S. Route 15 in Prince William County to Interstate 495 (I-495) in Fairfax County (Figure 1). VDOT, in cooperation with the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), is preparing a Tier 2 Environmental Assessment in compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act. VDOT and FHWA completed a Tier 1 Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) in November 2013 for the I-66 corridor from U.S. Route 15 to I-495. FHWA issued a Record of Decision (ROD) on November 20, 2013 concurrently with publication of the Tier 1 FEIS. VDOT, in consultation with FHWA, has determined to move forward with Tier 2 studies for widening existing I-66 to result in two express lanes and three general purpose lanes in each direction from U.S. Route 15 to I-495, a total distance of approximately 25 miles (40.2 km). The project is an undertaking subject to Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended (36 CFR 800). This management summary presents the findings of the Civil War battlefield assessment. Results of the Dovetail archaeological and architectural surveys on this project are detailed in separate management summaries. The purpose of the survey was to identify, within the Area of Potential Effects (APE), the boundaries of all Civil War battlefields and locate any previously undocumented battlefield features. The APE for direct and indirect effects is defined as being 500 feet (152.4 m) on either side of the VDOT right-of-way (ROW). 1 Figure 1: Overview of the Project Area (USDA 2001). 2 In January 2013, as part of the Tier 1 EIS, Dovetail completed an Architectural Assessment for the I-66 and VRE Extension Study Corridors, which comprised a similar study area in Prince William and Fairfax Counties (Dovetail 2013). Four battlefields, Chantilly (029-0162), First Manassas (076-5335), Second Manassas/Brawner’s Farm (076-5190), and Manassas Station Operations (076-5036) were located within the 500-foot (152.4-m) direct study buffer that was defined in that report. The report also identified the Manassas Battlefield Historic District and Expansion, which is listed on the National Register Historic Places (NRHP). The Manassas Battlefield Historic District encompasses much of the federally-owned land included within the American Battlefield Protection Program’s designated Study Areas of the battles of First Manassas and Second Manassas/Brawner’s Farm, as well as portions of privately-owned land located adjacent to the federally-owned land. Project Methodology The 2002 Civil War Battlefield Preservation Act directed the Secretary of the Interior through the American Battlefield Protection Program (ABPP) to update the 1992 Civil War Sites Advisory Commission Report on the Nation’s Civil War Battlefields (CWSAC). The update was required to address preservation activities at each battlefield since 1993 as well as changes in conditions and other relevant developments. As part of the update, the ABPP created a four- tiered system that included such factors as historic significance, current condition, and level of threat to determine preservation priorities among the battlefields. Draft reports for the updates are being released state-by-state on an ongoing basis. The report for Virginia’s 122 battlefields was released in July 2009 (ABPP 2009). The battlefield Study Areas described in the July 2009 report were used to re-assess which battlefields were located within the project APE. In addition changes that have been made to individual Study Areas since their release in 2009 including those made to the Study Area of the First Battle of Manassas in 2014 have also been taken into account. Since the release of the CWSAC report in 1993, the National Park Service (NPS) has enhanced its battlefield survey techniques to include research, working with site stewards, identifying and documenting lines of approach and withdrawal used by opposing forces, and applying the concepts of military terrain analysis to all battlefield landscapes (ABPP 2009). Each battlefield in the APE was assessed based on the Potential National Register (PotNR) boundaries as defined by the ABPP in their 2009 report. Only those areas of the ABPP-defined battlefields that have PotNR boundaries that fall within or partially fall within the project APE were assessed as part of the current survey. It is important to note that there was a large Civil War encampment at Centreville near State Route 28 that stretched west to the Fairfax-Prince William County border but because it is not an ABPP-defined battlefield, it and its remaining features will be assessed in the archaeology report for this project. Sections of the Study Areas of each identified battlefield located within the APE were visually inspected through a vehicular and pedestrian reconnaissance survey. Pedestrian reconnaissance survey was undertaken in PotNR areas to identify previously unrecorded battlefield features. Once identified, each potential resource was evaluated for its historic and physical integrity. The resources were documented through digital photographs, mapped using GPS, and keyed to project mapping. 3 In addition to the vehicular and pedestrian reconnaissance survey, a metal detector survey was performed as part of the archaeological survey for the project to aid in the potential identification of Civil War deposits. The archaeological survey examined selected portions of the project area. Previously surveyed areas were not resurveyed unless the previous survey did not meet the current DHR standards. In addition a metal detector survey was performed in all areas within ABPP-defined battlefield Study Areas that did not previously include metal detecting. These areas are defined as numbered survey areas on detailed figures accompanying this Management Summary. Metal detecting was conducted along transects spaced at 25-foot (7.6-meter) intervals across the entire archaeological APE. The archaeological APE is defined as being 100 feet (30.48 m) beyond the existing VDOT ROW. All testable areas within battlefield study areas except those that fall within federally-owned land of the Manassas National Battlefield Park were subjected to a thorough examination. Metal detecting was performed using Whites 9500 pro/psi and Tesoro Cibola metal detectors and was conducted in a zig-zag pattern along transects to ensure maximum coverage. Positive contacts were identified with pin flags. The locations of the pin flags were excavated to determine if the contact was positive for historic ferrous and/or non- ferrous metal artifacts. The location of historic artifacts discovered during the metal detecting were mapped and collected. Fieldwork was conducted in November and December 2014 by Stephanie A.T. Jacobe, Adriana Lesiuk, and Katy Wolford. Metal detecting was conducted by Kerry S. González, D. Brad Hatch, and Kevin McCloskey. Kerri S. Barile and Mike Carmody served as Principal Investigators. Drs. Barile and Jacobe meet or exceed the Secretary of the Interior’s Professional Qualifications Standards for history and architectural history; Dr. Barile, Kerry S. González, D. Brad Hatch, and Mike Carmody meet or exceed the Secretary of the Interior’s Professional Qualifications Standards for archaeology [48 Federal Register 44739 (September 29, 1983)]. Background Research With the refining of the APE for the Tier 2 Environmental Assessment for the I-66 Improvements Project, the Study Areas of six battlefields were identified within the APE. The Study Area of a battlefield includes the furthest extent of the historical footprint of the battle. The Study Area indicates the extent to which the historic and archaeological resources associated with the battle may be found and protected. The Study Areas were delineated regardless of the present integrity of the landscape. The six battlefields identified are listed below in Table 1 and summarized briefly in the following sections. The PotNR boundary of a battlefield, as defined by the ABPP, is that portion of the Study Area that retains sufficient integrity and cohesion to convey the significance of the engagement. It does not constitute a formal determination of eligibility by the Keeper of the National Register. This boundary takes into account the guidelines established in the NPS National Register Bulletin, How to Apply National Register Criteria (Andrus 1997). 4 Table 1: Battlefields Located Within the APE. DHR No. ABPP No. Battlefield Name(s) County Status 029-0162 VA027 Chantilly Fairfax Not eligible 030-5610/ VA025 Thoroughfare Gap Prince William Not evaluated/ NR 030-1016 and Fauquier listed/ 030-5152 VA042 Buckland Mills Prince William Determined eligible and Fauquier 076-5335/ VA005 Manassas I Prince William, Determined 076-0271 Fairfax, and potentially eligible/ Loudoun NR Listed 076-5190/ VA0026 Manassas II/ Prince William Determined 076-0271 Brawner’s Farm potentially eligible/ NR Listed 076-5036 VA024 Manassas Station Prince William Determined Operations potentially eligible The Battle of Chantilly (029-0162) The Battle of Chantilly took place on September 1, 1862, two days after the Second Battle of Manassas as Stonewall Jackson hoped to cut off the Union retreat east. He sent two of his divisions against those of Union Major Generals Stevens and Kearny. The fierce battle was stopped by a massive thunderstorm, which allowed the Union to continue to retreat east. Generals Kearny and Stevens were killed in the fight. The Federals retreated beyond Fairfax Courthouse leaving Lee to invade Maryland.