Interpretive Plan for the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields National Historic District Project No. GA-2255-03-016 Prepared for the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation Prepared by John Milner Associates, Inc. and Riggs/Ward Design, PC November 2008 Interpretive Plan for the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields National Historic District Project No. GA-2255-03-016 Prepared for the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation New Market, Virginia Prepared by John Milner Associates, Inc. Architects, Landscape Architects, Archeologists, Planners West Chester, Pennsylvania with Riggs Ward Design Exhibit Designers Richmond, Virginia November 2008 The views and conclusions contained in this document are those of the authors and should not be interpreted as representing the opinions or policies of the U.S. Government. Mention of trade names or commercial products does not constitute their endorsement by the U.S. Government. Shenandoah Valley Battlefields National Historic District Interpretive Plan Table of Contents ACKNOWLEDGMENTS vii EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ix PART I: CONTEXT FOR INTERPRETATION Chapter 1 Vision, Purpose and Background 1-1 1.1 Shenandoah Valley Battlefields National Historic District 1-1 1.2 Management and Implementation Plans 1-3 1.3 Interpretive Plan Guidelines, 2001 1-3 1.4 Goals for Providing a Meaningful Interpretive Experience 1-4 1.5 Interpretive Vision and Approach 1-5 Chapter 2 Existing Interpretation in the Valley 2-1 2.1 An Overview of Existing Interpretation 2-1 2.2 Regional Attractions 2-1 2.3 Interpretive Attractions 2-2 2.4 Battlefields 2-4 2.5 Battlefield Sites 2-5 2.6 Marketing Plan Survey and Audiences 2-8 Chapter 3 Interpretive Themes 3-1 3.1 The Use of Themes in Interpretation 3-1 3.2 Primary Theme: The Shenandoah Valley – Stories of its Places and People 3-3 3.2.1 Context for War 3.2.2 The Strategic Valley 3.2.3 Civilian Experience 3.2.4 The War’s Resonance 3.3 Primary Theme: The Campaigns – Strategies and Personalities 3-5 3.3.1 Stonewall Jackson’s Valley Campaign – 1862 3.3.2 Lee’s Invasion of the North – 1863 November 2008 iii Interpretive Plan Shenandoah Valley Battlefields National Historic District 3.3.3 Sigel and Hunter Move Up the Valley – Spring 1864 3.3.4 Early’s Raid on Washington – Summer 1864 3.3.5 Sheridan’s Valley Campaign – Fall 1864 3.3.6 Nature of the Fighting 3.4 Primary Theme: The Battlefields - Parts of the Whole 3-6 3.4.1 First Kernstown – March 23, 1862 3.4.2 McDowell – May 8, 1862 3.4.3 Front Royal – May 23, 1862 3.4.4 First Winchester – May 25, 1862 3.4.5 Cross Keys – June 8, 1862 3.4.6 Port Republic – June 9, 1862 3.4.7 Second Winchester – June 13-15, 1863 3.4.8 New Market – May 15, 1864 3.4.9 Cool Spring – July 17-18, 1864 3.5.10 Second Kernstown – July 24, 1864 3.5.11 Third Winchester – September 19, 1864 3.5.12 Fisher’s Hill – September 21-22, 1864 3.4.13 Overall – September 22, 1864 3.4.14 Tom’s Brook – October 9, 1864 3.4.15 Cedar Creek – October 19, 1864 3.5 Interpretive Connections 3-9 Chapter 4 Interpretive Media 4-1 4.1 Websites 4-1 4.2 Podcasts 4-3 4.3 Published Materials 4-5 4.4 Audio Tours 4-7 4.5 Static Exhibits 4-9 4.6 Interactive Exhibits 4-12 4.7 Guide-Assisted Interpretation 4-14 PART II: PLAN FOR INTERPRETATION Chapter 5 District-Wide Interpretive Program 5-1 5.1 Valley-Wide Interpretation 5-1 5.2 Historic Roadways and Valley Towns 5-2 5.2.1 A System of Historic Byway Exhibits 5.2.2 Historic Valley Towns 5.3 Civil War Clusters and Orientation Centers 5-6 5.3.1 The Five Clusters 5.3.2 The Winchester Cluster iv November 2008 Shenandoah Valley Battlefields National Historic District Interpretive Plan 5.3.3 The Signal Knob Cluster 5.3.4 The New Market Cluster 5.3.5 The Rockingham Cluster 5.3.6 The McDowell Cluster 5.3.7 Civil War Orientation Centers 5.4 Battlefields 5-14 5.4.1 Battlefield Visitor Experience 5.4.2 Pre-Trip and Post-Trip Battlefield Information 5.4.3 Battlefield Interpretive Publications 5.4.4 Battlefield Driving Tours 5.4.5 Battlefield Walking Tours 5.4.6 Battlefield Landscapes 5.4.7 Battlefield Exhibits 5.5 Civil War Related Interpretive Sites 5-33 5.5.1 Regional Attractions 5.5.2 Local Interpretive Attractions Chapter 6 Implementation 6-1 6.1 Priorities and Phasing 6-2 6.1.1 Website and Publications 6.1.2 Historic Roadways 6.1.3 Clusters 6.1.4 Battlefield Plans 6.1.5 Civil War Related Attractions 6.2 Role of Partners 6-3 6.3 Role of the Battlefields Foundation 6-4 6.3.1 Battlefields Foundation Board of Trustees 6.3.2 Interpretation and Education Committee 6.3.3 Historical Advisors 6.3.4 Foundation Staff 6.3.5 Protection of Battlefield Resources for Interpretation Appendix A Civil War Sites in the National Historic District A-1 Appendix B Historic Roadway Routes B-1 Map of the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields National Historic District Interior of the Back Cover November 2008 v Shenandoah Valley Battlefields National Historic District Interpretive Plan Acknowledgements FUNDING Preparation of this Plan was made possible by: National Park Service - American Battlefields Protection Program Commonwealth of Virginia - Department of Historic Resources National Trust for Historic Preservation – Dr. Henry A. Jordan Fund Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation SHENANDOAH VALLEY BATTLEFIELDS FOUNDATION District-wide Interpretive Plan Committee Richard R.G. Hobson, Chairman Irvin E. Hess Nicolas P. Picerno James L. White Patricia L. Zontine Foundation Staff Howard J. Kittell, Executive Director Elizabeth Paradis Stern, Assistant Director for Policy and Communications Terence M. Heder, Program Manager for Field Services Nancy R. Long, Office Manager PROJECT CONSULTANTS John Milner Associates, Inc. Peter C. Benton, AIA, Project Planner BJ Titus, Graphic Design Sarah Jane Ruch, Mapping Riggs Ward Design Brent Ward, Principal Katie Painter, Exhibit Planner STAKEHOLDERS and PARTNERS The following individuals representing partnering organizations participated in the stakehold- er meetings or where otherwise consulted during various phases of the project. James Barnett, Kernstown Battlefield Association W. C. Bedall, Shenandoah Valley Civil War Round Table Carolyn Brackett, Heritage Tourism Program, National Trust for Historic Preservation Suzanne Chilson, Cedar Creek Battlefield Foundation Patrick Farris, Warren Heritage Society Robert Frye, Shenandoah County Historical Society Zenaida Hall, Harrisonburg Tourism & Visitor Services Scott Harris, New Market Battlefield State Historical Park Deborah Hilty, Museum of the Shenandoah Valley Dr. Warren Hofstra, Shenandoah University Bill Holt, Elkton Historical Society November 2008 vii Interpretive Plan Shenandoah Valley Battlefields National Historic District Diann Jacox, Cedar Creek and Belle Grove National Historical Park Thomas Lockhart, Scenic 340 Project Troy Marshall, New Market Battlefield State Historical Park Betty Martin, Turner Ashby Chapter, United Daughters of the Confederacy Richard Martin, Harrisonburg-Rockingham County Historical Society Elizabeth McClung, Belle Grove Plantation, Inc. Earl Meese, Plumb House Robert Moore, Page County Civil War Commission David Myers, Civil War Preservation Trust Jonathan A. Noyalas, Lord Fairfax Community College Trish Ridgeway, Old Court House Civil War Museum Steven Shenk, Valley Brethren-Mennonite Heritage Center Cissy Shull, Winchester-Frederick County Historical Society Byron Smith, Stone House Foundation Nancy Sorrells, Augusta County Historical Society Crysta Stanton, Highland Historical Society John Stevens, Fort Collier Civil War Center, Inc. Christopher J. Stubbs, Cedar Creek and Belle Grove National Historical Park Natalie Wills, Winchester-Frederick Convention & Visitors Bureau viii November 2008 Shenandoah Valley Battlefields National Historic District Interpretive Plan EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Interpretive Plan Goal This Interpretive Plan is designed to provide guidance and direction to the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation and its partners on creative and effective means to interpret and coordinate the array of Civil War sites and stories in the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields National Historic District. The Plan The Plan is divided into two parts. Part I, “Context for Interpretation,” discusses the background for the development of the Plan, reviews the existing interpretive sites and partnering organizations in the Valley, lays out the proposed themes of the Plan, and looks at the different media that could be used for interpretation. Part II, “Plan for Interpretation,” details the Plan and its implementation. The Plan also includes two appendices that review the Civil War sites and proposed designated Historic Roadways in the Valley. PART I: CONTEXT FOR INTER P RETAT I ON Chapter 1 – Vision, Purpose and Background At the time of the Civil War, the Shenandoah Valley was a major transportation route, and a region so agriculturally prosperous that it was known as the “Breadbasket of the Confederacy”. Its strategic importance made it the scene of bitter conflict – resulting in more than 300 military actions – with devastating impact upon the lives of its inhabitants. The Shenandoah Valley Battlefields National Historic District was created by Congress in 1996 to help preserve ten of the Valley’s battlefields and to create programs that would encourage the telling of the region’s Civil War stories, both military and civilian. The National Historic District encompasses an eight-county area extending from Frederick and Clarke Counties in the north to Augusta and Highland Counties in the south. The purposes of the District are to: preserve, conserve, and interpret the legacy of the Civil War in the Shenandoah Valley; to recognize and interpret important events and locations representing key battles in the Valley; to recognize and interpret the effects of the war on the civilian population of the Valley; and to create partnerships to preserve and interpret the battlefields and related sites associated with the war in the Valley.