SVBF to Host Symposium Looking at Fall 1864 Campaign
Event at Godfrey Miller Historic House in Winchester will signal release of booklet about Sheridan's Shenandoah Campaign
For immediate release—September 11, 2007
Contacts:
Howard J. Kittell /SVBF Executive Director (540-740-4545)
Nicholas Picerno/SVBF Trustee (540-828-5761)
WINCHESTER, Va.--On Saturday, September 29, the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation will host a symposium examining the events of Union Gen. Philip H. Sheridan’s 1864 Shenandoah Campaign. The all-day symposium will feature four nationally recognized scholars of the Civil War in the
Shenandoah Valley , Mr. Jeffry D. Wert, Dr. Brandon H. Beck, Dr. Joseph Whitehorne, and Prof. Jonathan A. Noyalas—all of whom have published books and articles on the symposium’s topic.
In the fall of 1864, Sheridan conducted a campaign to finally control, occupy, or destroy Confederate forces in western
Virginia and the ability of the civilian economy to support those forces. Beginning with the Third Battle of Winchester (19 September) and the Battle of Fisher’s Hill (22 September), Sheridan’s army drove south through the Valley through Shenandoah, Rockingham, and Augusta counties, burning mills and barns and destroying crops and livestock in what is still known in the region today as “The Burning.”
During the destruction, Confederate Gen. Jubal Early’s cavalry tangled with Union forces at Tom’s Brook (9 October) in
Shenandoah
County and were forced to retreat in what became known as the “Woodstock Races.” The campaign came to a climactic close with the massive Battle of Cedar Creek (19 October) in southern Frederick County, a battle that began with a successful Confederate surprise attack and ended with Union forces controlling the Valley for the remainder of the war.
Nicholas Picerno, Chairman of the Battlefields Foundation’s Interpretation and Education Committee stated, “
Sheridan ’s 1864 Shenandoah Campaign played a pivotal role in the reelection of Abraham Lincoln and the prosecution of the war. This symposium will examine major engagements of the campaign as presented by several of the most highly regarded historians in the field.”
Event details include:
The symposium will also mark the release of the Battlefields Foundation’s second campaign booklet, “Give the Enemy No Rest”:
Sheridan ’s 1864 Shenandoah Campaign. Each of the symposium’s speakers contributed essays to the booklet, which features discussions of the battles and events of
Sheridan ’s campaign. This includes Valley historian John Heatwole’s final essay on “The Burning.” Heatwole passed away in 2006.
“Give the Enemy No Rest” will be available for purchase and signing at the symposium. The booklet’s cost is $7.50.
The symposium will be held in Winchester, Virginia, at the historic Godfrey Miller house—a witness to
Sheridan ’s campaign—located on the city’s historic walking mall. The event will feature two lectures in the morning and two in the afternoon and will conclude with a walking tour of Civil War Winchester with Professor Noyalas.
The fee for the event is $20 and advance registration is required. Interested individuals can register by downloading the registration form from the events area of the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields.
A digital image of the cover of “Give the Enemy No Rest” is available by clicking on the link below this release.
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As authorized by the U.S. Secretary of the Interior, the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation serves as the non-profit manager of the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields National Historic District, partnering with local, regional, and national organizations and governments to preserve the Valley’s battlefields and interpret and promote the region’s Civil War story.
Created by Congress in 1996, the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields National Historic District encompasses Augusta, Clarke, Frederick, Highland, Page, Rockingham, Shenandoah, and Warren counties in Virginia and the cities of Harrisonburg, Staunton, Waynesboro, and
Winchester . The legislation authorizes federal funding for the protection of ten battlefields in the District: Second Winchester, Third Winchester, Second Kernstown, Cedar Creek, Fisher’s Hill, Tom’s Brook, New Market, Cross Keys,
Port
Republic , and McDowell.
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ON THE WEB:
Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation and
Shenandoah Valley Battlefields National Historic District:
www.ShenandoahAtWar.org
National Park Service 1992 study of the Shenandoah Valley’s Civil War battlefields:
www.cr.nps.gov/hps/abpp/shenandoah/svs0-1.html
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