SVBF to Make Major Battlefield Preservation Announcement

Project Lies within Cedar Creek and Belle Grove National Historical Park
For immediate release—June 25, 2008
Contact:            Howard Kittell/SVBF: 540-740-4545
                        Elizabeth Stern/SVBF: 540-740-4545

NEW MARKET, Va.—On July 1, 2008, the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation will be joined by representatives from the National Park Service and the Commonwealth of Virginia to make a significant battlefield preservation announcement at the Cedar Creek battlefield in Warren County. The newly protected land lies within the boundary of Cedar Creek and Belle Grove National Historical Park and inside the core area of the Battle of Cedar Creek.

WHAT:      Press conference to announce preservation of a portion of the Cedar Creek battlefield

WHEN:      Tuesday, July 1 – 11:00am

WHERE:     US Route 11, just north of Cedar Creek
                     I-81 exit 298, travel north on US Route 11, cross Cedar Creek, turn left into median just north of Cedar Creek and SVBF staff will direct you to the news conference location.

                     RAIN LOCATION:  Wayside Inn
                                                 7783 Main Street, Middletown
                          (In case of inclement weather, check the news area at

                           www.ShenandoahAtWar.org or call 540-327-7097.)

WHO:            Irvin Hess, MD, SVBF Chairman
                     Howard J. Kittell, SVBF Executive Director
                     Diann Jacox, Superintendent, Cedar Creek and Belle Grove National Historical Park
                     Kathleen S. Kilpatrick, Director, Virginia Department of Historic Resources

BACKGROUND:
§         The Battle of Cedar Creek (19 October 1864) was one of the largest fought in the Shenandoah Valley—encompassing ten square miles of landscape and engaging 47,000 Americans. The battlefield is one of only 45 sites determined by the National Park Service as having had a decisive influence on a campaign and a direct impact on the course of the war.
§         The Shenandoah Valley Battlefields National Historic District was created by Congress in 1996 to help protect ten Civil War battlefields in the Valley, including Cedar Creek. The Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation, manager of the eight-county District, has already protected more than 303 acres at Cedar Creek in the last six years. Partner organizations have protected an additional 855 acres at this battlefield.
§         The Cedar Creek and Belle Grove National Historical Park was established by Congress in 2002 to help preserve the battlefield landscape at Cedar Creek as well as other historic and natural resources. Creation of the park was a key recommendation in the National Historic District’s Management Plan, approved by the Secretary of the Interior in 2000.
§         Additional partners made this project possible, including the District’s congressional delegation, the National Park Service, the Virginia Department of Historic Resources, the Virginia Land Conservation Foundation, and the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation. Details will be announced at the press conference.

ON THE WEB:

Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation and the
Shenandoah Valley Battlefields National Historic District:
www.ShenandoahAtWar.org

Cedar Creek and Belle Grove National Historical Park:
            www.nps.gov/cebe

National Park Service 1992 study of the Shenandoah Valley’s Civil War battlefields:
www.cr.nps.gov/hps/abpp/shenandoah/svs0-1.html
The Battle of Cedar Creek: http://www.cr.nps.gov/hps/abpp/shenandoah/svs3-15.html

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