Appomattox Court House

https://www.nps.gov/apco/index.htm https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appomattox_Court_House_National_Historical_Park The Appomattox Court House is a National Historical Park of original and reconstructed 19th century buildings in Appomattox County, Virginia. The village is famous as the site of the Battle of Appomattox Court House and containing the house of Wilmer McLean, where the surrender of the Confederate army under Robert E. Lee to Union commander Ulysses S. Grant took place on April 9, 1865, effectively ending the American Civil War. On April 9, 1865, the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia in the McLean House in the village of Appomattox Court House, Virginia signaled the end of the nation's largest war. Two important questions about its future were answered. Could the nation survive a civil war intact, and would that nation exist without slavery? The answer to both was yes and a new nation was born. Appomattox Court House NHP is located 3 miles east of U.S. Highway 460, and 3 miles east of the modern town of Appomattox, Virginia along Rt. 24. Appomattox Court House Visitor Center The visitor center is located inside the reconstructed Appomattox Courthouse. It offers restroom facilities, visitor information and guidance, a 17-minute film, and exhibits focused on the history of Appomattox Court House. Guided talks and living history programs begin in the visitor center. Appomattox Court House National Historical Park is located in south central Virginia approximately 95 miles west of Richmond. The main visitor parking area is located on VA Rt. 24, 2 miles (4.8 km) northeast of the town of Appomattox, VA. The closest airport is in Lynchburg, VA, 25 miles (40.3 km) west. The McLean House This is the home where Gen. Lee surrendered to Gen. Grant on April 9, 1865 This is the home where Gen. Lee surrendered to Gen. Grant on April 9, 1865 The McLean House during the 150th Anniversary The McLean House during the 150th Anniversary with luminaries along the Stage Road. The McLean House during the 150th Anniversary with luminaries along the Stage Road. The village of Appomattox Court House Aerial view of the village of Appomattox Court House taken in 2014. Aerial view of the village of Appomattox Court House taken in 2014. Living History at Appomattox Court House NHP Living History at Appomattox Court House NHP Living History at Appomattox Court House NHP Bat Population Monitoring in Appomattox Court House National Historical Park The village of Appomattox Court House is generally known for its historical significance and not for its biological resources. Nevertheless, recent research indicates that the two most commonly detected bat species in the park are both state endangered species. Close-up of a northern long-eared bat. Youth Trail Crew Completes Project at Appomattox Court House NHP Appomattox Court House National Historical Park recently hosted a youth crew from the Appalachian Conservation Corps who provided improvements to the park trails. The two-part project included installing steps on a 30-feet long slope and building a 250-feet long puncheon (planked walkway) over a seasonally wet section of trail. Appomattox Court House NHP Hosts 6th Annual Joel Sweeney and the Banjo Festival Appomattox Court House NHP presented the 6th Annual Joel Sweeney and the Banjo Festival at the park on Saturday, September 7, 2019. Designing the Parks: Learning in Action The Designing the Parks program is not your typical internship. Each year since 2013, this program at the Olmsted Center for Landscape Preservation has introduced a cohort of college students and recent graduates to NPS design and planning professions through projects related to cultural landscape stewardship. In the internships, made possible by partner organizations, participants focus on an in-depth project that directly engages with a national park unit. A group of young people stand on forest trail and listen to two maintenance employees Emancipation and the Quest for Freedom Although the abolition of slavery emerged as a dominant objective of the Union war effort, most Northerners embraced abolition as a practical measure rather than a moral cause. The war resolved legally and constitutionally the single most important moral question that afflicted the nascent republic, an issue that prevented the country from coalescing around a shared vision of freedom, equality, morality, and nationhood. Slave family seated in front of their house NPS Geodiversity Atlas— Appomattox Court House National Historical Park, Virginia Each park-specific page in the NPS Geodiversity Atlas provides basic information on the significant geologic features and processes occurring in the park. Links to products from Baseline Geologic and Soil Resources Inventories provide access to maps and reports. wayside interpretive sign at park 2015 Freeman Tilden Award Recipients Meet the recipients of the 2015 Freeman Tilden Awards, the highest National Park Service honor for interpretation, and learn more about their exciting programs. Ernie Price The Military Experience The course of the war was the cumulative result of political, economic, and social policies that affected (and were affected by) military operations and battles waged across a front spanning 2,000 miles. The battles and campaigns of 1861-65 ultimately demonstrated that the simple application of massive military force, even with innovations in technologies and tactics, was insufficient to resolve a conflict between two sections mobilized against one another politically, socia Engraving of soldier warming himself by a fire Photo of U.S. Sanitary Commission office. Appomattox Court House National Historical Park Commemorates the 152nd Anniversary Nearly 5,000 visitors participated in the six-day anniversary event from Friday, April 7 through Wednesday, April 12. This year’s program schedule followed exactly the events 152 years ago, as April 9 fell on Palm Sunday for the seventh time since 1865. Visitors participated in 37 ranger and VIP led programs, parole printing demonstrations, black powder demonstrations, and the stacking of arms throughout the weekend. A two story historic home with a white picket fence and Luminaries in the front yard at night. The Civilian Experience in the Civil War After being mere spectators at the war's early battles, civilians both near and far from the battlefields became unwilling participants and victims of the war as its toll of blood and treasure grew year after year. In response to the hardships imposed upon their fellow citizens by the war, civilians on both sides mobilized to provide comfort, encouragement, and material, and began to expect that their government should do the same. Painting of civilians under fire during the Siege of Vicksburg Appomattox Court House Cultural Landscape The Appomattox Court House Landscape is the site of General Lee's 1865 surrender to General Grant, beginning the return to peace following the Civil War. The rural landscape is also significant in areas of architecture and conservation. A flat dirt road, bordered by wooden fencing, approaches the two-story red brick courthouse. 2020 Weather In Review: Appomattox Court House National Historical Park The year 2020 was the wettest year ever recorded at Appomattox Court House National Historical Park. In terms of temperature, it was also very warm - it was the 4th warmest year on record (since 1895). A view of the Peers house across a green field with storm clouds in the distance. Abraham Lincoln: The War Years 1861-1865 No president up to that point in American history was called on to be commander-in-chief like Abraham Lincoln. From monitoring the War Department telegraph office to selecting of commanding generals and developing military strategy, Lincoln guided the nation through its darkest hour. Abraham Lincoln and General George McClellan following the Battle of Antietam The Civil War in American Memory America's cultural memories of the Civil War are inseparably intertwined with that most "peculiar institution" of American history - racial slavery. But in the struggle over Civil War memory which began as soon as the war was over and continues to this day, rival cultural memories of reconciliation and white supremacy have often prevailed. Therein lies the challenge as the National Park Service - a public agency - seeks to "provide understanding" of the Civil War era's lasting impact upon the development of our nation. Elderly Union and Confederate veterans shake hands at the fiftieth anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg National Park Getaway: Appomatox Court House National Historical Park Just a two-hour drive west from Richmond, Virginia, Appomattox Court House is the site where Robert E. Lee surrendered Confederate forces to the Federal command of Ulysses S. Grant. The surrender, on April 9, 1865, ushered in the final days of the American Civil War as well as the first, halting footsteps of the journey toward citizenship for former slaves. sun setting behind a small building surrounded by a white picket fence Herbert Hoover's National Parks Herbert Hoover is not thought of as one of our better presidents, but he made lasting contributions in the national parks he established. During Herbert Hoover's presidency from 1929 to 1933, the land designated for new national parks and monuments increased by 40 percent. Sepia photo of Herbert Hoover standing at the rim of the Grand Canyon. National Park Service Commemoration of the 19th Amendment In commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the passing of the 19th Amendment the National Park Service has developed a number of special programs. This includes online content, exhibits, and special events. The National Park Service’s Cultural Resources Geographic Information Systems (CRGIS) announces the release of a story map that highlights some of these programs and provides information for the public to locate and participate. Opening slide of the 19th Amendment NPS Commemoration Story Map About Appomattox Court House Get started by learning the history of Appomattox Court House, including the village and its residents, the Civil War battle, and the significance of the Confederate Army's surrender to the town, African Americans and the nation. Map of area around Coleman House Introduction Welcome to After Appomattox! Find background information about this online activity, including the essential question, objectives, audience, and more. Untold Stories: Hannah Reynolds Learn about Hannah Reynolds. Reenactor of Hannah Reynolds Untold Stories: Margaret Abbitt Learn about Margaret Abbitt. 1870 census record Continuity and Change Archeologists excavating near Hannah Reynolds' and Margaret Abbitt's cabin found artifacts. Use your powers of observation to learn about their everyday lives from the artifacts. Pamplin pipe Series: After Appomattox: Artifacts of Slavery and Freedom On April 9, 1865, General Robert E. Lee surrendered to General Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House in Virginia, ending the Civil War. Use this online activity to learn about the historical events and their impacts at this small village, especially for enslaved African Americans. It draws from historical and archeological evidence to tell the story of two women, Hannah Reynolds and Margaret Abbitt, who were enslaved at Appomattox Court House before the war and emancipated by its end. Reenactor as Hannag Series: National Park Service Geodiversity Atlas The servicewide Geodiversity Atlas provides information on <a href="https://www.nps.gov/subjects/geology/geoheritage-conservation.htm">geoheritage</a> and <a href="https://www.nps.gov/subjects/geology/geodiversity.htm">geodiversity</a> resources and values all across the National Park System to support science-based management and education. The <a href="https://www.nps.gov/orgs/1088/index.htm">NPS Geologic Resources Division</a> and many parks work with National and International <a href="https://www.nps.gov/subjects/geology/park-geology.htm">geoconservation</a> communities to ensure that NPS abiotic resources are managed using the highest standards and best practices available. park scene mountains An introduction to the benthic macroinvertebrate community at Appomattox Court House National Historical Park Benthic macroinvertebrates are an important part of stream ecosystems in Appomattox Court House National Historical Park. NPS scientists are studying these organisms in order to better understand and protect park natural resources. NPS staff collecting macroinvertebrates with nets in a stream Grant at Appomattox Court House On April 9th, General Grant and his mud-splattered staff arrived at Appomattox Court House. They were in stark contrast to General Lee in his new uniform. In a fine brick home, the two men discussed the surrender terms. Lee’s surrender was the symbolic end of the Civil War. Grant and Lee shaking hands at Appomatox courthouse. Series: The Odyssey of Ulysses An unknown 2nd Lieutenant in the U.S.-Mexican War later resigns the army. He rejoins and goes on to become lieutenant general of all Union armies. In his first term as President of the United States, he establishes Yellowstone National Park. From his first battle to his family home to his final resting place — the saga of Ulysses S. Grant is preserved in your National Parks. Color lithograph of Grant at the capture of the city of Mexico. 2021 Weather In Review: Appomattox Court House National Historical Park In all, 2021 was much drier and warmer than average at Appomattox Court House National Historical Park. Appomattox Court House Resilient Forests Initiative - Managing Invasive Plants & Pests Park forests are threatened by invasive plants and pests. Strategically tackling invasive plants to protect park’s highest priority natural resources and planning around forest pests and pathogens are important actions in managing resilient forests. Forest Regeneration I&M Networks Support Resilient Forest Management NPS Inventory and Monitoring Networks have been tracking forest health in eastern national parks since 2006. This monitoring information can guide resilient forest management and support parks in adapting to changing conditions through the actions described below. Forest health monitoring Series: Managing Resilient Forests Initiative for Eastern National Parks Forests in the northeastern U.S. are in peril. Over-abundant deer, invasive plants, and insect pests are impacting park forests, threatening to degrade the scenic vistas and forested landscapes that parks are renowned for. With regional collaboration, parks can manage these impacts and help forests be resilient. This article series explores tools available to park managers to achieve their goals. Healthy forests have many native seedlings and saplings. Judy Forte As a child growing up in the South during the 1950s and 1960s, Judy Forte’s life was heavily influenced by the US civil rights movement. She was only 11 years old when Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated. Four decades later she became the first African American woman superintendent at Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historical Park—and she's not done yet. Close up of Judy Forte wearing her NPS ranger flat hat. Managing Resilient Forests. A Regional Initiative Forests cover tens of thousands of acres in eastern national parks and these critical resources face a range of interacting stressors: over-abundant white-tailed deer populations, invasive plant dominance, novel pests and pathogens, among other threats. The Resilient Forests Initiative will help parks address these issue collectively. Forest health monitoring 2022 Weather in Review: Appomattox Court House National Historical Park In all, 2022 was warmer than average but had near-normal total precipitation at Appomattox Court House National Historical Park. Appomattox Court House 2022 Freeman Tilden Award Recipients View regional recipients of the National Park Service Freeman Tilden Award, which recognizes outstanding contributions to the practice of interpretation and education by a NPS employee. Two women work with a tree while a young man records audio.



Appomattox Court House National Park Service thet h Interior O u r m e n m u s t p r e v a i l i n c o m b a t , o r l o s e t h e i r p r o p e r t y , c o u n t r y , f r e e d o m , U.S. e v eDepartment r y t h i n g …of On e other h a n d t he en em y, i n yi e l d i ng t h e c on t e s t , m a y r e t i r e i n t o t h ei r ow n c o un t r y, a n d p os s e s s e v e r yt h i ng House t h e y e n j o y e d b e f o r e t h e w a r b e g a n . ” – C l e r k J o h n J o n e s , C o n f e d e r aAppomattox t e W a r D eCourt partm ent. National Historical Park All images Library of Congress Why Confederate Soldiers Fought Confederate soldiers were primarily volunteers who enlisted for a variety of reasons. A crucial motivator for many Southern soldiers was the defense of home and family against the invading Northern armies, often characterized as “Vandals” or “Hessians.” Additionally, whether their families owned slaves or not, many believed that two fundamental aspects of Southern society, white liberty and black slavery, were under threat by a Federal government dominated by the North. Finally, a sense of personal honor and duty to their comrades, families, and communities, and to the new Confederacy, eventually propelled more than 800,000 men to enlist and persevere through four long years of Civil War; nearly 260,000 would not survive. Home and Family “If I am killed tomorrow, it will be for Virginia, the land of my fathers, and not for the damned secession momvement.” “Let me liberate my home from the varlet’s tread, and then my country shall be freed from the fiendish vandals.” – – Major Charles Minor Blackford, 2nd Private James W. Smith, 37th Mississippi Infantry. Virginia Cavalry. “Our homes our firesides our land and negroes and even the virtue of our fair ones is at stake.” – Lieutenant W. R. Redding, 13th Georgia Infantry Lib. of Congress “If I fall it will be in a good Cause in the defence of my country defending my home and fireside.” – Private Andrew J. White, 30th Georgia Infantry “When a Southron’s home is threatened, the spirit of resistance is irrepressible. [We are] fighting for our firesides and property [to defend our homes from] vandal enemies and drive them from the soil polluted by their footsteps . . .. I am determined to dispute every inch of soil with the Hessians e’er they shall invade the sunny South.” - Corporal Southern woman holds soldier’s image George Knox Miller, Bowie’s Company, Alabama Cavalry Liberty “I feel that I am fighting for your liberty and the liberty and privileges of my little children.” – Private J.V. Fuller, 2nd Mississippi Infantry “[I went to war so that] we may be permitted to have our own form of government and our own social institutions and regulate our own domestic affairs.” – Private Richard Henry Watkins, 3rd Virginia Cavalry The Bonnie Blue Flag, an early symbol of secession. Lib. of Congress th Soldier in the 11 Va. Infantry “[I am willing to suffer] any and every hardship, rather than submit to Abolitionists who are invading our soil seeking to destroy that which our fore fathers gained for us ‘liberty.’” – Lieutenant Robert G. Haile, 55th Virginia Infantry “Our men must prevail in combat, or lose their property, country, freedom, everything…On the other Our men must prevail in combat, hand the enemy, in yielding the or lose their contest, may property, retire intocountry, their own freedom,and everything…On the country, possess everything other hand the enemy, in yielding they enjoyed before the war the contest, may retire into their began.” – Clerk John Jones, own country, and possess Confederate War Department everything they enjoyed before the war began.” – Clerk John “Without slavery, there would not have been at the time any reason for the breakup [of] the old government, with it, there was an eternal strife dispute and quarrel between the North and South.” – Lieutenant William E. Smith, 4th Georgia Slavery “[I vow] to fight forever, rather than submit to freeing negroes among us…. We are fighting for rights and property bequethed to us by our ancestors.” – Captain Elias Davis, 8th Alabama Infantry Infantry “The Emancipation Proclamation is worth three-hundred thousand soldiers to our Government at least. It shows exactly what this war was brought about for and the intention of its damndable authors.” – “This country without slave labor would be completely worthless. We can only live and exist by that species of labor; and hence I am willing to fight to the last.” – Lieutenant William Nugent, 28th Mississippi Infantry Sergeant Henry L. Stone, Kentucky Cavalry “The vandals of the North are determined to destroy slavery…. We must all fight, and I choose to fight for southern rights and southern liberty” – Private Lunsford Yandell, Jr., Kentucky Cavalry NPS Slavery was the backbone of the Southern economy. Honor and Duty “If THEY could not endure a tax on tea because it violated a sacred principle, how co

Appomattox Court House National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior Appomattox Court House National Historical Park Why Federal Soldiers Fought All images Library of Congress The majority of Northern soldiers, like their Southern counterparts, were volunteers rather than draftees and fought for many different reasons. For most, the preservation of the Union against secession was of primary importance. Many Northerners, including recent immigrants, believed that the breakup of the United States would mean the end of American liberty, independence and prosperity. In addition, the firing on Fort Sumter by Southern “Rebels” filled many in the North with patriotic rage. Although emancipation of slaves was not an initial cause for most Federal soldiers, direct contact with the institution of slavery and Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation eventually swayed many to the side of abolition. The cause of emancipation also induced more than 180,000 African-Americans to join the fight. Finally, a sense of duty to their country, their families and their comrades, as well as a wish to see the thing through, figured prominently in why many Federal soldiers volunteered and persevered through four years of war. Of the roughly two million who served, more than 360,000 did not survive. The Union “If the Unionists let the South secede, the West might want to separate next Presidential election…others might want to follow and this country would be as bad as the German states…There would have to be another form of constitution wrote and after it was rd written who would obey it?” – Private Titus Crenshaw (English immigrant), 3 New Jersey Infantry. “My grandfather fought and risked his life to bequeath to his posterity…the glorious Institutions [now threatened by] this infernal rebellion…it is not for you and I, or us and our dear little ones, alone, that I was and am willing to risk the fortunes of the battle-field, but also for the sake of the country’s millions who are to come after us.” st – Corporal Josiah Chaney, 1 Minnesota Infantry. Library of Congress Unidentified New York Soldier “I am fighting for the cause of the constitution and the law…Admit the right of the seceding states to break up the Union at pleasure…and how long will it be before the new confederacies created by the first disruption shall be resolved into still smaller fragments and the continent become a vast theater of civil war, military license, anarchy, and despotism? Better settle it at whatever cost and settle it forever.” – Private Samuel Evans, 70th Ohio Infantry. 34-Star United States Flag (1861-1863) “This is my country as much as the man who was born on the soil. I have as much interest in the maintainence of the integrity of the nation as any other man…This is the first test of a modern free government in the act of sustaining itself against internal enemys…if it fail tyrants will succeed…the old cry will be sent forth from the aristocrats of europe that such is the common lot of all republics…Irishmen and their descendents have a stake in [this] nation…America is Irland’s refuge, th Irland’s last hope…destroy this republic and her hopes are blasted.” – Sergeant Peter Welsh (Irish immigrant), 28 Massachusetts Infantry. Emancipation “I am no abolitionist, in fact I despise the word, [but] as long as slavery exists…there will be no permanent peace for America…Hence I am in favor of killing slavery.” – Private th Henry Henney, 55 Ohio Infantry. Library of Congress United States Colored Troop (USCT) with family. Honor and Duty “Slavery has brought death into our own households already in its wicked rebellion…There is but one way [to win the war] and that is emanicpation…I want to sing ‘John Brown’ in the streets of Charleston, and ram red-hot abolitionism down their unwilling throats at the point of the bayonet.” – Captain John W. nd Ames, 22 Massachusetts Infantry. “I believe that slavery (the worst of all curses) was the sole cause of this Rebellion, and until this cause is removed and slavery abolished, the rebellion will continue to exist.” – Private George W. Lowe, 5th Iowa Infantry. “[I am now] sick and tired [of the war because] it really seems to me, that we are not fighting for our country, but for the st freedom of the negroes.” – 1 Lieutenant th John Babb, Jr., 5 Maryland Infantry. “We have been almost constantly on the move, marching and fighting for the good old cause – LIBERTY.” – Private Edgar th Dinsmore, 54 Massachusetts (Colored) Infantry. “It ought to be a consolation to know that you have a husband that is man enough to nd fight for his country.” – Private Samuel J. Alexander, 62 Pennsylvania Infantry. “I have been talking all my life for the cause of liberty and now the time is nigh at hand when I shall have a chance to aid by deed this cause and I shrink not from doing my th duty.” – Private James H. Leonard, 5 Wisconsin Infantry. Library of Congress Unidentified Federal Soldiers “I know no reas

Appomattox Court House National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior Appomattox Court House National Historical Park Nat. Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institute Slavery as a Cause of the Civil War In the time between the election of Abraham Lincoln as the first Republican president and the firing on Fort Sumter, Southerners voiced their beliefs as what they saw as the immediate cause of Southern secession and the formation of the Confederacy. Lincoln reassured Southerners that he did not advocate the abolition of slavery but many Southern leaders saw something different in the Republican Party Platform of 1860. Republican Party Platform: Eighth Plank Nat. Portrait Gallery “That the normal condition of all the territory of the United States is that of freedom; That as our Republican fathers, when they had abolished Slavery in all our national territory, ordained that ‘no person should be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law,’ it becomes our duty, by legislation, whenever such legislation is necessary, to maintain this provision of the Constitution against all attempts to violate it; and we deny the authority of congress, of a territorial legislature, or of any individuals, to give legal existence to Slavery in any Territory of the United States.” 1860 candidates Lincoln and Hamlin Southern Reactions to Republican Platform “Is there a cause for this discontent? The question tendered to the people of the South is well expressed in the language of the President elect - that this agitation must go on until the northern mind shall rest in the belief that slavery is put in the condition of ultimate extinction.” John H. Reagan (Tex.) - helped draft the Confederate Constitution “The triumph of the principles which Mr. Lincoln is pledged to carry out, is the deathknell of slavery.” White House Historical Assoc. Abraham Lincoln Constitutional Rights of the Southerners Rev. James Henley Thornwell (S.C.) - 1861 pamphlet “The State of the Country” “The North pledged anew her faith to yield to us our constitutional rights in relation to slave property. They are now, and have been ever since that act, denied to us, until her broken faith and impudent threats, had become almost insufferable before the late election.” William L. Harris – commissioner from Mississippi to the Georgia General Assembly, Dec. 17, 1860 “The animating principle of the [Republican] party is hostility to slavery…. Its success is a declaration of war against our property and the supremacy of the white race. The election of Lincoln is the overt act.” Jabez L. M. Curry (Ala.) - helped draft the Confederate Constitution “Unfortunately wherever you find the presence of Black Republicanism it is engaged in this work of educating the hearts of the people to hate the institution of slavery.” Howell Cobb (Ga.) - chaired the Montgomery Convention “That negro slavery, as it exists in fifteen States of this Union, composes an important portion of their domestic institutions, inherited from their ancestors, and existing at the adoption of the Constitution, by which it is recognized and constituting an important element of the apportionment of powers among the States . . .. “ Jefferson Davis (Miss.) President Confederate States of America Library of Congress John Goode, Jr. “And when we of the South have begged of the people of the North for peace… they have replied … that there can be no peace so long as we claim the right to hold property in slaves. There, sir, is the foundation of the whole difficulty.” John Goode, Jr. - delegate to the Virginia Secession Convention Secession “Our position is thoroughly identified with the institution of slavery – the greatest material interest in the world.” “I have, senators, believed from the first that the agitation of the subject of slavery would, if not prevented by some timely and effective measure, end in disunion.” John C. Calhoun – (1850) U. S. Senator, South Carolina Mississippi Declaration of Causes of Secession, January 1861 “We have dissolved the late Union chiefly because of the negro quarrel.” Robert H. Smith (Ala.) - helped draft the Confederate Constitution rd Museum of the Confederacy First National Confederate Flag, 3 Florida Infantry Constitution of the Confederate States of America “There is one disturbing, one dangerous cause, - the angry controversy arising on the institution of African slavery, and unless this controversy can be amicably adjusted there must be a perpetual end of the Union, an everlasting separation of the North from the South.” “The greatest of all wrongs, one which in my judgment would require separation from the North if they had never otherwise injured us, is the translation of anti-slaveryism to power… now that it has become an efficient agent in the government, it is no longer safe for a slave State to remain under that government.” Richard Keith Call - territorial delegate to the U.S. Congress and as Governor o

National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior Our m en m ust pr evail in com bat, or lose their pr oper ty, countr y, fr eedom, ever ything…On t he other ha nd the enem y, in yielding the contest, may r etir e into their own countr y, and possess everything Appomattox Court House they enjoyed before the war began.” – Cler k John Jo nes, Confeder ate W ar Departm ent. National Historical Park Appomattox Court House All images Library of Congress United States Colored Troops at Appomattox During the latter half of the American Civil War more than 180,000 African-American soldiers served in the ranks of the Union Army, they were known as United States Colored Troops. Of the more than 150 units of USCT organized, seven regiments, totaling more than 5,000 soldiers, participated in the Battle of Appomattox Court House on April 9, 1865. This engagement resulted in the surrender of Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia and the beginning of the end of the Civil War. With Federal victory came not only the restoration of the Union but the realization of emancipation for more than three million formerly enslaved individuals. The Men These African-American soldiers, led by white officers, reflected the diversity of black society in America in the 1860s. Roughly one-third were Northern born free men, particularly from northeastern cities. More than ten percent were free blacks from slave states. A small percentage were foreign born, representing nearly every corner of the globe. However, more than half of the troops had escaped slavery in the Confederacy or the pro-Union border slave states. The majority of these black soldiers hailed from Kentucky, Virginia, Pennsylvania and Maryland and were overwhelmingly young men; eighty percent were under 30. Their occupations included farmers, laborers, sailors, barbers and waiters. Together, they represented the most diverse group of soldiers found during the war. Ron Rittenhouse Collection Sgt. John Peck of Pa., 8 U.S. Colored Infantry Lib. of Congress th Unidentified Former Slave Enlistment and Organization Lib. of Congress Unidentified Artillery Soldier The vast majority of these men were volunteers, but roughly ten percent were drafted into Federal service and nearly one in three enlisted as a substitute for a white draftee. The seven regiments at Appomattox on April 9th (8th, 29th, 31st, 41st, 45th, 116th, and 127th U.S. Colored Infantry) contained a variety of combat experience. The 8th was organized in Philadelphia in 1863 and fought their bloodiest battle at Olustee, Florida. The 29th and 31st, formed in early 1864 in Illinois and New York, both suffered heavily at the Battle of the Crater near Petersburg. The 116th was recruited almost entirely from newly freed slaves in Kentucky while the remaining three units were all organized at Camp William Penn in Philadelphia. These latter regiments, raised in the summer and fall of 1864, had seen little combat during their time in the siege-lines outside of Petersburg and Richmond. Lib. of Congress 1863 Lithograph by H. L. Stephens The Appomattox Campaign Civil War Gazette In early April 1865, the 2nd Division of the all black 25th Corps participated in General Ulysses S. Grant’s final attacks on Petersburg. Although the division did not see any serious fighting, they were some of the first Federal troops to march into Petersburg on the morning of April 3. While Lee's army retreated and Grant's followed, the USCT marched along the South Side Railroad. On April 7 near Farmville, the two brigades commanded by Colonels Ulysses Doubleday and William Woodward were attached to the white troops of the 24th Corps. As Lee's forces fled westward on April 8, the USCT and the remainder of the Army of the James moved parallel to the south in an attempt to cut off the Confederate retreat. After marching thirty miles in less than twenty hours, the troops reached the vicinity of Appomattox Station around 1:30 a.m. on April 9. th The 25 Corps Headquarters Flag contains the corps badge insignia “The men, though short of rations, and almost always worn out with fatigue, moved on without a murmor, as long as there was an enemy to follow." - Lieutenant Colonel James Givin, 127 th U.S. Colored Infantry “In an experience of more than three years I never witnessed greater powers of endurance. There was no straggling, and the men were constantly in the best of spirits." - Surgeon C.P. th Heichold, 25 Corps Battle of Appomattox Court House Before 8:00 a.m. on April 9, Confederate troops attacked the Federal cavalry roadblock just west of Appomattox Court House. Lee's final attempt to escape was initially successful, until the Army of the James arrived. Advancing to the left of the developing battle line, Doubleday's Brigade (8th, 41st, and 45th, minus the 127th left to guard supply wagons) drove back a force of Confederate cavalry. Meanwhile, Woodward's Brigade (29th, 31st, and 116th) moved forward a