Virginia: The Battle of New River Bridge, the Village of Newport and the Village of Appomattox Courthouse

In fall of 2017 I was invited out to Virginia to visit one of my cousins and his family. As part of my visit (since they know I love history) we visited the site of the American Civil War Battle of New River Bridge, the also nearby village of Newport, and took a drive to where the Civil War ended — Appomattox Courthouse.

Not far from where my cousin lives was the town of Radford, Virginia. Just outside of town, the Battle of New River Bridge was fought in May of 1864. Although called the New River, it is actually one of the oldest river systems in the world, coming in second to the Nile River in Egypt.

For strategic reasons, the Union decided it needed to burn the covered, wooden, railroad bridge spanning the New River. As the Federal troops approached, the outnumbered Confederates retreated across the river. An artillery battle took place for several hours while Union soldiers placed several rail cars containing hay inside of the covered bridge. During the artillery barrage, Captain Michael Egan of the 15^th West Virginia Infantry Regiment (which was on the side of the Union) swam out, climbed the piers of the bridge and set it on fire. Well over a hundred years later I photographed what was left.

Also near Blacksburg, was the village of Newport. They had a lovely covered road bridge, dating from 1916, as well as a very old, antebellum (pre-Civil War) church.

The tiny Virginia village of Appomattox Courthouse was the site of the Battle of Appomattox Courthouse and the surrender of Confederate General Robert E. Lee (Commander of the Army of Northern Virginia) to Union General Ulysses S. Grant (Commander of the Army of the Potomac).

The village started out in roughly 1819 as Clover Hill, named after its tavern. By 1845, it was determined that it would be the county seat for Appomattox County and so the Appomattox Courthouse building was constructed across the road from the Clover Hill Tavern. A jail was built behind the courthouse.

After abandoning Richmond, General Lee hoped to meet up with some of the other Confederate troops. By the time he reached Appomattox Courthouse, he encountered Union troops commanded by General Philip Sheridan instead and found himself involved in the Battle of Appomattox Courthouse.

As more Federal troops arrived, Lee found his troops seriously outnumbered and trapped with no avenue for escape or retreat, he realized he was going to have to surrender. Brigadier General Joshua Chamberlain of Maine collected the Confederate arms, but the troops were allowed to keep their horses and other possessions and go home.

We began our visit at the Old Appomattox Courthouse, which held some exhibits, and had an introductory message regarding what we would be seeing. Then we headed for the Clover Hill Tavern to listen to a reenactor talk about his experience in the battle and during the surrender. It was a really hot day and we we gathered on the front porch to catch whatever breeze there was. Back in the day, the tavern had also been a stagecoach inn.

After listening to the reenactor, we went on to explore the rest of the village. This included a few houses, a law office and a general store. The other major structure was the McLean House (and outbuildings), where the formal surrender took place.

Wilmer McLean was a wholesale grocer (who made his living during the war as a sugar broker for the Confederacy) who originally lived near Manassas, Virginia. One of the first battles of the war (the First Battle of Bull Run in 1861) took place on his farm. Afterwards, he moved to Appomattox Courthouse to escape the war only to receive a knock on his door in 1865 asking him if his home could be used for the surrender. He said afterwards that, “The war began in my front yard and ended in my front parlor.”

The McLean House had been restored back in the 1940s and furnished with as many original pieces as could be found. The parlor was recreated to appear as it did at the time of the surrender, based upon a painting. There were also a separate cookhouse and slave quarters.

I found the entire village to be fascinating to explore. There was nothing modern there. It was all historic. There was a definite feeling of “stepping back in time”. I had visited a fair amount of Virginia before — Yorktown, Jamestown, Williamsburg, Alexandria, Mount Vernon, Richmond, Monticello, and Fredericksburg — some with Colonial connections, some with American Revolution connections, some with American Civil War connections and some with links to all three eras. So much history in Virginia.

Next time – since I didn’t have the opportunity to travel in 2018, 2019 or 2020, I am beginning a series on memorable experiences while traveling. I do have a trip booked for later in 2021, so will have new adventures to report on afterwards.

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