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Cosner, Silver aid Civil War nonprofit
May 6, 2007 12:35 am
By RUSTY DENNEN
The Silver Cos. and a Spotsylvania County busi-nessman have stepped forward to help preserve significant Civil War sites here.
The donations of land and money were announced yesterday at the Central Virginia Battlefields Trust's annual meeting at Slaughter Pen Farm.
The Silver Cos. donated 6 acres to the trust in July 2001, on the Wilderness Battlefield adjacent to National Park Service property along State Route 20 in Orange County.
The site is known as Grant's Knoll and is where Union Gen. Ulysses S. Grant had his headquarters in May 1864, in the opening engagement of what became known as the Overland Campaign. This was Grant's first encounter with Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee.
According to the trust, the Silver Cos. is preparing a deed to donate an additional 6 acres. This tract is also along Route 20, adjacent to the Sheetz store at the intersection with State Route 3.
Erik Nelson, secretary of the trust, said, "This new acreage is prime road frontage and preserves not only historic ground, but the natural ambience of this gateway to the battlefield."
The land also has Revolutionary War connections. The Marquis de Lafayette marched through the area in June 1781 with a division of Continental Army soldiers, Nelson said.
Dr. Mike Stevens, president of the trust, said Silver has made significant contributions to preservation efforts here.
"They are to be commended and we deeply appreciate it," he said. "This is the gateway to Ellwood and the Wilderness battlefield. That 12 acres is going to be terrific."
Ellwood is a historic mansion on National Park Service land where Confederate Gen. Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson's arm is buried, and where the Union army briefly headquartered in May 1864.
In a separate gift, Stevens announced that Spotsylvania businessman Hugh Cosner donated $100,000 toward the purchase of Slaughter Pen Farm.
That's a significant boost for the trust, which pledged $1 million to help the national Civil War Preservation Trust buy the property.
Last year the Washington-based CWPT agreed to buy the 208 acres off Tidewater Trail for $12 million--the highest price ever paid for a tract of Civil War land.
The acreage is considered a key part of the southern end of the 1862 Battle of Fredericksburg. The land earned the name "Slaughter Pen" after the bloody battle.
Stevens called the gift by Cosner, a former county supervisor, "just another example of Mr. Cosner's love for this community and for this land, which is such an important part of the community's history and heritage."
Rusty Dennen: 540/374-5431
Email: rdennen@freelancestar.com
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Copyright 2007 The Free Lance-Star Publishing Company.
May 6, 2007 12:35 am
By RUSTY DENNEN
The Silver Cos. and a Spotsylvania County busi-nessman have stepped forward to help preserve significant Civil War sites here.
The donations of land and money were announced yesterday at the Central Virginia Battlefields Trust's annual meeting at Slaughter Pen Farm.
The Silver Cos. donated 6 acres to the trust in July 2001, on the Wilderness Battlefield adjacent to National Park Service property along State Route 20 in Orange County.
The site is known as Grant's Knoll and is where Union Gen. Ulysses S. Grant had his headquarters in May 1864, in the opening engagement of what became known as the Overland Campaign. This was Grant's first encounter with Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee.
According to the trust, the Silver Cos. is preparing a deed to donate an additional 6 acres. This tract is also along Route 20, adjacent to the Sheetz store at the intersection with State Route 3.
Erik Nelson, secretary of the trust, said, "This new acreage is prime road frontage and preserves not only historic ground, but the natural ambience of this gateway to the battlefield."
The land also has Revolutionary War connections. The Marquis de Lafayette marched through the area in June 1781 with a division of Continental Army soldiers, Nelson said.
Dr. Mike Stevens, president of the trust, said Silver has made significant contributions to preservation efforts here.
"They are to be commended and we deeply appreciate it," he said. "This is the gateway to Ellwood and the Wilderness battlefield. That 12 acres is going to be terrific."
Ellwood is a historic mansion on National Park Service land where Confederate Gen. Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson's arm is buried, and where the Union army briefly headquartered in May 1864.
In a separate gift, Stevens announced that Spotsylvania businessman Hugh Cosner donated $100,000 toward the purchase of Slaughter Pen Farm.
That's a significant boost for the trust, which pledged $1 million to help the national Civil War Preservation Trust buy the property.
Last year the Washington-based CWPT agreed to buy the 208 acres off Tidewater Trail for $12 million--the highest price ever paid for a tract of Civil War land.
The acreage is considered a key part of the southern end of the 1862 Battle of Fredericksburg. The land earned the name "Slaughter Pen" after the bloody battle.
Stevens called the gift by Cosner, a former county supervisor, "just another example of Mr. Cosner's love for this community and for this land, which is such an important part of the community's history and heritage."
Rusty Dennen: 540/374-5431
Email: rdennen@freelancestar.com
---------------------
Copyright 2007 The Free Lance-Star Publishing Company.