The less than 3-hour drive from Delaware to Fredericksburg, VA was uneventful and we had time to walk around the town a bit before lunch. Four civil war battles (Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Spotsylvania Courthouse, and the Wilderness) were fought within 17 miles of Fredericksburg so the people of Fredericksburg probably suffered more than any other area throughout the war. We determined very quickly that there was no way we could see even a small percentage of the sites in the limited time we had so decided to return to Fredericksburg on our return trip. So we headed for the NPS Park Hdqrs., which is housed in the Chatham Mansion on the heights across the river. The Mansion was used by the Union army as a command post before the Battle of Fredericksburg and as a hospital thereafter. Both Clara Barton and Walt Whitman helped with the wounded. Another 3 hour drive and we were in Durham, N.C. for the night.
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Harry Forsdick &
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