Threats to the Battlefield

 

FoWB Rallies to Defend Battlefield

The hallowed ground on which an estimated 160,000 troops fought and sustained 29,000 casualties is currently threatened by the encroachment of a major commercial development. The massive Walmart Corporation, the world's largest retailer, intends to construct a 140,000 square foot super center at the very gateway to the battlefield. Walmart executives prize the intersection as a veritable hub of potential monetary gain.

Ironically, in early May of 1864, while evaluating this same intersection, Gen. Ulysses S. Grant recognized a similar potential for military profits. It was at this very location that the Union Army established its central command that included the headquarters of Generals Grant, Meade and Warren, as well as hospitals and supply depots.

 A special use permit was required from the Orange County Board of Supervisors (BOS) for Walmart to proceed.
 
The Wilderness Coalition was formed to oppose the permit approval and to encourage Walmart to build at a different and more acceptable location.

Members of the Wilderness Coalition include:
  • Civil War Preservation Trust
  • Central Virginia Battlefields Trust
  • Friends of Fredericksburg Area Battlefields
  • Friends of Wilderness Battlefield
  • National Coalition for History
  • National Parks Conservation Association
  • National Trust for Historic Preservation
  • Piedmont Environmental Council
  • Preservation Virginia

Status Report as of January 1, 2010

  • August 2009: Orange County BOS grants special use permit.
  • September 2009: A lawsuit is filed against the Orange County BOS by preservationists to appeal the decision. FoWB joins the National Trust for Historic Preservation and six local residents as a plaintiff in the lawsuit.
  • October 2009: Orange County BOS files a motion to dismiss the lawsuit.
  • February 3, 2010: Circuit Court of Orange County heard arguments on the motion to dismiss. Click on the links below for news stories:
For press releases about the Wilderness Challenge issued by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the Civil War Preservation Trust, and the National Parks Conservation Association:
 

Copyright Friends of Wilderness Battlefield, Inc., P.O. Box 576, Locust Grove, VA., 22508
FoWB is a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization, tax ID 42-1689437.
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