"First Federal Victory South of the Potomac"

In the fall of 1861, Fairfax County found itself between two large armies. Confederate Gen. Joseph E. Johnston and his army occupied the Centreville area. The Federal army, still regrouping after the devastating defeat at the First Battle of Manassas, manned the growing line of fortifications protecting Washington, D.C. Union morale was low, and a battlefield victory was desperately needed.

Learning that Confederates were harassing Unionists near Dranesville, Gen. George McCall ordered Gen. Edward O. C. Ord with his Pennsylvania infantry and artillery forward to that place on December 19. Simultaneously, Confederate Gen J.E.B. Stuart received orders to protect Confederate foraging parties gathering supplies for the winter, and marched toward Dranesville on Centreville Road (now Reston Avenue). On December 20, Ord's troops arrived at the intersection of the Georgetown and Leesburg Turnpikes, a mile in front of you, where they took up defensive positions on a ridge facing south with the intersection at the center. When Stuart's infantry and cavalry arrived, he quickly discovered the strength of the Federal position.

After repeated attacks and significant losses from artillery fire, Stuart ordered a retreat southward. Casualties totaled 68 Federals and 194 Confederates. Ord returned to the Union lines, and Stuart came back to the battlefield the next day to recover his dead and wounded.

Although each side claimed victory at Dranesville, the Federals achieved their first tactical success against the Confederates in Virginia. The engagement was small compared to future battles but boosted Union morale. U.S. Secretary of War Simon Cameron wrote afterward, "It is one of the bright spots that give assurance of the success of coming events."

(sidebar below map) Dranesville Tavern, built about 1820 was a popular stopping place for weary travelers and drovers taking livestock and farm produce to the Alexandria, Georgetown, and Washington, D.C. markets via the Leesburg Turnpike. It was described in 1865 as "one of the best roadside inns in the State of Virginia." The tavern was moved about 125 feet southwest to its current location in 1968 because of the widening of the Leesburg Turnpike. It is restored to its 1850 appearance.

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Loudoun County / Fairfax County
Sharpsburg (Antietam) Campaign
Action At Dranesville
Gettysburg Campaign
"The Ankerage"
Ambush at Ankers's Shop
Vestal's Gap Road in the 1800s
Lanesville Families
Lanesville Outbuildings
Lanesville House and Vestal's Gap Road

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