The Canal Ditch: Battlefield Obstacle

The Canal Ditch: Battlefield Obstacle (HM1I)

Location: Fredericksburg, VA 22401
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Country: United States of America
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N 38° 18.431', W 77° 28.233'

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Inscription
The Rappahannock Canal fed lesser waterways that powered a variety of small industries. One of these secondary drainages branched off from the main canal in this area and became an obstacle to Federal troops during the 1862 battle of Fredericksburg.

On December 12 , the 82nd New York Infantry Regiment cleared Confederate pickets from a paper mill (no longer standing) between the main canal and what was called the canal ditch. They secured the gates to close off the water flow, but the ditch remained a deep and muddy obstacle when the Federal assault columns moved forward the next day.

On December 13, the 71st infantry deployed on the elevated ground to your left, where the Mary Washington monument lay on its side, unfinished. They maintained a picket line in this area while their comrades attacked the Confederates at Marye's Heights.
Details
HM NumberHM1I
Tags
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Placed ByCity of Fredericksburg
Marker ConditionNo reports yet
Date Added Thursday, October 23rd, 2014 at 2:40pm PDT -07:00
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Locationbig map
UTM (WGS84 Datum)18S E 283984 N 4242786
Decimal Degrees38.30718333, -77.47055000
Degrees and Decimal MinutesN 38° 18.431', W 77° 28.233'
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds38° 18' 25.86" N, 77° 28' 13.98" W
Driving DirectionsGoogle Maps
Area Code(s)540
Closest Postal AddressAt or near 600-698 Rappahannock Canal Path, Fredericksburg VA 22401, US
Alternative Maps Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap

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