Civil War Strasburg

Civil War Strasburg (HMV5)

Location: Strasburg, VA 22657 Shenandoah County
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Country: United States of America
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N 38° 59.249', W 78° 21.355'

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Strategic Intersection

The railroad tracks before you follow the route of the Manassas Gap Railroad, which reached Strasburg from Washington, D.C., in 1854. The line was a vital link between the Shenandoah Valley and eastern markets. Strasburg became strategically important because of the intersection of the railroad with the Valley Turnpike (now U.S. Route 11).

In the summer of 1861, Confederate Gen. Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson's forces captured large quantities of Baltimore and Ohio Railroad rolling stock near Harper's Ferry, 40 miles north. To reach the Manassas Gap Railroad line in Strasburg, the equipment had to be pulled by horses and mules up the Valley Turnpike from Martinsburg. Fourteen locomotives and almost a hundred cars were brought here and then used throughout the Confederacy.

Signal Knob, the northern end of Massanutten Mountain, can be seen in the distance from here. During the war, it served as an observation and signaling station from which the Confederates observed Union positions and directed the opening attack of the Battle of Cedar Creek on October 19, 1864.

(sidebar) Pot Town. Pottery making was an important industry in Strasburg throughout the 1800s, when local clay was used to make food-storage crocks and decorative pieces. After the war, five small potteries were located here, and Strasburg was nicknamed Pot Town. The brick building on your right, the Strasburg Museum, was built as a steam pottery factory in 1891. The business eventually failed because of competition from large mid-western factories and the use of glass jars. The railroad bought the building in 1913 for a depot. In 1970, it became the Strasburg Museum and today displays an excellent collection of pottery.

Details

HM Number	HMV5
Series	This marker is part of the Manassas Gap Railroad series, and the Virginia Civil War Trails series.
Tags	US Civil War
Placed By	Civil War Trails
Marker Condition	No reports yet
Date Added	Sunday, October 19th, 2014 at 8:26pm PDT -07:00

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Locationbig map

UTM (WGS84 Datum)	17S E 729013 N 4318713
Decimal Degrees	38.98748333, -78.35591667
Degrees and Decimal Minutes	N 38° 59.249', W 78° 21.355'
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds	38° 59' 14.94" N, 78° 21' 21.30" W
Driving Directions	Google Maps
Area Code(s)	540
Closest Postal Address	At or near 350-392 VA-55, Strasburg VA 22657, US
Alternative Maps	Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap