Friends of Cedar Mountain Battlefield HISTORY (http://www.starexponent.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=CSE/Page/CSE_ContentPage&c=Page&cid=1031784663273) By KURT JOHNSON Friday, August 26, 2005 (http://ads.mgnetwork.com/RealMedia/ads/click_nx.ads/starexponent.com/[email protected]?x) On the blazing hot afternoon of Aug. 9, 1862, Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson led his troops into battle against Nathaniel Banks' corps of John Pope's new Army of Virginia in the shadow of Cedar Mountain a few miles south of Culpeper. Over 3,500 men were killed or wounded that afternoon and evening in the Battle of Cedar Mountain - the deadliest day in Culpeper's history. Culpeper's native son, Major Gen. A. P. Hill, sealed the Confederate victory when his division reformed Jackson's crumbled line and led the charge that turned the tide of the battle. For Hill and the other Culpeper men engaged, this was a personal battle to liberate their homes, friends and family from Union occupation. Today, local residents are coming together to ensure that this battle and the valor displayed by both armies will never be forgotten. Friends of Cedar Mountain Battlefield Inc. (FCMB) is a new, community-based nonprofit organization dedicated to working cooperatively with landowners and local residents to protect, restore, maintain, manage, interpret and promote public awareness of the Cedar Mountain Civil War Battlefield and vicinity. We incorporated in Virginia in April 2004, and we recently obtained our tax-exempt status from the IRS. We now have more than 100 members, most from the Culpeper area. Because much of the Cedar Mountain battlefield is privately owned, we work cooperatively with local landowners and the local community to protect and restore the battlefield for this and future generations. For the past 16 months, FCMB has been working closely with the Civil War Preservation Trust to manage and restore the Trust's 152-acre Cedar Mountain Battlefield Park, which is located just off of General Winder Road about five miles south of Culpeper. Cedar Mountain Battlefield Park has interpretive trails and a number of monuments and markers. FCMB is working to restore the historical landscape of the park to help visitors visualize what the area looked like at the time of the battle in 1862. We have: - planted over 2,000 trees to reforest 6.5 acres of land that were forested at the time of the battle - begun restoring the old Orange-Culpeper road that bisects the property - removed trees and brush from areas that were open fields at the time of the battle - removed barbed wire fences and invasive plants - bush-hogged the historic wheatfield and installed a gate on the driveway to deter trespassers. There is much more work to do, and we have an ambitious work program. We have volunteer work days regularly throughout the year. Anyone interested in joining Friends of Cedar Mountain Battlefield should contact Kurt Johnson or Buddy Simms. Phone: Buddy Simms, 547-4653 or Kurt Johnson, (703) 358-1917