2023 Summer Twilight Tours

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Friday, June 23, 2023 | 6:00 – 8:15 pm 

Sunset of the Queen’s American Rangers: The Battle of Spencer’s Ordinary, 26th June 1781 with Kirby Smith 

Meeting Location: Visitors Center at Freedom Park: 5537 Centerville Rd, Williamsburg, VA 23188 

Description: On the 26th of June 1781, at a small crossroads a few miles west of Williamsburg, Virginia, two opposing forces clashed in an action commonly known as the “Battle of Spencer's Ordinary.” The Crown’s forces were led by Lt. Col. Simcoe while the combined force of American Continentals and Virginia Militia were placed under the command of Col. Butler of the Pennsylvania Line. This would be the first confrontation between Lafayette and Cornwallis in the Virginia Campaign, and though bloody, would be inconclusive as the sun set that day, while decimating one of the best Loyalist regiments of the war. 

Friday, June 23, 2023 | 6:30 – 8:00 pm 

Clash of Cavalry at Brandy Station-Buford's Knoll with Dan Davis 

Meeting Location: Park and meet at the Buford's Knoll parking area off Beverly Ford Road, Elkwood, VA 22718. 

Description: On June 9, 1863, Union cavalry under Maj. Gen. Alfred Pleasanton splashed across the Rappahannock and struck Confederate cavalry under Maj. Gen. J.E.B. Stuart. Fighting raged across the rolling hills and fields around a lonely rail stop named Brandy Station in the largest cavalry battle of the Civil War. Join Dan Davis, the Trust's Senior Education Manager, for an exploration of Buford's Knoll. We'll trace the history of this hallowed ground and relive the stories of valor from the opening engagement of the pivotal Gettysburg Campaign.  

Saturday, June 24, 2023 | 6:00 – 8:15 pm 

Lafayette’s Near Disaster: The Battle of Green Spring, 6th July 1781 with Kirby Smith 

Meeting Location: Meet in the parking lot at Jamestown Settlement in the corner closest to Jamestown Road: 2110 Jamestown Rd, Williamsburg, VA 23185 

Description: An hour-long walking tour that will focus on the pivotal day of the battle of Green Spring: July 6, 1781. We begin by discussing the movements of both the Crown Forces under General Cornwallis, and the movements of General Lafayette’s American Forces in the days before the encounter between the two armies near old Jamestown, transition to the battle itself on the actual grounds, and conclude with the aftermath of the fighting near the core of the unpreserved battlefield. The Crown Forces in Virginia received orders from New York City to move to reinforce General Clinton’s Forces, who were under perceived threat of siege by General Washington. The American Forces under General Lafayette had yet to see action against the Crown Forces in Virginia after weeks of marching and countermarching while shadowing the enemy across the state. General Lafayette waited for the right moment to present itself so that he could catch General Cornwallis when he was most vulnerable and exposed to an attack by the Americans. It was in the fields near the Green Spring Plantation on a hot July afternoon that the opportunity finally presented itself to fight the combined British and German force on equal terms, except General Cornwallis had other plans for the Americans. Lafayette’s eagerness to engage Cornwallis on his own terms led to near disaster for the American Forces in a few hours on the afternoon of July 6th. The American Forces were outnumbered and exposed, which almost destroyed the only force in the state capable of countering Cornwallis and his man. We conclude with the aftermath of the fighting near the core of the unpreserved battlefield. This tour will involve light walking on a paved path of roughly 500 yards. 

Saturday, July 15, 2023 | 7:00 – 8:45 pm 

“The Finest Artillery Practice”: Union Artillery at the Battle of Bristoe Station with Kevin Pawlak 

Meeting Location: Meet at the Bristoe Station Battlefield Heritage Park parking lot, corner of Iron Brigade Unit Ave. and Tenth Alabama Way. 

Description: On the afternoon of October 14, 1863, Confederate soldiers found the Army of the Potomac’s Second Corps separated from the rest of the army. Union artillerymen moved into action and deployed their guns on newly preserved land at Bristoe Station to help repel the Confederate attackers. Walk some of these artillery positions with the staff of Bristoe Station Battlefield Heritage Park to learn about the men who manned the Second Corps’ artillery and their impact on the Battle of Bristoe Station. 

Thursday, July 27, 2023 | 6:00 – 7:45 pm 

Another Such Victory would Ruin the British Army: The Battle of Guilford Courthouse, March 15, 1781, with Rob Orrison & Mark Maloy 

Meeting Location: We will meet at the Nathanael Greene monument in the park (parking available in a lot nearby at Old Battleground Road and New Garden Road).  Please wear comfortable shoes as we will walk the battlefield, approximately 1.5 miles total.  We will begin the tour at 6 p.m. and finish by 7:30 p.m. 

Description: Join Emerging Revolutionary War historians Rob Orrison and Mark Maloy as they take you on a tour of the Battle of Guilford Courthouse. They will take you to the places where the fiercest fighting occurred and describe how this battle helped to change the course of the war.   

Saturday, July 29, 2023 | 6:00 – 8:00 pm 

The Wounding of Stonewall Jackson with Kristopher White & Chris Mackowski 

Meeting Location: Meet at the Chancellorsville Battlefield Visitor Center, stop #1 on the Chancellorsville Driving Tour. 

Description: The wounding of Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson on the evening of May 2, 1863, was one of the most famous incidents of the Civil War. Shot in the dark woods of Spotsylvania County, Jackson's untimely fall impacted the final stages of his flank attack, and the battle of Chancellorsville overall. Join Kristopher White and Chris Mackowski for an exploration of Jackson's final hours on the Chancellorsville battlefield.  

Saturday, August 5, 2023 | 6:00 – 8:00 pm 

Hell's Half Acre: The Bloody Angle at Spotsylvania Courthouse with Kristopher White & Dan Davis 

Meeting Location: Park at tour stop #3 "The Bloody Angle" on the Spotsylvania driving tour route. 

Description: For twenty-two straight hours, in torrential downpours, up to their knees in mud and blood, Federals and Confederates slugged it out in the most intense sustained hand-to-hand combat of the war. A panoply of horror, one soldier called it. A Saturnalia of blood. Hell’s Half-Acre. The slaughter pen of Spotsylvania. Most remember it simply as the Bloody Angle. Join Trust historians Kristopher D. White and Daniel Davis for an evening at the Bloody Angle.  

Friday, August 18, 2023 | 6:15 – 8:15 pm 

Sunken Road: Antietam's Bloody Lane with Garry Adelman 

Meeting Location: Please park at the visitor center and walk to the meeting point at tour stop #7 "The Bloody Lane" on the Antietam National Battlefield map. If you are unable to walk that far, feel free to park at the Bloody Lane or the nearby observation tower which hold about 12 vehicles each.  

Description: Among the most famous features on any Civil War battlefield, the Sunken Road at Antietam quickly became the Bloody Lane as outnumbered Confederate soldiers struggled to hold the position against determined and costly Union attacks.  After the battle, the Bloody Lane was a place of horror, captured on paper and glass by sketch artists and photographers. Today's Bloody Lane is most closely associated with morbid curiosity and lost opportunity.  Join Trust historian Garry Adelman for a photo-heavy  presentation as he sorts out fact from fiction and lays out the fascinating fight that has captivated the public ever since it occurred.  Expect roughly 1/2 mile of walking on mostly flat terrain with some small ridges.  

Saturday, August 19, 2023 | 6:30 – 8:30 pm 

Saving the Revolution: The Battle of Princeton with Mark Maloy and Billy Griffith 

Meeting Location: Meet at the Clarke House on the Princeton Battlefield. 

Description: A nighttime march, a rear-guard action, and a charge led by George Washington himself are just some of the highlights of the January 1777 battle of Princeton. Join Emerging Revolutionary War historians Mark Maloy and Billy Griffith as they bring to life the story of one of the turning points of the American Revolution.  

Saturday, August 26, 2023 | 6:15 – 8:15 pm 

The Siege of Petersburg: Reams Station with Sarah Kay Bierle 

Meeting Location: Ream's Station Battlefield - Halifax Rd, Petersburg, VA 23805 

Description: On August 25, 1864, the Second Battle of Reams Station pitted soldiers from the Union soldiers commanded by Gen. Winfield S. Hancock against Gen. A. P. Hill’s Confederates as they struggled for control of the Weldon Railroad into Petersburg. Join Sarah Kay Bierle to explore this battle and trace compelling stories of the men who fought over this preserved acreage.