Celebrate Our Victories

As we commemorate the more than 22,000 casualties of the September 17, 1862, Battle of Antietam, 161 years ago on America’s Bloodiest Day, the American Battlefield Trust announced its latest victories which save nearly 150 acres of battlefield land associated with the Maryland Campaign, including the Jacob Avey Farm, some of Antietam’s most hallowed ground, and the historic farmhouse where the Avey family lived. The victory also includes six additional acres of battlefield land at Antietam, originally part of the historic Reel Farm, and 122 acres of pristine land associated with the Battle of Shepherdstown.

Our most recent victory of 144 acres saved at Bentonville, North Carolina, marks a new kind of milestone for us. With the now completed transfer of that land to the state and its incorporation into the Bentonville Battlefield State Historic Site, the Trust, with the help of our members and partners, has saved more than 2,000 acres of battlefield land at Bentonville, the most acres saved at any battlefield outside of Virginia and the Eastern Theater of the Civil War. Preserving this land helps us share with future generations a more complete history of the conflict.

The American Battlefield Trust’s latest Revolutionary War battlefield victories, have helped the Trust meet a new milestone: 57,000 acres of battlefield saved. Thank you! We’ve claimed victory on four more acres at Eutaw Springs, S.C., land that witnessed significant fighting September 8, 1781, between Continental Maj. Gen. Nathanael Greene’s vanguard and British dragoons. A witness tree from the time of the battle still stands sentinel on the land we’ve just saved. We’re also announcing victory on more than a half-acre of land in North Carolina, where the Battle of Guilford Courthouse was fought, a battle many claim was “the largest and most hotly contested action” in the American Revolution’s southern theater.

Bringing back Tennessee battlefield one parcel, one acre at a time, is arduous work, but work that’s worthy of our efforts. The American Battlefield Trust’s most recent victory includes an acre saved at the epicenter of the Davis Bridge battlefield and with our partners, the Battle of Franklin Trust, the Friends of Franklin Parks, Franklin’s Charge, and Save the Franklin Battlefield, two more acres of the Franklin Battlefield. Described by Battle of Franklin Trust CEO Eric Jacobson as “one of the last available, most important unpreserved properties in Franklin,” the site was a high priority for acquisition and the Trust is proud to claim victory here while it endeavors to save additional land.

In honor of its third annual Victory Week, the American Battlefield Trust proudly announces an impressive round-up of preservation victories. Looking across five battlefields in four states, the news encompasses roughly 441 acres saved by the nation’s leading battlefield preservation and education nonprofit. Of the eight properties protected, six are connected to the Western Theater and the other two within the Eastern Theater. Together, this hallowed acreage carries the ability to unveil powerful insights about the heartbreaking cost of war. Their protection was no easy feat, as the Trust persevered and called on myriad donors and partners to accomplish the multiple efforts. Partners in preservation included the American Battlefield Protection Program, the Commonwealth of Kentucky, Kirkby Farms LLC, the Old Dominion Land Conservancy, the Saving Historic Antietam Foundation and the Tennessee Civil War Sites Preservation Fund via the Tennessee Wars Commission. 

Working with the South Carolina Battleground Preservation Trust (SCBPT), the American Battlefield Trust’s most recent preservation victory consists of nearly 23 acres across three properties at the Hobkirk Hill Battlefield in the beautiful Palmetto State. Expanding The Liberty Trail initiative, these are the first acres the Trust has saved at Hobkirk Hill, where Patriots under General Nathanael Greene experienced a loss to the British. However, luck turned in their favor when only two weeks later the British abandoned the originally targeted garrison at Camden, opening a gate for the Patriots to reclaim the South Carolina backcountry. Making the preservation effort possible, the Trust received support from the American Battlefield Protection Program, the South Carolina Conservation Bank, the Palmetto Conservation Foundation and a slew of dedicated donors.

Four recent transfers to the National Park Service, totaling 44 acres, include an American Battlefield Trust success story 22 years in the making. The Trust acquired these 29 acres at the White Oak Road Battlefield, years before it was eligible to become part of Petersburg National Battlefield Other transfers to the National Park Service at Shiloh and Stones River in Tennessee may have been swifter but are no less sweet.

The American Battlefield Trust recently protected 47 acres across two Civil War battlefields in the Old Dominion: Cedar Creek Battlefield in the Shenandoah Valley and Cedar Mountain Battlefield in the Virginia Piedmont. Sites of triumph and defeat, memory and meaning... these parcels make up an essential part of the American story. The Trust worked with the National Park Service and the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation to not only save roughly two and a half acres at Cedar Creek but also transfer it for incorporation into Cedar Creek and Belle Grove National Historical Park. This acreage saw fighting, retreats and pursuits during the 1864 Battle of Cedar Creek. Additionally, an approximately 45-acre tract at Cedar Mountain was preserved through the support of the American Battlefield Protection Program and the Virginia Land Conservation Fund.

Boosted by the support of the American Battlefield Protection Program, the City of Parkers Crossroads and the Tennessee Historical Commission’s Civil War Sites Preservation Fund (administered by the Tennessee Wars Commission), the American Battlefield Trust acquired two adjacent Parker’s Cross Roads properties totaling nearly one acre over the course of 2020 and 2021. The southwest corner of the original intersection during the December 31, 1862, battle, this hallowed ground experienced impactful restoration that has left our long-time partner and friend Steve McDaniel incredibly thankful for the continued work of the Trust. With its transfer to the State of Tennessee in December 2022, the battlefield now looks to interpretive opportunities at the southwest corner of the crossroads.

When people hear “Louisiana,” many tend to think of New Orleans, Mardi Gras or its flair for football, but few think about the state’s Civil War sites. In its most recent preservation victory, the American Battlefield Trust shares news of roughly 22 acres saved in the Bayou State – 2.6 acres at Port Hudson and 19.63 acres at Mansfield. Both state historic sites, this acreage will advance opportunities for visitors to engage with Louisiana’s complex Civil War story, including the efforts of the Union’s 1st and 3rd Louisiana Native Guard. Made of newly freed Black men, they represented the first Black units to engage in major combat actions during the war. This preservation achievement was possible by the American Battlefield Protection Program, the State of Louisiana and the Trust's donors.

Preservation of the Champion Hill Battlefield has expanded with the American Battlefield Trust’s acquisition of 498 acres. Still located in the area, the Champion family agreed to sell their entire holdings after building a multi-year relationship with the Trust.  This included a 144.4-acre tract that the organization had previously worked to place a conservation easement on. Boosted by the American Battlefield Protection Program, State of Mississippi, the HTR Foundation and generous Trust donors, the Trust has acquired that tract and another 353.6-acre parcel with hopes of incorporating them into the Vicksburg National Military Park.

In the midst of National Drink Beer Day, the American Battlefield Trust announced the successful preservation of 137 acres at the site of the once-standing Todd’s Tavern. While one of the most intense and important cavalry battles of the Civil War’s Overland Campaign raged nearby, the land is also significant for its ties to the Marquis de Lafayette. With hopes of chasing and outsmarting Cornwallis’ British forces, Lafayette brought his command along the Brock and Catharpin Roads — passing this property in the process. Our preservation partners included the American Battlefield Protection Program, the Commonwealth of Virginia, the Virginia Battlefield Preservation Fund and the Central Virginia Battlefields Trust.

In celebration of National Public Lands Day 2022, the American Battlefield Trust announced the successful transfer of more than 50 acres to the National Park Service (NPS) across three battlefields: Antietam (Md.), Glendale (Va.) and Shiloh (Tenn.). Sitting directly across from the Antietam National Battlefield visitor center and encompassing the southern tip of the West Woods, a 7.6-acre tract was saved by the Trust in 2016 and, as of mid-August, passed into the hands of the NPS for incorporation into the national battlefield. At Shiloh, approximately 30 acres via two properties were transferred to Shiloh National Military Park in June. Plus, more than 14 acres at Glendale shifted hands in August, augmenting the growth of Richmond National Battlefield Park and providing a path to greater understanding of the Gravel Hill community.

With reliable contacts in place, the American Battlefield Trust jumped into action when alerted of a 23-acre property at the Bennington Battlefield that had been sold swiftly at a tax sale. On August 16, 1777, during the first engagement of the Battle of Bennington, the tract was very likely part of the location where Crown forces retreated and surrendered. General John Burgoyne’s defeat at Bennington was a telling precursor for his disastrous loss at Saratoga two months later, which signaled the growing strength of the American cause. After conferring with the owner, a deal was struck and the Trust acquired the property in June of 2020. Following impactful restoration efforts, the property was sold and transferred to the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation in June of 2022.