Introduction
No journey through Virginia's storied history is complete without a stop in Fredericksburg. Sitting on the banks of the Rappahannock River, it offers both a glimpse into Colonial America and a testament to the vast amount of blood that soaked the state's soil during the Civil War.
I must admit, however, to hating the 50-mile drive on often-clogged I-95 to get here from my home in northern Virginia. All that traffic is due to rapid suburban sprawl, which is quickly absorbing Fredericksburg within the Washington, D.C., megalopolis.
But once I have arrived in Fredericksburg's remarkably preserved Historic District, I'm thrilled to walk the same streets trod by George Washington, James Monroe, Thomas Jefferson, George Mason, and other Founding Fathers who created the notion of a Bill of Rights protecting our freedoms.
And from up on Marye's Heights, my spine tingles as I look down over the killing fields where Robert E. Lee's dug-in Confederate troops literally mowed down Union...
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Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park
- This site includes portions of four major Civil War battlefields: Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, the Wilderness, Spotsylvania Court House, as...
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- Landmarks
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Hugh Mercer Apothecary Shop
Although he was a noted physician, Dr. Hugh Mercer was better known as a warrior. Born in Scotland in 1726, he fled to Pennsylvania and became...
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James Monroe Museum and Memorial Library
Although overshadowed by George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and James Madison, James Monroe was one of the most distinguished Americans of their...
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- Museums
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