Cedar Creek and Belle Grove National Historical Park became the 388th unit of the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational properti ...

when it was authorized on December 19, 2002. The

National Historical Park National Historic Site (NHS) is a designation for an officially recognized area of national historic significance in the United States. An NHS usually contains a single historical feature directly associated with its subject. The National Historic ...

was created to protect several historically significant locations in the

Shenandoah Valley The Shenandoah Valley () is a geographic valley and cultural region of western Virginia and the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia. The valley is bounded to the east by the Blue Ridge Mountains, to the west by the eastern front of the Ridg ...

Northern Virginia Northern Virginia, locally referred to as NOVA or NoVA, comprises several counties and independent cities in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. It is a widespread region radiating westward and southward from Washington, D.C. Wit ...

, notably the site of the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and t ...

Battle of Cedar Creek The Battle of Cedar Creek, or Battle of Belle Grove, was fought on October 19, 1864, during the American Civil War. The fighting took place in the Shenandoah Valley of Northern Virginia, near Cedar Creek, Middletown, and the Valley Pike. D ...

and the Belle Grove Plantation. Although there are over 3,700 acres within the park's authorized boundary, over half of this is still privately owned. Much of the battlefield is not accessible to the public, but the park offers ranger-led and self-guided driving tours of the battlefield via public roads. Nearly all of the remaining land (approximately 1,500 acres) and buildings are preserved and administered by partner sites which predate the park. Since summer 2010, the park has offered interpretive ranger programs at key partner sites, including Cedar Creek Battlefield Foundation headquarters, Belle Grove Plantation, and Hupp's Hill Civil War Park. The

American Battlefield Trust The American Battlefield Trust is a charitable organization (501(c)(3)) whose primary focus is in the preservation of battlefields of the American Civil War, the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812 through acquisition of battlefield land. T ...

and its federal, state and local partners have acquired and preserved of the battlefield through November 2021, some of which has been acquired by the

and incorporated into the park. In 2012, the park acquired land on which sits a monument to the

8th Vermont Infantry The 8th Vermont Infantry Regiment was a three-year infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It served in both major theaters, first in Louisiana and then in Virginia, from February 1862 to June 1865. It was a member of th ...

and now offers access through semi-regular programs at the site. In March 2013, the park opened a Visitor Contact Station in

Middletown, Virginia Middletown is a town in Frederick County, Virginia, United States, in the northern Shenandoah Valley. The population was 1,265 at the 2010 census, up from 1,015 at the 2000 census. History Middletown was chartered on May 4, 1796. Some of the ...

, featuring interpretive exhibits and information on how visitors can experience the park. The Cedar Creek Battlefield and Belle Grove is also a U.S.

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places liste ...

. and the "Cedar Creek Battlefield and Belle Grove" is listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

. The

plantation house A plantation house is the main house of a plantation, often a substantial farmhouse, which often serves as a symbol for the plantation as a whole. Plantation houses in the Southern United States and in other areas are known as quite grand and e ...

of Belle Grove (1797) is open to the public and operates independently as part of the

National Trust for Historic Preservation The National Trust for Historic Preservation is a privately funded, nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., that works in the field of historic preservation in the United States. The member-supported organization was founded in 1949 ...

. The listed area is in Frederick County and

Warren County Warren County is the name of fourteen counties in the USA. Some are named after General Joseph Warren, who was killed in the Battle of Bunker Hill in the American Revolutionary War: * Warren County, Georgia * Warren County, Illinois * Warren County ...

References

External links

*
Cedar Creek & Belle Grove National Historical Park
National Park Service website
Cedar Creek Battlefield FoundationBelle Grove, Middletown, Virginia's, official website
{{authority control National Historical Parks of the United States National Park Service areas in Virginia American Civil War museums in Virginia Battlefields of the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War Historic house museums in Virginia Museums in Frederick County, Virginia Parks in Frederick County, Virginia Parks in Shenandoah County, Virginia Parks in Warren County, Virginia National Historic Landmarks in Virginia National Register of Historic Places in Warren County, Virginia National Register of Historic Places in Frederick County, Virginia 2002 establishments in Virginia Protected areas established in 2002 Federal architecture in Virginia Georgian architecture in Virginia Neoclassical architecture in Virginia Palladian Revival architecture in Virginia Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Virginia Conflict sites on the National Register of Historic Places in Virginia American Civil War on the National Register of Historic Places Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Virginia Parks on the National Register of Historic Places in Virginia

See also

References

External links