BGuthrie Photos: VA -- Chancellorsville Natl Battlefield -- Lacy House (Ellwood)

VA -- Chancellorsville Natl Battlefield -- Lacy House (Ellwood):

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Specific picture descriptions: Photos above with "i" icons next to the bracketed sequence numbers (e.g. "[1] ") are described as follows:
1. LACY_130120_070.JPG: Ellwood The Battle of the Wilderness "The house stands on Wilderness Run, in a lonely place about half a mile south of the Culpeper plank road; it is a good-sized farmhouse, built of wood, square, with two porticos and painted a dove color. From the apex of the roof a hospital flag still flutters in the cold November wind." -- George M. Neese, Chew's Virginia Battery November 11, 1863 Ellwood was a typical Virginia farm. The 1790s dwelling looked out over rolling farmland planted in corn, wheat, and clover. Outbuildings, including a kitchen, smokehouse, and dairy, surrounded the house. As many as one hundred slaves, their cabins scattered north and west of the main building, provided the farm with most of its labor. The Civil War shattered Ellwood's dull routine. In May 1863, the Confederate army established a hospital in the building, and seven months later Union soldiers looted the house. Worse was yet to come. In May 1864, Northern and Southern soldiers engaged in a deadly struggle little more than a mile from Ellwood. Overnight the once quiet farm became a bustling military encampment.
2. LACY_130120_112.JPG: "Stonewall" Jackson's Arm -- The Battle of Chancellorsville -- Here, in the Jones family cemetery, lie the remains of "Stonewall" Jackson's left arm. The Confederate general lost the limb during the Battle of Chancellorsville, where he was mistakenly shot by his own troops. Surgeons removed the mangled appendage at the Wilderness Tavern field hospital, one-half mile to your left-rear, early May 3, 1863. Jackson's chaplain, the Rev. B. Tucker Lacy, visited the hospital later that morning. As he was leaving Jackson's tent, Lacy saw the general's amputated arm lying outside the door. He gathered up the bloody limb and carried it across the fields to his brother's estate, Ellwood, and buried it here in the family cemetery. In 1903, the Rev. James Power Smith erected the small granite marker that stands over the arm. Smith had been on Jackson's staff during the Civil War and later married Agnes Lacy, the daughter of Ellwood's owner. Jackson remained at Wilderness Tavern for just one day. On May 4, 1863, he made the 26-mile journey to Guinea Station (right). He died there six days later. "He has lost his left arm; but I have lost my right arm." -- Robert E. Lee on "Stonewall" Jackson This photograph of Jackson was taken in April 1863, a week before he was shot.
3. LACY_130120_167.JPG: Union Headquarters The Battle of the Wilderness Ellwood stood in the midst of the Wilderness, a dark, forbidding forest characterized by stunted trees and densely tangled undergrowth. When the Confederates challenged General Ulysses S. Grant's advance through the Wilderness on May 5, 1864, the Union commander made his headquarters just a few hundred yards north of here, along the Orange Turnpike (modern Route 20). For the next three days Ellwood, a quiet farm in a desolate region, suddenly found itself the center of national attention. Union Fifth Corps commander Gouverneur K. Warren occupied the first-floor to the left of the front door throughout the battle. Here, on the evening of May 5, he received reports of staggering casualties from his chief surgeon. "It will never do to make a showing of such heavy losses," he observed. The bloodshed was just beginning. By the time the Army of the Potomac reached the James River, six weeks later, it had incurred more than 60,000 casualties.
4. LACY_130120_172.JPG: A Military Scene The Battle of the Wilderness As one of the few large open areas in the Wilderness, the broad fields north and east of Ellwood assumed instant importance during the battle here. While fighting raged a miles to the west, the fields around Ellwood filled with artillery and wagon trains. Provost guards kept watch over Confederate prisoners; surgeons established field hospitals for the wounded; and rough teamsters held their mule-drawn wagons in readiness to carry ammunition to the front. In the yard of the house and extending northward along the ridge, Union batteries lobbed shells at targets more than a mile away. The fusillade touched off an angry response from Confederate guns, prompting one staff officer to suggest that Grant move his headquarters further to the rear. The Union commander had other ideas. "It strikes me it would be better to order up some artillery and defend the present position," he replied. "All the space between the garden, the back of the house, and the barns, was loosely occupied by the bivouacs of the headquarters orderlies, clerks, teamsters, officers' servants, cooks...etc. who on a campaign form quite a colony... ." -- Lt. Morris Schaff, Union staff
5. LACY_130120_212.JPG: Archeology at Ellwood -- The Battle of the Wilderness -- The National Park Service acquired Ellwood in 1977. Since then, archeologists have conducted three studies of the site: test excavations around the base of the house (1978) and in the cellar (1979), and a geophysical survey of the grounds (1984). The excavations have identified the site of several structures and unearthed a wide variety of artifacts ranging from the 18th to the 20th century. The results of the geophysical survey suggest that there is much more to be found. Many questions about Ellwood remain unanswered. Where were the slave cabins and other plantation dependencies? Did an earlier dwelling occupy the same site as the current structure? What was the extent of the garden? Future archeological digs may uncover the answers to these and other tantalizing questions.
Description of Subject Matter: The Lacy House is also known as Ellwood

"The house stands on Wilderness Run, in a lonely place about half a mile south of the Culpeper plank road; it is a good-sized farmhouse, built of wood, square, with two porticos and painted a dove color. From the apex of the roof a hospital flag still flutters in the cold November wind." -- George M Neese, Chew's Virginia Battery, November 11, 1863

Ellwood was a typical Virginia farm. Finished in 1799, the dwelling looked out over rolling farmland planted in corn, wheat, and clover. Outbuildings, including a kitchen, smokehouse, and dairy, surrounded the house. As many as one hundred slaves, their cabins scattered north and west of the main building, provided the farm with most of its labor.
The Civil War shattered Ellwood's dull routine. In May 1863, the battle of Chancellorsville came to the area. The Confederate army established a hospital in the building. Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson lost his left arm during the Battle of Chancellorsville, where he was mistakenly shot by his own troops. Surgeons removed the mangled appendage at the Wilderness Tavern field hospital, one-half mile away, early on May 3, 1863.
Jackson's chaplain, the Rev B Tucker Lacy, visited the hospital later that morning. As he was leaving Jackson's tent, Lacy saw the general's amputated arm lying outside the door. He gathered up the bloody limb and carried it across the fields to his brother's estate, Ellwood, and buried it here in the family cemetery.
Jackson remained at Wilderness Tavern for just one day. On May 4, 1863, he made the 26-mile journey to Guinea Station. He died there six days later.
"He has lost his left arm; but I have lost my right arm." -- Robert E Lee on "Stonewall" Jackson

Seven months later, Union soldiers looted the house.

In May 1864, Northern and Southern soldiers engaged in a deadly struggle in the Wilderness a little more than a mile from Ellwood. Overnight the once quiet farm became a bustling military encampment. Ellwood stood in the midst of the Wilderness, a dark, forbidding forest characterized by stunted trees and densely tangled undergrowth. When the Confederates challenged General Ulysses S Grant's advance through the Wilderness on May 5, 1864, the Union commander made his headquarters just a few hundred yards north of here, along the Orange Turnpike (modern Route 20). The next three days, Ellwood, a quiet farm in a desolate region, suddenly found itself the center of national attention.
Union Fifth Corps commander Gouverneur K. Warren occupied the first-floor room to the left of the front door throughout the battle. Here, on the evening of May 5, he received reports of staggering casualties from his chief surgeon. "It will never do to make a showing of such heavy losses," he observed. The bloodshed was just beginning. By the time the Army of the Potomac reached the James River, six weeks later, it had incurred more than 60,000 casualties.

In 1903, the Rev James Power Smith erected the small granite marker that stands over the arm. Smith had been on Jackson's staff during the Civil War and later married Agnes Lacy, the daughter of Ellwood's owner.

In 1907, the first-floor floorboards were painted oaken to camouflage bloodstains. In 1910, the upstairs floorboards were painted black for the same reason.

In 1971, the National Park Service purchased the house and took possession of it six years later. By then, the house was near collapse. Efforts were made to stabilize the cellar wars and replace the termite-ridden interior framing. There had been a number of post-war structural changes made to the building which had to be removed -- the wood shingle siding was removed, a new roof was installed, and the heavy sandstone steps were reset.
They intend to make the building a major stop on the Wilderness Battlefield tour but it will be some time before the building can be opened to the public for that purpose.
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