BGuthrie Photos: VA -- Dutch Gap at Citie of Henricus Historical Park

VA -- Dutch Gap at Citie of Henricus Historical Park:

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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. DUTCH_150607_005.JPG: The Bermuda Hundred Campaign This is a fragment from the breech of a 5.8 inch "Sawyer Gun". This gun was located at Battery Sawyer, a Federal gun position across the river to your front where the River's Bend community is today. This gun burst on August 5, 1864 after ﬁring 10 rounds. In an ofﬁcial report, Col. Henry L. Abbot of the 1st Connecticut Heavy Artillery wrote: "The gun had already been ﬁred a large number of times at Fort Monroe. It burst into four principle parts, the largest remained in its place on the carriage; the bottom of the bore near the breech, fell between the cheeks; the left half of the top fell upon the parapet a short distance from the gun; the right half was thrown some 200 yards entirely outside the fort." Sawyer Guns were created by New England inventor Sylvanius Sawyer. The Ordnance Department gave his guns favorable reviews, however, few of his guns were used during the Civil War, making this fragment a rare relic from the ﬁghting that occurred near Dutch Gap. This Sawyer Gun fragment was donated to the Chesterﬁeld Historical Society of Virginia by David H. and Mary Kay Gates in honor of Judge Ernest P. Gates and Virginia Y. Gates. Map of the Dutch Gap area showing the location of Union and Confederate fortifications near Dutch Gap. (Chesterfield Historical Society of Virginia)
2. DUTCH_150607_013.JPG: 1622 Indian Attack This monument is erected in memory of the English settlers who died in the 1622 Indian attack that was organized by Chief Opechanconough. On March 22, 1622, the Powhatan chiefdom launched a coordinated offensive against the English settlements along the James River. Sixty-six men, women and children were killed within the Henrico settlements including five dead at Henricus. Over one quarter of the English population of Virginia died in the attack. The Powhatan Indians did not follow up with subsequent attacks., believing their mission had been accomplished when the English withdrew to the area around Jamestown. Instead, the English launched reprisal attacks against the Powhatan and expanded their settlement efforts. Erected by the Social of Colonial Wars in the State of Virginia Dedicated March 22, 2014
3. DUTCH_150607_028.JPG: Citie of Henricus 1811 Free enterprise had its beginnings in the new world on this site in 1611. Sir Thomas Dale, following orders from the London Company to "find a more healthful place," moved westward from Jamestown and built a town out of the wilderness. The "Citie of Henricus" is a living museum for the world to learn of the hardships sustained and the opportunities found in the establishment of the free new world. The Henricus Foundation thanks those who made Henricus Historical Park a reality.
4. DUTCH_150607_035.JPG: Changes Over Time The intertwined history of the land and the water The story of Dutch Gap demonstrates the importance of the river throughout history revealing a partnership of man's use of land and water. Today, the river's commercial and recreational activities continue, providing a backdrop to Dutch Gap's restoration, preservation and conservation efforts. 1500s -- Powhatan Indians fish and carry furs, food and other trade items in dugout canoes. 1611 -- Sir Thomas Dale and 300 settlers build the Citie of Henricus as Virginia's frontier moves westward. 1614 -- America's first English hospital, Mt Malady, is established. John Rolfe introduces tobacco, which launches Virginia's first successful economic venture. 1619 -- America's first college, The College of Henricus, is chartered. 1620s -- Early settlers use shallops to navigate shallow waters to nearby settlements and plantations. 1700s -- Colonists turn to batteaux, sloops and barges for water transportation. 1781 -- Benedict Arnold and British troops capture Virginia's navy along the southern tip of the Dutch Gap peninsula. 1800s -- Packets carry cargo from Richmond to Baltimore, New York and Boston. 1855 -- More than 2,600 boats and ships enter and depart from the Richmond docks. 1864 -- Gen. Benjamin Butler's Federal forces begin to dig a channel near the original 1611 Citie site to eliminate the large loop in the James that contains Confederate land batteries. Federal soldiers, under constant fire, labor 144 days on the channel. 1865 -- Channel project is abandoned when a bulkhead explosion blasts earth back into the newly dug causeway. 1871 -- U.S. Government completes dredging and opens the channel, turning the peninsula into an island with tidal and non-tidal marshlands. 1872 -- The steamship Sylvester is the first commercial vessel to use the new channel. 1930s -- Army Corp of Engineers extends the channel. This eliminates another loop in the river. 1930s-1960s -- Sand and gravel is mined, creating a tidal lagoon. 1997 -- Dutch Gap Conservation Area is created as a regional partnership providing historical, environmental and recreational activities to thousands of visitors each year. Today -- Motorboats, jet skis and other recreational craft negotiate the narrow channels of the James with tugboats, barges and large ocean-going vessels hauling international cargo to and from the Port of Richmond.
5. DUTCH_150607_067.JPG: The Lightkeeper's House The lights of Dutch Gap The foundation is all that remains of the lightkeeper's house. The lightkeeper had to live on site to maintain the gas-powered lights which were once located on the bluff. Lights were constructed after the first Dutch Gap channel was completed in 1872 because of the narrow, winding river channel which was treacherous for navigation especially at night and in foul weather. Today ocean-going ships serving the Port of Richmond carry over 500,000 tons of cargo yearly to northern Europe, the Caribbean and Canada. In addition, ships and barges transport oil, sand, gravel and construction materials from private wharves on the James. This high level of commerce on the James and the fact that large vessels can completely fill the channel necessitates recreational vessels to be conscious of safety and take precautions to stay safe distances from large ships.
6. DUTCH_150607_079.JPG: The Colonial Dames Of America in the State of Virginia A.D. 1910 Erect this monument on the site of the Town of Henricopolis to commemorate the college and university which on May 26, 1619. The Virginia Company of London decreed should be established here.
7. DUTCH_150607_088.JPG: Near this spot was built Anno Domini 1611 The Church of Henricopolis under the auspices of Sir Thomas Dale, High Marshall of Virginia The Reverend Alexander Whitaker, M.A, Minister This cross is erected to commemorate the foundation of the Protestant Episcopal Church in Henrico Parish 1911 Replaced A.D. – 1961
8. DUTCH_150607_098.JPG: Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail John Smith Explores the Chesapeake Captain John Smith explored the Chesapeake Bay in the early 1600s seeking precious metals and a passage to Asia. He traveled the James, Chickahominy, and York rivers in 1607, and led two major expeditions from Jamestown in 1608. Smith and his crew sailed and rowed a primitive 30-foot boat nearly 3,000 miles, reaching as far north as the Susquehanna River. Although Smith did not discover gold, or a river passage to the Pacific, his precise map and detailed observations of American Indian societies and the abundant natural resources guided future explorers and settlers. An Abundance of Life: Smith discovered a treasure trove of natural wonders in the Chesapeake region: thick forests of giant pines, oaks and hickories; vast marshlands; huge turtles, 800-pound sturgeon, and great schools of shad and striped bass. Massive flocks of ducks, geese, and swans darkened the sky; and enormous oyster reefs rose above the water's surface. Native Inhabitants: At the time of Smith's exploration, an estimated 50,000 American Indians dwelled in the Chesapeake region -- as their ancestors had for thousands of years. Their sophisticated societies included arts and architecture, systems of government, extensive trade and communication networks, and shared spiritual beliefs. The native peoples hunted, fished, grew crops, and gathered food and raw materials from the land and waterways.
9. DUTCH_150607_103.JPG: Smith's remarkably accurate map of the Chesapeake Bay (published in 1612), and his spirited written accounts of a lush landscape inspired European migration.
10. DUTCH_150607_108.JPG: Decorative shells -- such as those found on this ceremonial robe -- were valuable in the American Indian's trading network that extended for hundreds of miles. This robe (which may have belonged to paramount chief Powhatan) was crafted from elk skins and adorned with more than 17,000 shells.
11. DUTCH_150607_145.JPG: Henricus Historical Park Captain John Smith's Adventures on the James -- www.johnsmithtrail.org -- Near this spot, the Arrohateck Indians greeted John Smith and his compatriots during their May 1607 exploration upriver from Jamestown. Smith's 1612 Map of Virginia shows Arrohateck towns on both shores of the James below present-day Richmond. In 1611, Sir Thomas Dale founded the Citie of Henricus on a bluff above a bend in the river. The location was deemed both more defensible and more healthful than Jamestown, where settlers were often forced to drink brackish water that left them ill or lethargic. At Henricus, the English chartered Virginia's first university and built their first hospital. According to one tradition, Pocahontas, the daughter of the Algonquin ruler Powhatan, was kidnapped at Jamestown and met and married John Rolfe at Henricus in 1614. Their union prompted an eight-year truce between the Powhatan chiefdom and the English. Rolfe was the first Englishman to successfully cultivate tobacco in 1612. The profitable export crop would give rise to vast plantations that siphoned settlers from Henricus and angered displaced Natives. As a result, the truce between the Algonquians and the English unraveled in 1622, shortly after Powhatan's death. Capt. John Smith's Trail: John Smith knew the James River by its Algonquian name: Powhatan, the same as the region's paramount chief. Smith traveled the river many times between 1607 and 1609, trading with Virginia Indians to ensure survival at Jamestown. What he saw of Virginia's verdant woodlands and pristine waters inspired him to explore the greater Chesapeake Bay, chronicling its natural wonders. Did native Virginians have tattoos? The English colonists at Jamestown were curious about -and sometimes astonished by-the Natives surrounding them. John Smith's contemporary, George Percy, recorded his observations of the ornate tattoos worn by Algonquian women: " The women kinde in this Countrey doth pounce and race their bodies, legges, thighes, armes and faces with a sharpe Iron, which makes a stampe in curious knots, and drawes the proportion of Fowles, Fish, or Beasts, then with paintings of sundry lively colours, they rub it into the stampe which will never be taken away, because it is dried into the flesh where it is sered." It is unknown whether Pocahontas wore similar tattoos, though it is likely when she was a child the sides of her head were shaved. This was the custom for Indian girls, who wore their remaining hair in long braids.
12. DUTCH_150607_150.JPG: Did native Virginians have tattoos? The English colonists at Jamestown were curious about -and sometimes astonished by-the Natives surrounding them. John Smith's contemporary, George Percy, recorded his observations of the ornate tattoos worn by Algonquian women: " The women kinde in this Countrey doth pounce and race their bodies, legges, thighes, armes and faces with a sharpe Iron, which makes a stampe in curious knots, and drawes the proportion of Fowles, Fish, or Beasts, then with paintings of sundry lively colours, they rub it into the stampe which will never be taken away, because it is dried into the flesh where it is sered." It is unknown whether Pocahontas wore similar tattoos, though it is likely when she was a child the sides of her head were shaved. This was the custom for Indian girls, who wore their remaining hair in long braids.
13. DUTCH_150607_165.JPG: Confederate Picket Post: This photograph illustrates the type of earthwork fortification recreated here. The men in the photo are Federal soldiers shown firing from a picket line in front of the Confederate Fort Mahone at Petersbuerg in 1864. Soldiers on both sides used vine baskets filled with earth called gabions to support their earthwork. These could be constructed then rolled into position and filled up to create a protective barricade for loading and firing. Here at Dutch Gap, Confederate infantry supporting the heavy artillery Batteries Semmes, Brooke, and Wood just across this old channel of the river sent their pickets down to the riverback where from positions like this one they could harass the Federals digging the canal with mortar and small-arms fire. In areas where men served in trenches for months at a time, positions like this one might eventually be connected to the larger main works by smaller communications trenches, contain features such as embrasures for firing cannon, and bomb-proof shelters and covered ways to protect men and materials. "The amount of ammunition expended at Dutch Gap, if known, would be amazing... I estimate the number of pounds of metal hurled into Dutch Gap as up in the hundreds o thousands. Ten times as much at least was hurled at us." -- William Thomas Pogue, Army of Northern Virginia (from his narrative, Gunner with Stonewall, 1903)
14. DUTCH_150607_173.JPG: Dutch Gap Canal Butler's Bypass -- Bermuda Hundred Campaign -- With the opposing armies locked in a protracted struggle around Petersburg and Bermuda Hundred, the James and Appomattox Rivers assumed added importance. In August 1864, Union Gen. Benjamin Butler began excavations at Dutch Gap. When completed, his canal would bypass nearly five miles of the James River. Several powerful Confederate artillery batteries menaced that stretch of water. The Dutch Gap Canal would neutralize them. Although the project neared completion in late 1864, Butler's engineers never succeeded in opening the canal for warships. The Dutch Gap shortcut only came into use after the Civil War. It is now the primary James River channel.
15. DUTCH_150607_180.JPG: The two loops of the James River appear tantalizingly close together on a map, but building the canal to unite them proved too difficult a task for General Butler's army.
16. DUTCH_150607_183.JPG: Union soldiers at work on the canal in 1864
17. DUTCH_150607_185.JPG: USCTs At Dutch Gap U.S. Colored Troops Construct the Canal -- Bermuda Hundred -- Early in 1864, Union Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, commander of all Federal armies, ordered advances throughout the Confederacy in the spring. On May 5, Union Gen. Benjamin F. Butler landed his Army of the James on Bermuda Hundred to operate against Richmond, Petersburg, and Confederate lines of supply. Confederate Gen. PG.T. Beauregard countered Union advances against the Richmond and Petersburg Railroad, Drewry's Bluff, and Petersburg. In June 1864, he effectively "bottled up" Butler's army behind Confederate and Federal fortifications across the Bermuda Hundred peninsula for the rest of the war. In August 1864, Gen. Benjamin F. Butler, commander of the Army of the James, ordered that a ditch or canal be dug across the narrow neck of land here to enable Union gunboats to evade Confederate batteries on the James River. Under brutal conditions and occasional Confederate sniper and artillery fire, Union soldiers -- mostly United States Colored Troops -- completed the canal on December 31, 1864, except for a slender piece of land or bulkhead between the ditch and the river. On January 1, 1865, 12,000 pounds of powder were exploded to demolish the bulkhead. The blast, however, sent much of the earth into the canal and collapsed part of its walls. The canal was not completed until April, too late to achieve Butler's objective. Butler commanded more African American soldiers than any other general and advocated their use in combat, not merely as workmen and guards. In May 1864, his USCT regiments had seized strategic points on the James River at Wilson's Wharf, Fort Powhatan, and City Point. USCTs were among the troops assaulting the Petersburg defenses on June 9 and June 15, and took part in the Battle of the Crater on July 20. On September 29, two USCT brigades spearheaded a successful attack at New Market Heights and took part in the assault on Fort Harrison on the north side of the James River. Fourteen black soldiers and two white officers were awarded the Medal of Honor for their actions there. USCT regiments were among the first to enter Richmond on April 3, 1865. Lt. Walter Thorn, Co. G, 116th USCT, received the Medal of Honor for his actions here on January 1, 1865, when the bulk-head was blown up. Learning that the picket guard had not been withdrawn, he mounted the bulkhead and at great personal peril warned the guard of danger. The medal was awarded on December 8, 1898. The Army version of the Medal of Honor
18. DUTCH_150607_192.JPG: USCTs at work in the Dutch Gap Canal
19. DUTCH_150607_194.JPG: Completed canal, April 1865
20. DUTCH_150607_196.JPG: Lt. Walter Thorn, Co. G, 116th USCT, received the Medal of Honor for his actions here on January 1, 1865, when the bulk-head was blown up. Learning that the picket guard had not been withdrawn, he mounted the bulkhead and at great personal peril warned the guard of danger. The medal was awarded on December 8, 1898. The Army version of the Medal of Honor
21. DUTCH_150607_199.JPG: USCT picket post, Dutch Gap Canal, November 1864
22. DUTCH_150607_202.JPG: Henricus Park In recognition of the many people who have contributed to the preservation of this site. Henricus Foundation John N. Pastore, DDS, President Pauline A. Mitchell, Secretary Hardy B. Traylor, Treasurer Placed by Henrico Doctors' Hospital September, 1986
23. DUTCH_150607_223.JPG: Mount Malady Mt. Malady, the ﬁrst hospital in the American colonies, was built in Coxendale near Henricus in 1612. It had 40 beds for 80 patients! Many colonists arrived in poor health from their long sea voyage. Others acquired diseases, such as dysentery, typhoid and malaria in the heat and humidity of their first Virginia summer. These colonists could recuperate at Mt Malady, a "retreat for the sick."
24. DUTCH_150607_226.JPG: Dutch Gap 1611 -- Sir Thomas Dale and his men, using a tactic developed in the Dutch Low Country, dug a ditch and erected a fence across the neck of the peninsula for the defense of Henricus. 1864 -- Federal forces under General Benjamin Butler began construction of a canal on the ditch site. This canal would cut off approximately six miles of river travel and protect Federal gunboats from the fire of Confederate land batteries. Federal soldiers labored 144 days under constant fire. 1865 -- The only remaining barrier to the completion of the canal was a large bulkhead. On January 1, the troops ignited the gun powder buried within it. The bulkhead exploded but the earth came back to rest in the newly dug canal. The project was abandoned. 1871 -- The U.S. Government completed the dredging of the gap, and opened the canal. The steamship was the first commercial vessel to use the canal. 1930 -- The Army Corps of Engineers extended the canal to the Virginia Power plant. This created Hatcher's Island and eliminated another large loop in the river.
25. DUTCH_150607_231.JPG: The James River...Floating Through The Centuries Native Americans 1500's: These boats were used by the Powhatan Indians to carry furs, food, and other trading items. First Settlers 1600's: Shallops were wider and sometimes longer than canoes. They were propelled by oars or by mast. These wide body crafts were excellent for shallow water and were a practical means to transport people and cargo from one settlement to the next. Colonists 1700's: Sloops, shallops, barges, and double canoes were some of the more popular modes of floating the James during the 18th century. Antebellum 1800's: Prior to the Civil War, the James was alive wth packets from New York, Baltimore, and Boston carrying a variety of cargo to and from Richmond. Today: Floating past Henricus today are pleasure crafts, tugboats and 10,000 ton cargo ships hauling tobacco, cotton, and other goods.
26. DUTCH_150607_237.JPG: The Tides A changing landscape -- Dutch Gap Conservation Area - A Changing Story -- One of the most dramatic changes along the James River is the daily tide. The tides originating in the Atlantic Ocean influence the river all the way to the City of Richmond. Constant sources of freshwater from replenishing rainfalls and streams in the mountain and piedmont regions of Virgina make this section of the river freshwater tidal. During low tides, mud flats and shorelines are more exposed. Birds such as the spotted sandpiper probe the exposed mud and shoreline for worms, crustaceans and fish. Raccoons and opossums scavenge along the shoreline at low tides looking for food. At high tide, smaller fish find refuge in the shallow waters along the shore. Many fishermen time their fishing with the tide. During outgoing tides, smaller fish are forced into the deeper channels where larger, predatory fish are feeding. Recognizing this feeding time, fishermen cast their lures into the water with hopes of reeling in a trophy fish. Though separated by nearly 80 nautical miles from the Chesapeake Bay and the Atlantic Ocean, the Dutch Gap Conservation Area experiences a tidal change of 3 to 3� feet. The photographs reveal the difference between low and high tide.
27. DUTCH_150607_262.JPG: The Death of a River: Resurrection of a Wetlands Because of the intervention of humans, the old river channel died. But through time and with the assistance of beavers, the old river channel was resurrected into a thriving wetland. Wetlands are habitats that benefit wildlife and humans. The Value of Wetlands: Though nearly 80 river miles from the Chesapeake Bay, this wetland improves the water quality of the bay by trapping silt and reducing pollutants. ...
28. DUTCH_150607_276.JPG: A Changing Landscape: The interaction of land, water and people Over the past 400 years, the James River and surrounding land have changed dramatically. The most recent changes occurred by human hands, but the meandering James River set the stage. It is 1611. You are standing on a peninsula overlooking the James River. The river is an important "highway" for early explorers permitting passage from the Chesapeake Bay to points further inaldn. The English settlers voyage upstream from Jamestown to establish the second English Settlement, Henricus. Unlike Jamestown, this new site provides fresh water and because of the high bluff along the narrow neck of the peninsula, a better defense. It is the 1930s. Now you are standing on Farrars Island. The James River is a vital artery for commerce. To make the travel quicker and safer for ships heading to the Richmond Port, the Army Corp [sic] of Engineers digs a mile-long channel known as the Dutch Gap Cutoff. The channel enables ships to bypass the two meanders thereby eliminating seven river-miles, and it also created Farrars and Hatcher Islands. It is the present. You are overlooking a freshwater wetland. The intervention of humans has changed the landscape dramatically. Farrars Island is now joined to the mainland. In front of you, where the James River once flowed; now a freshwater wetland exists. Behind you a bottomland forest probably flourished. Now, a mount for storing fly ash (a by-product of burning coal) rises above you. Further behind the fly ash mount and out of your side, a large tidal lagoon was created by the mining of sand and gravel.
29. DUTCH_150607_413.JPG: Highway to the Bay Visitors from the Ocean
Wikipedia Description: Henricus
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The "Citie of Henricus" , also known as Henricopolis or Henrico Town, was a city founded by Sir Thomas Dale in 1611 as an alternative to the swampy and dangerous area around Jamestown Settlement, Virginia. It was named for Prince Henry, the eldest son of King James I.

Henricus was the second successful English city in the New World and was located on the James River, just a few miles southeast of the modern city of Richmond, but at the time, one of the westernmost outlying developments from the Colony's fortified capital at Jamestown.

This city is near where Pocahontas grew up among the Appomattox tribe, where she converted to Christianity, and where she and John Rolfe fell in love, and married in 1614, living together across the river at the Varina Farms Plantation. There, a son, Thomas Rolfe, was born to the couple.

The early 17th century settlers in the young colony tried to start what would have been the first institution of higher education in the British colonies. In 1618 a royal charter was obtained for founding the University of Henrico, and in the following years land was set aside for its use. But nothing more than a school for the Native Americans had actually come into existence by 1622, when the town was destroyed in the Indian Massacre of 1622. It was not rebuilt, and Virginia had to wait until 1693 for the College of William and Mary to be established. Many historians[weasel words] believe that the successful plan submitted to the Crown for William and Mary was based largely upon the earlier efforts at Henricus.

The site of Henricus later became part of the Shire of Henrico (1634), later renamed Henrico County (1637). It was included in the area south of the James River subdivided to form Chesterfield County in 1749.

Over time, even the exact location was lost. However, in the late 20th century, the site was rediscovered and has been partially restored. Henricus Historical Park is located within the 810-acre Dutch Gap Conservation Area, portions of which were the site of major Revolutionary and Civil War action.

--

Dutch Gap
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Dutch Gap is located on the James River in Chesterfield County, Virginia near the site of the lost 17th century city of Henricus.

In 1611, Sir Thomas Dale, according to a method he had learned while campaigning in Holland, cut across a neck of land a ditch which became known as "Dale's Dutch Gap." This was an attempt to shorten the distance upriver which resulted from the broad meandering stretches of the James River between Drewry's Bluff, where the river turns east into the coastal plain and the confluence of the Appomattox River with the James below Bermuda Hundred.

During the American Civil War, Union troops tried to build a canal at Dutch Gap late in 1864 to cut off a large curl of the James threatened by Confederate forts such as Battery Dantzler. The effort failed during the war, but the canal was completed later and is now the main James River channel.

The Dutch Gap Conservation Area, which includes the archaeological site of Henricus, and an electricity-generating facility of Dominion Virginia Power Company coexist as neighbors on the south shore of the James River at Dutch Gap. Henricus Historical Park is located above Dutch Gap in Chesterfield County (subdivided from Henrico County in 1749).
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