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Meherrin in Prince Edward County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)
 

Meherrin Station

“Wrapt in Smoke”

— Wilson-Kautz Raid —

 
 
Meherrin Station CWT Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Bernard Fisher, August 22, 2004
1. Meherrin Station CWT Marker
Inscription.
In June 1864, to deny Gen. Robert E. Lee the use of the South Side R.R. and the Richmond and Danville R.R., Gen. Ulysses S. Grant sent Gen. James H. Wilson and Gen. August V. Kautz south of Petersburg on a cavalry raid to destroy track and rolling stock. Wilson, entrenched at Nottoway Court House, received word of Kautz’s success in destroying Burkeville Junction early on the morning of June 24. He therefore decided to withdraw from the field by the Hungarytown Road and join Kautz at Meherrin Station, which stood here. Wilson’s advance arrived here about 3 p.m. the same day.

“About five o’clock we reached Meherrin’s Station…on the Danville Railroad. Here in both directions could be seen the desolating effects of war. The Depot was burnt to the ground, the water tank was still standing but its supporting posts were slowly consuming. The road bed was wrapt in smoke as far as the eye could reach…and the few inhabitants visible were dejected and despairing, and although now cringing, their dislike toward us could [not] be entirely hid.”
- Quartermaster Sgt. Roger Hannaford, 2d Ohio Cavalry

[Sidebar:]
Confederate president Jefferson Davis, members of his Cabinet, and a guard from the Confederate navy to protect the Confederate treasury passed through Meherrin
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Station on their way to Danville after the evacuation of Richmond on April 2, 1865. Meherrin Station, like so many other communities on the Richmond and Danville R.R., was used as a water and fuel stop. While there is no documentary proof, it is probable that the train stopped in Meherrin Station to refuel before continuing south. Davis assembled the remnants of his government at the Sutherlin Mansion (now a museum) in Danville, making that city the last capital of the Confederacy. Since then, there have been persistent rumors of Confederate gold buried along Davis’s escape route to prevent its capture by Federal forces. Those rumors have become folklore, and people continue to hunt for the gold.

 
Erected by Virginia Civil War Trails.
 
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Railroads & StreetcarsWar, US Civil. In addition, it is included in the Virginia Civil War Trails series list. A significant historical month for this entry is April 1987.
 
Location. 37° 6.175′ N, 78° 22.027′ W. Marker is in Meherrin, Virginia, in Prince Edward County. Marker is at the intersection of Moores Ordinary Road (Virginia Route 728) and Stagecoach Road (County Route 630), on the left when traveling west on Moores Ordinary Road. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Meherrin VA 23954, United States of America. Touch for directions.
 
Other nearby markers. At least
Destruction of Genl. Lees lines of Communication in Virginia by Genl. Wilson image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Alfred Rudolph Waud, Jun 1864
2. Destruction of Genl. Lees lines of Communication in Virginia by Genl. Wilson
Library of Congress [LC-DIG-ppmsca-22456]
8 other markers are within 7 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. St. Matthew's Lutheran Church Christian Day School (approx. one mile away); Blanche Kelso Bruce (approx. 3.8 miles away); CCC Company 1390 (approx. 3.8 miles away); Charlotte County / Prince Edward County (approx. 4.7 miles away); Mount Pleasant Methodist Church (approx. 5.1 miles away); Joseph Morton (approx. 6.1 miles away); Old Briery Church (approx. 6.1 miles away); Four Locust Farm (approx. 6.6 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Meherrin.
 
More about this marker. On the center panel is a large sketch with the caption, “Artist Alfred R. Waud’s wartime drawing of Wilson’s Raid” and a smaller sketch depicting the destruction of track by Union soldiers. On the right sidebar is a photo of “Jefferson Davis”
 
Richmond & Danville RR line image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Bernard Fisher, May 18, 2010
3. Richmond & Danville RR line
Meherrin, Virginia image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Bernard Fisher, August 22, 2004
4. Meherrin, Virginia
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on November 11, 2021. It was originally submitted on May 22, 2009, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia. This page has been viewed 1,694 times since then and 33 times this year. Photos:   1. submitted on May 22, 2009, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia.   2, 3. submitted on May 22, 2010, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia.   4. submitted on May 22, 2009, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia.

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Mar. 18, 2024