Hanover Junction

Photographed by Bill Coughlin, April 21, 2007

1. Hanover Junction Marker

Inscription. Two 19th-century railroads crossed at grade level just east: the Richmond, Fredericksburg & Potomac and the Virginia Central, which ran west to the Shenandoah Valley, the Confederacy’s breadbasket during the Civil War. This junction attained strategic importance in 1864 as the railroads carried supplies to Gen. Robert E. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia. Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant and the Army of the Potomac attempted to disrupt that traffic to hinder Lee and capture Richmond. The Confederates, however, successfully defended the junction during the North Anna River campaign, 21-26 May 1864, and the Union army withdrew east to Cold Harbor.

Erected 1997 by Department of Historic Resources. (Marker Number E-21.)

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Railroads & Streetcars • War, US Civil. In addition, it is included in the Virginia Department of Historic Resources (DHR) series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1864.

Location. Marker is missing. It was located near 37° 51.655′ N, 77° 27.86′ W. Marker was in Doswell, Virginia, in Hanover County. It was on Washington Highway (U.S. 1) north of Doswell Road, on the right when traveling north.

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Touch for map. Marker was at or near this postal address: 16434 Washington Hwy, Doswell VA 23047, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker was in Virginia’s Piedmont,

in Central Virginia,

and in the Richmond Metropolitan Area.

It was also in the American South

and specifically in the Upper South.

Globally, it was in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it found itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the original Thirteen Colonies,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this location, measured as the crow flies: Lee’s Movements (approx. 1.3 miles away); North Anna River Campaign (approx. 1.3 miles away); The Shenandoah Lumber Company (approx. 1.8 miles away); The Eiffel Tower (approx. 1.8 miles away); The Blue Ridge Tollway (approx. 1.8 miles away); The Scooby-Doo Ghoster Coaster (approx. 1.8 miles away); Boo Boo's Tree Swings (approx. 1.9 miles away); Ranger Smith's Jeep Tour (approx. 1.9 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Doswell.

Another marker is no longer nearby. Hanover Junction (was approx. 0.3 miles away but has been permanently removed).

Regarding Hanover Junction. The point where Doswell Road crosses the railroad junction is 0.4 miles east of here. A Virginia Civil War Trails marker previously located near that junction has since been removed.

The CWT marker near the junction has been removed. image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Bill Coughlin, April 21, 2007

2. The CWT marker near the junction has been removed.

Credits. This page was last revised on November 2, 2025. It was originally submitted on December 30, 2008, by Bill Coughlin of Woodland Park, New Jersey. This page has been viewed 2,209 times since then and 16 times this year. Last updated on November 1, 2025, by Evan Dwyer of Richmond, Virginia. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on December 30, 2008, by Bill Coughlin of Woodland Park, New Jersey. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.