Gambles Hill in Richmond, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)
Confederate Laboratory
Photographed by Bernard Fisher, November 3, 2009
1. Confederate Laboratory Marker
During the Civil War, the hazardous work of loading powder was carried out here on Browns Island because of its separation from the city by water. On March 13, 1864, a huge explosion killed 46 workers – mostly women whom hard times had forced into this dangerous occupation.
Erected by Richmond Riverfront Canal Walk.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: War, US Civil. A significant historical month for this entry is March 1863.
Location. 37° 32.058′ N, 77° 26.545′ W. Marker is in Richmond, Virginia. It is in Gambles Hill. It can be reached from the intersection of South 7th Street and Tredegar Street. This marker is on the Richmond Riverfront Canal Walk on Brown's Island. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Richmond VA 23219, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Central Virginia. It is also in the American South and specifically in the Upper South. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region, North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds 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 walking distance of this marker: Electricity for Streetcars (within shouting distance of this marker); Albemarle Paper (within shouting distance of this marker); John Jasper (within shouting distance of this marker); "The Headman" (within shouting distance of this marker); R&P Railroad Piers
this page online
Related markers. Click here for a list of markers that are related to this marker.
Also see . . .
1. Confederate States Laboratory. Civil War Richmond (Submitted on November 5, 2009.)
2. Richmond Riverfront Canal Walk. Venture Richmond (Submitted on November 5, 2009.)
3. Women and Girls in the Brown's Island Explosion. Civil War Women (Submitted on November 5, 2009.)
Photographed by Bernard Fisher, November 3, 2009
2. Richmond Riverfront Canal Walk
Photographed by Alexander Gardner, Apr 1865
3. Richmond, Virginia. Ruins of State Arsenal
The frame buildings visible on the far side of the Haxall Canal are the Confederate Laboratories on Brown's Island.Library of Congress [LC-B811- 884]
Photographed by Bernard Fisher, September 20, 2009
4. Shockoe Hill Cemetery
Fourteen of the victims of the March 1863 explosion are buried in this unmarked section of Shockoe Hill cemetery.
Photographed by Bernard Fisher, November 5, 2009
5. UDC Monument in Oakwood Cemetery
Though their hands were small and not hardened in battle their service to the Confederacy looms large.
May this stone serve as a perpetual memorial to the dedication and sacrifice of these forgotten and unsung victims.
"Let us remember them as time and tide move on in endless rhyme while bud and blossom, hill and tree
remember them, so shall we." Oliver Reeves
Erected by Virginia Division,
United Daughters of the Confederacy,
Dedicated September 15, 2001
Photographed by Bernard Fisher, November 5, 2009
6. Names and ages of the victims.
Mary Ryan, 18 Mary Blessingham, 12 Eliza Willis, 10 Elizabeth Young, 33 Mary Archer, 12 Sarah Haney Annie Peddicord Mary Annie Garnett, 13 Barbara A. Jackson, 16 Robert S. Chaple, 15 Elizabeth S. Moore, 15 Delia Clemens, 20 Sarah Foster, 14 Sarah Marshall, 67 Rev John H. Woodcock, 63 Alice Johnson, 17 Mary E. Valentine, 14 Margaret Drustly, 16 Amelia Diefenback, 15 Mary Zerhum, 12 Anne E. Bolton, 14 Nannie Horan, 14 Virginia E. Page, 13 Mary Ellen Wallace, 12 Emma Virginia Blankenshp, 15 Margaret Alexander, 15 Caroline Zietenheimer, 16 Martha Clemmons, 25 James Currie Mary OBrien Martha Burley Martha Daley Mrs. Ann Dodson Julia A. Brannon Mary Rowlin Catherine McCarthy Mary Zinginham Mary Whitehurst Maria Brien Ella Smith Annie Davis Mary Cushing Louisa Ricely Ellen Sullivan Mary OConnors Virginia A. Mayer, 12
Credits. This page was last revised on February 1, 2023. It was originally submitted on November 5, 2009, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia. This page has been viewed 2,499 times since then and 47 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on November 5, 2009, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia.
