Front Royal in Warren County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)
Richardson's Hill
Kenly Makes His Stand
| — | Battle of Front Royal - May 23, 1862 | — |
Photographed by Bradley Owen, July 22, 2025
1. Richardson's Hill Marker
Directly in front of you is the “commanding height” where Union Col. John H. Kenly made his last attempt to hold Front Royal. Atop Richardson’s Hill—this “cherty” ridge, as Gen. Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson called it—Kenly posted the two-gun section of Knap's Battery E, Pennsylvania Light Artillery. The two ten-pounder Parrott rifled cannons, commanded by Lt. Charles Atwell, pinned down the Confederates on the plain below while Kenly’s infantry gathered here to support the guns.
Kenly realized that the Union occupation of Front Royal was essential to protect the left flank of Gen. Nathaniel Banks’s main army at Strasburg. “I prepared to hold the position as long as possible,” Kenly later wrote, “for I was certain that if I did not check Jackson’s advance ... Banks was lost.” In a momentary stroke of good luck, two companies of the 5th New York Cavalry arrived from Strasburg to augment Kenly’s infantry.
Col. Bradley T. Johnson, commanding the Confederate attackers, soon countered Kenly’s deployment. While the 1st Maryland infantry (CSA) and Maj. Chatham Roberdeau Wheat’s battalion returned fire from behind the stone wall below Richardson’s Hill, the 6th Louisiana Infantry flanked the Union position to the west. In addition, Lt. Col. Thomas S. Flournoy's 6th Virginia Cavalry threatened the Federal
this page online
(Captions):
A war-time engraving of Front Royal.
Col. John R. Kenly
Lt. Charles Atwell
Erected by Virginia Civil War Trails.
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: War, US Civil. In addition, it is included in the Virginia Civil War Trails series list.
Location. 38° 56.193′ N, 78° 11.679′ W. Marker is in Front Royal, Virginia, in Warren County. It is on North Royal Avenue just north of West 15th Street, on the left when traveling north. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1500 North Royal Avenue, Front Royal VA 22630, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in the Washington Metropolitan Area and in the Shenandoah Valley. It is also in the American South, specifically in the Upper South, and in the Mid-Atlantic. 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 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Race For The River (approx. 0.4 miles away); Rose Hill (approx. half a mile away); a different marker also named Guard Hill (approx. 0.9 miles away); Brother Against Brother (approx. one mile away); Battle of Front Royal (approx. one mile away); a different marker also named Bel Air (approx. 1.2 miles away); Guard Hill Engagement (approx. 1.2 miles away); Execution of Mosby’s Men (approx. 1.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Front Royal.
Photographed by Bradley Owen, July 22, 2025
2. Richardson's Hill Marker
Related marker. Click here for another marker that is related to this marker. This marker has replaced another at this location.
Credits. This page was last revised on August 15, 2025. It was originally submitted on August 15, 2025, by Bradley Owen of Morgantown, West Virginia. This page has been viewed 172 times since then and 35 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on August 15, 2025, by Bradley Owen of Morgantown, West Virginia.
