Near Fredericksburg in Spotsylvania County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)

Lookout Tower and Signal Stations

1862-1864

Photographed by Mike McKeown, November 11, 2025

1. Lookout Tower and Signal Stations Marker

Inscription.
Confederate Lookout Tower and Signal Stations on this hill.
Lookout Towers: This strategic summit gave Confederates a command view of almost the entire operational area for Union troop movements throughout the Second Manassas, Chancellorsville, Mine Run, and Wilderness Campaigns between 1862 to 1864. During good weather every movement of Union troops was observable. Union forces were aware of this Confederate capability and consequently, many troop movements were often timed for night or inclement weather. Confederate sentries were selected for their keen eyesight. They looked for glints from the sun shining on artillery, dust from marching troops, another dust pattern from wagon trains, and smoke from camp fires. This high bluff extends for a half-mile on each side of the river crossing two hundred feet below this crest. Confederates were also able to place lookout towers on these nearby bluffs allowing them to triangulate on distant places or suspected activities to identify and determine the speed and more precise location of Union forces. Changes in Union patterns would be conveyed to Lee's headquarters for interpretation

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and analysis.

Signal Station: The Confederate Signal Service took advantage of every commanding topographical feature along the Rapidan River. Signal messages were sent by flags, torches, mirrors or by combinations of distinct signals. For the beleaguered and shorthanded Confederates, signal stations were an important means for communication and determining Union intentions. Clark Mountain, visible 18 miles southwest, was a Confederate signal station near General Lee's headquarters. Both Confederate and Union forces had detailed codes and encryption methods. Union observation towers such as Pony Mountain, visible 17 miles to the northwest, observed Confederate signals being transmitted and assigned entire departments to break the Confederate codes. Ordinary soldiers directed their attention to the ridges to foretell their fate. A "lively series of signals" from either the Confederate or Union Signal Corps meant either "they or we were preparing to move..." As one Union trooper recalled, "the feelings in which we looked at those flashes going over our heads, knowing that they must be Confederate messages," and were a " forecast that

Photographed by Evan Dwyer, March 14, 2026

2. Lookout Tower and Signal Stations Marker

The summit of the hill is in the horse pasture just beyond the fence.

they we would soon be on the match and in God's hands."

(captions)
Union Forces crossing Ely's Ford.
Typical Observation Tower.
Night Signaling.
A signal Station at Night.
Pony Mountain.

Sketch of Confederate Signal Tower

About 300 yards south of this hill stood the old Burton house used as shelter of ZO pickets and observers. On February 28, 1864, during a heavy snowstorm a detachment of Gen Kilpatrick's Union cavalry captured 16 Confederates and a Lieutenant sheltered from the cold and snow in the house.

Clark Mountain.

Erected by Spotsylvania Historical Association, Inc.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Communications • War, US Civil. A significant historical date for this entry is February 28, 1864.

Location. 38° 21.38′ N, 77° 40.696′ W. Marker is near Fredericksburg, Virginia, in Spotsylvania County. It is on Ely's Ford Road (County Route 610) 0.3 miles north of Rapidan Drive, on the right when traveling north. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 10413 Elys Ford Rd, Fredericksburg VA 22407, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is

Photographed by Mike McKeown, November 11, 2025

3. Lookout Tower and Signal Stations Marker

Marker is on the far right

in the Washington Metropolitan Area,

in Northern Virginia,

and in the Piedmont.

It is also in the American South,

specifically in the Upper South,

in the Mid-Atlantic,

and on the Eastern Seaboard. 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 3 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Legends on Horseback (here, next to this marker); Heaven and Earth (here, next to this marker); Ancient Crossroads (here, next to this marker); Ely’s Ford (a few steps from this marker); Chancellorsville Campaign (approx. 2.8 miles away); Recipe for Union Disaster (approx. 2.8 miles away); Jackson Attacks (approx. 2.8 miles away); Pressing the Attack (approx. 2.8 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Fredericksburg.

Another marker is no longer nearby. The Flying Dutchmen (was

Photographed by Evan Dwyer, March 14, 2026

4. Hill View

While not quite from the summit, this view shows the commanding elevation of the hilltop compared to the ground across the river (in the distant background) and at the river itself (down the steep road slope ahead), optimal for observation & communication from a superior height.

approx. 2.8 miles away but has been replaced with another marker now near it).

Credits. This page was last revised on April 2, 2026. It was originally submitted on November 11, 2025, by Mike McKeown of Baltimore, Maryland. This page has been viewed 86 times since then and 41 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on November 11, 2025, by Mike McKeown of Baltimore, Maryland. 2. submitted on April 2, 2026, by Evan Dwyer of Richmond, Virginia. 3. submitted on November 11, 2025, by Mike McKeown of Baltimore, Maryland. 4. submitted on April 2, 2026, by Evan Dwyer of Richmond, Virginia. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.