Henrico in Henrico County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)

A Battlefield Landmark

— Richmond National Battlefield Park —

Photographed by Bernard Fisher, September 6, 2011

1. A Battlefield Landmark Marker

Inscription. The Thomas J. West house stood as a prominent part of the battlefield scene—a goal for attacking Confederates and a landmark along the Union line. Most of the fresh Federal troops marching to the front on July 1 moved past this house, coming under direct fire for the first time here.

The Binford farm stretched behind the West House to the southeast. Union reserves crammed every corner of the field, awaiting their chance. “It was a great and grand sight, the like of which in all probability I shall never see again,” wrote a Third Corps soldier. “Lines of Battle were formed almost as far as the eye could reach.”

“The family, with some of their neighbors, in consternation fled into the cellar….The head of the house in great distress enquired, ‘What shall I do?’ There was a dressing-table draped with red cloth, and I suggested that it be torn off and fastened on a long pole over the house, in the hope that it might alter the range of the shots.”
Chaplain Edward D. Neill, 1st Minnesota Infantry

(caption) Sketch by Union mapmaker, Private Robert K. Sneden. Virginia Historical Society
The current house was built in the 1900s atop the foundation of the wartime West house.

Erected 2011 by National Park Service, U.S. Department

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Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: War, US Civil. A significant historical date for this entry is July 1, 1862.

Location. 37° 24.814′ N, 77° 14.929′ W. Marker is in Henrico, Virginia, in Henrico County. It can be reached from Willis Church Road (Virginia Route 156) 0.2 miles north of Carters Mill Road (County Road 606), on the left when traveling north. Marker is located in the Malvern Hill Unit of Richmond National Battlefield Park. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 9175 Willis Church Road, Henrico VA 23231, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Virginia’s Piedmont,

in Central Virginia,

and in the Richmond Metropolitan Area.

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: The West House (a few steps from this marker); Seven Days Battles (a few steps from this marker); Artillery’s Terrible Effect (within shouting distance of this marker); The Battle of Malvern Hill (within shouting distance of this marker); Battlefield of Malvern Hill (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Battlefield Landscape (about 300 feet away); Southern Valor vs. Union Firepower (about 400 feet away); Malvern Hill (about 400 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Henrico.

Also see . . .
1. The Battle of Malvern Hill. Richmond National Battlefield Park (Submitted on September 7, 2011.)

2. Malvern Hill. American Battlefield

Malvern Hill Trail image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Bernard Fisher, September 6, 2011

2. Malvern Hill Trail

Trust (Submitted on September 7, 2011.)

Site of the West House image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Bernard Fisher, September 6, 2011

3. Site of the West House

Credits. This page was last revised on September 21, 2024. It was originally submitted on September 7, 2011, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia. This page has been viewed 856 times since then and 46 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on September 7, 2011, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia.