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

The Third Battle of Winchester

Hackwood House

By Craig Swain, August 26, 2007

1. The Third Battle of Winchester Marker

Inscription. Prominent Virginian John Smith was charged with guarding prisoners of war held in Winchester during the Revolutionary War. He purportedly had this stately home (in front of you) built by Hessian and British prisoners around 1777.

During the fighting at the Third Battle of Winchester, Gordon's Confederate troops formed around the Hackwood House and its outbuildings. At 3 p.m. the Union Eighth, Sixth, and Nineteenth Corps attacked. Col. Thoburn of the Eighth Corps described what happened next: "A succession of stone walls gave excellent cover to the enemy, and from behind them we received a very severe musketry fire...but we steadily advanced and beat back the enemy."

When it was over, recalled James Franklin Fitts of the 12th Connecticut, "the Rebel dead lay thickly in the fields beyond, and were piled upon each other in the yard of a large stone mansion...A ghastly row of gray-clad corpses lay along a wall, behind which some Rebel brigade had evidently found shelter; and the fields and hillsides as far as Winchester were dotted with the fallen."

Erected by Civil War Preservation Trust.

Location. 39° 12.124′ N, 78° 7.695′ W. Marker is in Winchester, Virginia, in Frederick County.

Help Preserve 3rd Winchester image. Click for more information.

2. Help Preserve 3rd Winchester

Details of CWPT efforts to save this battlefield.
Click for more information.

Marker can be reached from Redbud Road (County Route 661), on the right when traveling east. Touch for map. Located at the Hackwood Wayside, along the Battle Trail, inside the CWPT Third Winchester Battlefield site. The closest trailhead to this marker is along Redbud Road. Marker is in this post office area: Winchester VA 22603, United States of America.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. A different marker also named The Third Battle of Winchester (about 500 feet away, measured in a direct line); a different marker also named The Third Battle of Winchester (about 500 feet away); a different marker also named The Third Battle of Winchester (about 700 feet away); The Third Battle of Winchester (about 800 feet away); a different marker also named The Third Battle of Winchester (approx. 0.2 miles away); a different marker also named The Third Battle of Winchester (approx. 0.2 miles away); a different marker also named The Third Battle of Winchester (approx. ¼ mile away); a different marker also named The Third Battle of Winchester (approx. ¼ mile away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Winchester.

More about this marker. On the lower left is a photograph of Hackwood House, "The fighting on September 19 left the house partially demolished. Various owners have worked to restore it to its original grandeur

The Battle Map image. Click for full size.

By Craig Swain, August 26, 2007

3. The Battle Map

throughout the twentieth and twenty-first centuries." (Photo courtesy of the U.S. Army Military History Institute. Period sketch (in background) by J.E. Taylor, courtesy of the Western Reserve Historical Society.)

A portrait of General Gordon in the center is captioned, "Confederate General John B. Gordon's division fought a valiant but unsuccessful fight trying to stop the Union Eighth Corps." (Image courtesy of the Library of Congress.)

A map of the tactical situation between 3:30 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. on September 19, 1864 is on the right.

Also see . . .
1. Summary of the Battle of Third Winchester. The action described on the marker falls under Phase 8 of this National Parks Service summary. (Submitted on October 26, 2007, by Craig Swain of Leesburg, Virginia.)

2. CWPT Walking Tour of The Third Battle of Winchester. This marker is one along the walking trail around a portion of the Third Winchester Battlefield, preserved by the Civil War Preservation Trust. (Submitted on October 26, 2007, by Craig Swain of Leesburg, Virginia.)

Categories. • War, US Civil •

Hackwood Wayside image. Click for full size.

By Craig Swain, August 26, 2007

4. Hackwood Wayside

As the Federal attack gathered momentum, between 3:30 and 4:00 p.m. Thoburn's division advanced on an axis to the left side of this view. Hayes Division advanced on the right side of this view.

Hackwood House Today image. Click for full size.

By Craig Swain, August 26, 2007

5. Hackwood House Today

Hackwood House Photo from the Marker image. Click for full size.

By Craig Swain, August 26, 2007

6. Hackwood House Photo from the Marker

Note the tents placed on the grounds just beside the house.

Modern View of Hackwood from the South image. Click for full size.

By Craig Swain, March 15, 2008

7. Modern View of Hackwood from the South

Compare to the photo from the marker above. The angle of this photo, from the marker location, is a bit off, but clearly several of the original outbuildings remain.

Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. This page originally submitted on October 26, 2007, by Craig Swain of Leesburg, Virginia. This page has been viewed 2,318 times since then and 20 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on October 26, 2007, by Craig Swain of Leesburg, Virginia. 2. submitted on March 13, 2009, by Craig Swain of Leesburg, Virginia. 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on October 26, 2007, by Craig Swain of Leesburg, Virginia. 7. submitted on March 16, 2008, by Craig Swain of Leesburg, Virginia.