When the war began, most residents of this part of present-day West Virginia were Confederate in their sympathies. Both Confederate and Union forces considered the wooden covered bridge here strategically important because the James River and . . . — — Map (db m34373) HM
Christopher Q. Tompkins
Born 1813 in Matthews County, VA.
Tompkins was an 1836 graduate of
West Point. A prominent industrial
businessman in the Kanawha Valley
before the Civil War, from May to
November 1861 he was colonel of
the . . . — — Map (db m138027) HM
Here New and Gauley rivers unite to form Great Kanawha River. Piers still stand of old bridge destroyed by the Confederate troops in 1861. Here Thomas Dunn English, author of the ballad, "Ben Bolt," wrote "Gauley River". — — Map (db m20818) HM
Smoke filled the sky over Gauley Bridge on July 26, 1861, as Confederate Gen. Henry B. Wise's soldiers torched the Kanawha River bridge that stood on the piers directly in front of you. That destruction, however, did not prevent Union Gen. Jacob . . . — — Map (db m242422) HM
Today we stand on a silent battlefield. The smoke of guns long since cooled hangs densely about our feet. Thousands of white crosses honor the noble dead. The wars are over. And the empty echoes of yesterday’s cannons ring dimly in our ears.
. . . — — Map (db m138034) WM
This monument erected in honor of the brave and courageous men and women who have served our country, in time of war and peace, thus helping to preserve freedom for this community, state and great nation of the United States of America and . . . — — Map (db m242420) WM
