EXTEND your STuDENTS’ LEArNING:
activities to follow Our Program
“LouDouN’S CIvIL WAr hErITAGE”
1. Discussion possibilities:
a. You will notice that Loudouners were divided on whether to stay loyal to the United States
or to support secession and defend their Commonwealth of Virginia in its bid with the other
Southern states for independence. Brainstorm with your class what things would make
you for “the Union” and what things would make you support independence for the South.
Would there be other things that swayed you one way or the other (for example, your
family? Your neighbors? The people in your church?
b. War can at first seem exciting, romantic, or even a great adventure, but the cost and
impact is devastating both on soldiers and on civilians. Based on the Torn Apart by
UnCivil War presentation you heard in class, what are examples of the cost to
soldiers? What are examples of the cost to civilians in a war zone like Loudoun?
c. The Civil War happened right around here. If your are curious about the Civil War, you
can learn more about it very easily, since there are Civil War sites so near our school.
What Civil War historical sites are nearby and can easily be visited? What Civil War
events happened near our school? [HINT: Use The Citizen’s Guide to Loudoun in the
Civil War that you received as an attachment where there is Section 11 “Are There Good
Civil War Sites to Visit in Loudoun?”, OR Visiting Places from the “Torn Apart By UnCivil
War” Program: Using the “Historic Loudoun County Scavenger Hunt” OR use the
Revised Chronology of the Civil War in Loudoun County you also received to come up
with ideas.
d. The landscape so well known to the Civil War soldier remained constant in Loudoun County
for many years. Recently, it is changing so much and at such a rapid pace that historic
places from the Civil War in Loudoun may well be destroyed before we realize their
importance. Are Loudoun’s people responsible for taking stops to know about and then
protect historic sites in “hallowed ground” where people died during the Civil War? Looking
at the section of the Historic Loudoun Scavenger Hunt entitled “Student Heritage Steward:
Be One in the Mosby Heritage Area”, are there things our class could do to make a positive
difference so that future kids won’t just read about history in books or websites?
2. Internet Activities: Do a search on the web to explore Loudoun and Virginia’s Civil War history.
You can start by looking at http://www.civilwar.visitloudoun.org. A really superb website, this is
Loudoun’s official Civil War Sesquicentennial web site. You can also look at Virginia’s Civil War
Sesquicentennial website, www.virginiacivilwar.org In the Historic Loudoun County Scavenger
Hunt you will see a vetted list of useful web sites on Loudoun in the Civil War. Look for good
stories, good photos, interesting people, famous people or interesting places.
3. Extending Learning Beyond Your Classroom:
a. Historic Loudoun County Scavenger Hunts
Encourage students to explore Loudoun with their families using the Historic Loudoun
County Scavenger Hunt that you and each of them have been given. Each of the three
tours (one walking, two driving) show families a variety of historical sites that have “feel”
(that little shiver down your back) and illustrate the key themes and stories of the past of
Virginia and Loudoun. It is not only reinforcement for what you study in Virginia Studies,
but enrichment as well. It helps families understand their counties, talk about history, and
have a bonding activity together. You will find that students who do the scavenger hunt
have an increased interest in history in your class afterwards and their grades often
improve. The sites have been carefully selected—we recommend you visit them, too.
Getting students and their families to do the Scavenger Hunt :
1) The Mosby Heritage Area Association offers students a Mosby Heritage Area t-shirt
for completing any two of the three tours in the scavenger hunt booklet. It’s a good
bribe, since kids like the shirt (so do parents—we’ll sell them one at cost!) We give
out two shirts to the family that completes all three of the tours.
2) Give extra credit to students who photograph themselves at at least five of the sites
in the Scavenger Hunt. You may wish to have them use the guide we’ve given you
to sites in the scavenger hunt that were discussed in the Torn Apart by UnCivil War
program such that they photograph themselves at sites they’ve heard stories from.
3) Have your class challenge a team-mate’s class to a scavenger hunt duel! Who
can have the most students (you could even include brothers, sisters, moms, and
dads!) photograph themselves at five historic sites, or who completes the most
scavenger hunts? Students doing all three in the booklet could boost your numbers!
b. Virginia Time Travelers Program
This is a program sponsored by the Virginia Association of Museums to get kids to explore
Virginia historic sites. Students get a “passport” and by visiting six sites, they get a “Time
Travelers” t-shirt. They can get their passport and a list of participating sites statewide by
going to www.timetravelers.org . This encourages families to include historic sites in their
Virginia family travel itineraries. You can always reward this with extra credit or encourage
It over spring break, holiday weekends, or summer vacation.
c. . Encourage Students and their Families to Attend Local Historical Programming
By visiting the Mosby Heritage Area Association’s website, www.mosbyheritagearea.org,
you and your students can learn of a number of upcoming historical programs. In 2013, we
think kids and families will especially like “Mosby Along the Turnpike” in which storytellers
in period dress/uniform will share stories of Loudoun’s Civil War experience at Mount Zion
Church, historic Aldie Mill, and at the Caleb Rector House at Atoka (Rector’s Crossroads),
all along Route 50, and all interwoven. This program will be on Saturday April 27th from
12-5:00. We have living history lantern-lit programs at Rector House on Saturday
evenings June 8 & 15 at 7:30 p.m. Our evening programs have an admission fee. On
Saturday September 7th there will be a similar program at Claude Moore Park in Sterling.
d. Encourage Student Reading on Local History—We recommend these paperbacks:
Laura Elliott’s Annie Between the States, a young reader’s Loudoun Civil War novel OR
Stephan F. Meserve’s illustrated The Civil War in Loudoun County--A History of Hard
Times. Both are available at www.amazon.com .
. . . And share the attached Loudoun Civil War Sesquicentennial Calendar with students!
LOUDOUN COUNTY CIVIL WAR SESQUICENTENNIAL
2013 PROGRAMS & EVENTS
March 24
Conversations in History: 1863 –Hoofbeats in the Heritage Area. 3:00 PM
Guest speaker Rich Gillespie of the Mosby Heritage Area Association examines
our region’s activities during 1863 and their impact on soldiers and civilians alike
5 adults; $2 students; co-sponsored by Mosby Heritage Area Association and Northern Virginia
Regional Park Authority. 540-687-6681 or www.mosbyheritagearea.org.
April 6
Ball’s Bluff Battlefield Tours, 11:00 AM and 1:00 PM, every Saturday and Sunday through
December 1. Free. Ball’s Bluff Battlefield Regional Park, Ball’s Bluff Road, Leesburg, 703737-7800, www.templehallfarm@nvrpa.org.
April 13
The Civil War Legacy Project: Document Digitization and Access, 10:00-4:00, Thomas
Balch Library, 208 West Market Street, Leesburg. Local residents invited to bring family
manuscripts from the Civil War era to be scanned for inclusion in a statewide online collection of
original Civil War era documents that still remain in private hands. Appointment necessary; call
Tracy Gillespie 703-327-9777. Co-sponsored by Loudoun Civil War Sesquicentennial
Committee and Balch Library, offered in conjunction with the Virginia Sesquicentennial of the
American Civil War Commission and the Library of Virginia. Free.
April 15
Let’s Talk About It! Making Sense of the American Civil War presented by Associate
Professor Chris Hamner, 7:00-9:00 PM Gum Spring Library, 24600 Millstream Drive, Aldie.
Following sessions held Mondays, April 22 & 29 and Thursday, May 6. Registration required.
A four-part reading and scholar-led discussion series to encourage participants to consider the
legacy of the Civil War and emancipation. The featured books will be available for registered
participants at the Gum Spring Library Adult Services Desk beginning March 18:
Crossroads of Freedom: Antietam by James McPherson (Oxford University Press, 2002)
America's War: Talking About the Civil War and Emancipation on Their 150th Anniversaries,
edited by national project scholar Edward L. Ayers and co-published by NEH and ALA.
April 22
Let’s Talk About It! Making Sense of the American Civil War. See April 15 listing.
April 27
Mosby: Scout Along the Turnpike. 12:00-5:00 PM. Members of the Gray Ghost Interpretive
Group interpret the guerilla warfare between Mosby’s Rangers and Union forces in Northern
Virginia at Mt. Zion, Aldie Mill and Caleb Rector House, and tell of the impact on the civilian
community. Free admission; donations gladly accepted. Co-sponsored by Mosby Heritage Area
and Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority. 540-687-6681.
April 28
Eyewitness to War: Fourth Sundays at Mt. Zion 1:00-5:00 Civil War living history with
guided tours of church & cemetery; Union medical impressions; Civil War graffiti on display;
free, but donations accepted. Sponsored by Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority.
703-327-9777
April 29
Let’s Talk About It! Making Sense of the American Civil War. See April 15 listing.
May 5
Mosby Ride. 10:00 am. Trailer in your horse for a guided ride focusing on the Civil War
stories in and around the Ebenezer Churches, followed by lunch and a program. $50
nonmembers, $45 past participant and members; $30 nonmembers/lunch only, $25 members
lunch only. Sponsored by Mosby Heritage Area 540-687-6681 or info@mosbyheritagearea.org
May 6
Let’s Talk About It! Making Sense of the American Civil War. See April 15 listing.
May 10
The Man Behind the Stone Wall: D.H. Hill and the Death of T.J. Jackson. 7:00 pm
General Daniel Harvey Hill, 1861-62 Confederate Commander in Leesburg, returns to Mt. Zion
in the person of guest speaker Douglas Batson, a Defense Department geographer and historian.
Based on D.H. Hill’s actual letters to his wife, Isabella, Doug and his wife, Terri, give first
person impressions of the events leading up to the tragic death of their brother-in-law, General
Stonewall Jackson, on May 10, 1863. General Hill, a prolific writer on Christian thought before
the war, will give a eulogy from the pulpit of Mt. Zion. $2 per person; students free. Sponsored
by the Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority. 703-327-9777, www.nvrpa.org/mt_zion.
May 11
Tri-War Dedication Ceremony for Veterans at Arnold Grove Cemetery, Hillsboro.
Twenty-two graves of veterans from the Revolutionary War, War of 1812 and Civil War will be
commemorated and dedicated. Visit www.arnoldgrove.weebly.com for details.
May 18-19
Civil War Medical Encampment – 10:00-5:00. Living history, recreating Mt. Zion as a Union
army hospital during the war. Free; donations accepted. Sponsored by the Northern Virginia
Regional Park Authority.703-327-9777, www.nvrpa.org/mt_zion.
May 26
Eyewitness to War: Fourth Sundays at Mt. Zion 1:00-5:00 Civil War living history with
guided tours of church & cemetery; Union medical impressions; Civil War graffiti on display;
free, but donations accepted. Sponsored by Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority. 703327-9777, www.nvrpa.org/mt_zion.
June 2
Vintage Base Ball 1:00-4:00 pm. Enjoy base ball played by rules of the mid-1860s. Bring a
lawn chair or blanket to watch the Old Dominions vs. the Potomac Base Ball Club. Concessions
available. No pets, no alcohol. Gates open at noon. $20 per vehicle, $50 per bus. Sponsored by
Oatlands, 20850 Oatlands Plantation Lane, Leesburg. 703-777-3174, www.oatlands.org.
June 7
Mosby and Stuart Talk by Bob O’Neill, Author Bob O’Neill will give a talk on his latest book
about J.E.B. Stuart and John Singleton Mosby. This talk kicks off the annual Mosby’s Rangers
Descendants Reunion Weekend. Open to public. $25 MHAA members, $30 nonmembers
Sponsored by the Mosby Heritage Area Association, 540-687-6681.
June 8
Mosby Ranger Descendant Reunion. 10:00am – 3:00pm Middleburg Community Center
300 W. Washington St, Middleburg, VA 20117. Descendants of Mosby’s Rangers and
interested parties gather for programs, which includes a roll call of all the companies who rode
with Mosby, lunch, and tours of local cemeteries and Mosby sites. Lunch included. Open to the
public. $25 each. 540-687-6681 or info@mosbyheritagearea.org
June 8
Cavaliers, Courage and Coffee Program: Mosby’s Rangers 7:30pm. Rector House
1461 Atoka Road, Marshall, VA 20115. Stories from the Mosby Heritage Area during the time
of the American Civil War are presented in first person by the Gray Ghost Interpretive Group.
This entertaining and enlightening program will include stories about the famous Col. John S.
Mosby and his Rangers. $8 for adults, $4 for students. 540-687-6681 or
info@mosbyheritagearea.org
June 9
Mosby Safe Houses Tour 1:00-4:00pm. Several of the homes that were known to be safe
houses for Mosby’s Rangers will be open for tour this afternoon. Exact homes and details to
follow. $30 MHAA members, $40 non members. 540-687-6681 or info@mosbyheritagearea.org
June 14-16
150th Commemoration: The Cavalry Battles of Aldie, Middleburg & Upperville
Lecture Friday evening 7PM at Mt. Zion Historic Park by historian Robert O’Neill and
dedication of plaque to Civil War correspondent Lynde Walter Buckingham; Saturday 11AM
living history & skirmish in Aldie and 2PM skirmish on Snickersville Turnpike; Sunday 9AM
program and living history in Middleburg area; details TBA.
June 22-23
The Long March North to Gettysburg: Major-General Winfield S. Hancock’s 2nd Army Corps
9:00-5:00 Sat.; 9:00-3:00 Sun. Living history program and encampment recreating Hancock’s field
headquarters as it would have appeared on the days leading up to the Battle of Gettysburg 150 years ago,
when the 2nd Corps passed through the Aldie area and encamped nearby in June of 1863. Presented by
the Historical Interpretive Branch of the Winfield Scott Hancock Society. $5 adults; $2 students under
10; Children under five admitted free. Sponsored by Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority.
703-327-9777. www.nvrpa.org/mt_zion
July 28
Eyewitness to War: Fourth Sundays at Mt. Zion 1:00-5:00. Civil War living history with
guided tours of church & cemetery; Union medical impressions; Civil War graffiti on display;
free, but donations accepted. Sponsored by Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority. 703327-9777, www.nvrpa.org/mt_zion
August 25
Eyewitness to War: Fourth Sundays at Mt. Zion 1:00-5:00. Civil War living history with
guided tours of church & cemetery; Union medical impressions; Civil War graffiti on display;
free, but donations accepted. Sponsored by Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority. 703327-9777, www.nvrpa.org/mt_zion
September 7 Cavaliers, Courage & Coffee Program. 7:30pm. Location TBA. Stories from the Mosby
Heritage Area during the time of the American Civil War are presented in first person by the
Gray Ghost Interpretive Group. This entertaining and enlightening program will include stories
about the famous Col. John S. Mosby and his Rangers. $8 for adults, $4 for students. 540-6876681 or info@mosbyheritagearea.org
Sept. 19
Conversations in History: “There was a Want of Vigilance – The Battle of Bristoe Station”;
guest speaker Rob Orrison. $5 adults; $2 students; co-sponsored by Mosby Heritage Area
Association and the Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority. 540-687-6681 or
info@mosbyheritagearea.org
September 22 Eyewitness to War: Fourth Sundays at Mt. Zion 1:00-5:00. Civil War living history with
guided tours of church & cemetery; Union medical impressions; Civil War graffiti on display;
free, but donations accepted. Sponsored by Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority. 703327-9777; www.nvrpa.org/mt_zion
October 4-6 16th Annual Conference on the Art of Command in the Civil War. Middleburg Community
Center 300 W. Washington St, Middleburg, VA 20117. This award-winning conference, now in
its 16th year, gathers experts and historians from around the country for a robust conference,
including tours and discussions, focusing on command in the Civil War. 540-687-6681 or
info@mosbyheritagearea.org
October 19 Battlefield Illumination, 6:30-8:00 PM. Free. Ball’s Bluff Battlefield Regional Park, Ball’s
Bluff Road, Leesburg, 703-737-7800, www.templehallfarm@nvrpa.org. Will include luminaries
and the playing of taps on the hour and half hour.
October 27
Eyewitness to War: Fourth Sundays at Mt. Zion 1:00-5:00 Civil War living history with
guided tours of church & cemetery; Union medical impressions; Civil War graffiti on display;
free, but donations accepted. Sponsored by Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority. 703327-9777, www.nvrpa.org/mt_zion
November 2
Cavaliers, Courage & Coffee Program, 7:30pm, Details TBA. $8 for adults, $4 for students.
540-687-6681 or info@mosbyheritagearea.org
November 23 Chrysanthemum Jubilee A Victorian Ball complete with parlor games, the Virginia Reel and
various dances, festive libations and a feast. Cocktail attire very welcome, period dress or kilt
encouraged. Details TBA. 540-687-6681 or info@mosbyheritagearea.org
December 8
A Civil War Christmas. 4:00–7:00 PM Celebrate Christmas with Civil War soldiers in camp,
decorate their tree and join in other holiday festivities of the19th century. Free admission;
donations accepted.
Visit www.civilwar.visitloudoun.org for updated information.
The Loudoun County Sesquicentennial of the American Civil War Committee was established by the Loudoun Board of
Supervisors on December 2, 2008 to coordinate the commemoration of the American Civil War in Loudoun County and
to participate in the Commonwealth of Virginia’s state-wide efforts to remember all who lived, fought and died during
this defining time in our American history, resulting in an inclusive, positive legacy and long-term benefit for residents of
and visitors to Loudoun County.
Updated 3/13/13