Battle for Waynesboro

Nobody knows why General Jubal Early stationed his exhausted, mud-covered troops with their backs to the rushing South River to defend Waynesboro in a March sleet storm. The general left a gap on the left flank so large it could have held half the townspeople.

“There are a lot of theories,” said Reed Lewis, a veteran Civil War re-enactor. “It could have been arrogance, bravado or just bad judgment from days and weeks of cold, damp weather and little sleep.” The shivering soldiers – about 1,500 of them – stretched from west to east along what’s now Pine Avenue, with their cannons facing west on the ridge between 12th and 13th streets. There were no bridges available to the men: Of the two bridges over the swollen river, one was a railroad trestle and the other was across town at what’s now Florence Avenue.

When Sheridan’s men came around the flank, even the cannons were useless.

“You just can’t turn them around in a hurry,” Lewis explained.

With 10,000 or so Yankees coming on, the Battle of Waynesboro was over in a flash, as was the Valley war and Early’s military career. Surprisingly, only one Confederate soldier was killed and prisoners were marched up to Winchester where they remained for the rest of the war. Many Federal soldiers lost their lives, including one who spent his final hours upstairs in Waynesboro’s Plumb House while his comrades saw him out with song.

There are remains of the battle still visible today, said Shirley Bridgeforth, president of the Waynesboro Heritage Foundation. You can catch a glimpse of the last remaining section of the defensive breastworks behind Stone Soup Books and Café; and Yankee shells are embedded in the Plumb House door.

Durng the battle, the frightened Plumb family, realizing they were in the crossfire, fled to the basement before a cannon ball hit the house from the west side.
Bridgeforth said there’s no record of federal soldiers burning homes in Waynesboro. They did search for Early and his officers, who’d managed to cross the South River and find places to hide.

Each year, Waynesboro remembers the battle with bits of living history. On Saturday, there will be camp scenes with civil war actors performing camp site activities behind the Plumb House. Soldiers will perform drills, test their artillery and practice their signals.

Some lonesome soldiers will get out their banjos later in the day.

Lewis expects the 5th Virginia actors to be on hand, along with the Staunton artillery. Women in period dress will be there, too, said Bridgeforth. Some will be in mourning, some will be preparing a stew for the soldiers, some will be mending uniforms.

Onlookers can buy stew for lunch, accompanied by hard tack, the dense biscuits that were the objects of many complaints. Stone Soup Bookstore and Café, a few buildings away, is also offering hard tack in honor of the occasion.

Lewis said it’s fitting that Waynesboro’s Civil War memorial draws attention to the Plumbs, a local family.

“Armies moved in and out of towns all through the Valley,” he said. “But the civilians were left to bury the dead, clean up the mess, take care of damaged family members, go on with their lives. Women were expected to nurse the wounded from both sides.”

Sending a signal
Lewis will be demonstrating signals, the code communicated by specially trained men with flags of different sizes. “This is how armies were able to direct their fire correctly; or know where to charge,” Lewis said. Invented just prior to the civil war, a system of specific movements with the flags – at night they used lanterns – were taught to selected men who would then position themselves where they could see the enemy well; and be seen by their own men. Lewis said the flag movements would change meaning often, so only by advance agreement would a commanding officer know what his signal man meant. With the right flags and the right positioning, signals could be sent from as many as 25 miles away.

War relics
Waynesboro photographer Kevin Blackburn recently inherited a battle flag, passed down in his family from the long-ago uncle, Frank Lindamood, who carried it in the Battle of New Market.

“The family story is that he was walking beside the flag bearer when the man went down, so he grabbed it,” Blackburn said.

The flag, passed down to the oldest son of every generation, will be on display at the Waynesboro Heritage Museum during the anniversary celebration.
Also on display at the museum, said Bridgeforth, is a log cabin quilt made from dresses worn by Mrs. Ulysses S. Grant.

The actors, stationed around the Plumb House on Main Street, will be in place from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. At about 11 a.m., they’ll walk to the Presbyterian Cemetery, down the hill and across Main and Broad Streets to leave a wreath. Twenty-five Confederate soldiers are buried there, said Bridgeforth.

“It’s not just for show,” said Lewis. “We honor those from both sides who fought for what they believed in.”