Any Civil War buffs out there, a victory in Virginia!
Fri Jan 28, 2011 6:18 pm
Walmart has decided not to build a store on the Wilderness Battlefield in Virginia. A clear victory for not the north or south but for battlefield preservation. www.civilwar.org/aboutus/news/news-rele ... plans.html
Re: Any Civil War buffs out there, a victory in Virginia!
Fri Jan 28, 2011 7:41 pm
Just about no matter where you go, someone was killed or died there whether it be a war, an Indian burial ground, or New York City. At least if they dug a foundation you could sift out all the uniform buttons and bullets and sell them... 
Re: Any Civil War buffs out there, a victory in Virginia!
Sat Jan 29, 2011 12:39 am
Col Rohr and I were just there. Thats a godsend considering there is a Walmart within 20min driving distance. There isn''t much left besides the trenches , its kind of sad.
Re: Any Civil War buffs out there, a victory in Virginia!
Sat Jan 29, 2011 6:12 am
bdk...Shirley you are joking???
Re: Any Civil War buffs out there, a victory in Virginia!
Sat Jan 29, 2011 9:14 am
Terrible............there are battlefields everywhere, you just can't have enough Walmarts!
Re: Any Civil War buffs out there, a victory in Virginia!
Sat Jan 29, 2011 11:37 am
Obergrafeter wrote:Terrible............there are battlefields everywhere, you just can't have enough Walmarts!
LOL!!!
Re: Any Civil War buffs out there, a victory in Virginia!
Sat Jan 29, 2011 12:43 pm
Hmm. Looking at the battle maps on the site, the proposed store was at the extreme edge of the sprawling battlefield area, about 3 miles from the main scene of the fighting, and with no positions or events marked on what would be the store premises.
So now that Wal-Mart has backed down, who owns this property and what is to be done with it? It seems too remote from the center stage of the battle to have any tourism value.
If it were kept as something like a nature preserve, at least it could still have some quasi-useful function.
I think that every place I have ever lived was within 3 miles of at least one historical battle, except for a 5-year stint in Los Angeles. Depending on your perspective, I guess it's either lucky for me or unfortunate for history that the houses I lived in were allowed to be built!
August
So now that Wal-Mart has backed down, who owns this property and what is to be done with it? It seems too remote from the center stage of the battle to have any tourism value.
If it were kept as something like a nature preserve, at least it could still have some quasi-useful function.
I think that every place I have ever lived was within 3 miles of at least one historical battle, except for a 5-year stint in Los Angeles. Depending on your perspective, I guess it's either lucky for me or unfortunate for history that the houses I lived in were allowed to be built!
August