“Victory at Chancellorsville!”

We received tonight some great news from our friends at the Civil War Trust. We’ll let Mark Coombs, the Trust’s manager for state and local relations, share it with you himself:

Dear Friends of Preservation,

We did it!

On Tuesday night, thanks to your help, the Spotsylvania County Board of Supervisors voted to approve the “Legends of Chancellorsville” proposal detailed here by The Free Lance-Star. This project, which will conserve roughly 480 acres of core battlefield land at Chancellorsville, is not only a victory for preservation, but a tribute to the power of partnerships. 

I would be remiss if I did not recognize two partners in particular, as the steadfast support of the Central Virginia Battlefields Trust and the Friends of Wilderness Battlefield made this victory possible. Thank you — with equal enthusiasm — to everyone who turned out to stand and speak in support of the project at the public hearing earlier this week. Without you, the fate of the hundreds of acres of hallowed ground protected as a result of this proposal could very well have remained uncertain for years to come; instead, you can look to the future with confidence that this storied site will endure forever as a living monument to our nation’s veterans and a one-of-a-kind outdoor classroom for Americans of all ages.

With the success of this project — and the genuinely collaborative process that has distinguished it from day one — the Spotsylvania preservation community and Silver Companies have proven once again that preservation and progress need not be mutually exclusive. Simply stated, the two work best when they work together.

Now as before, I send my congratulations and thanks again to all.

Yours in gratitude,

Mark P. Coombs
Manager, State and Local Relations
Civil War Trust