GREAT DRIVES WITH MARKING THE 150TH


capitalregionusa.org ANNIVERSARY OF THE CIVIL WAR IN DC


★ As the nation’s capital, Washington, DC found itself at the epicenter of the American Civil War. Major battles were waged within a short distance of the city, where Abraham Lincoln presided over the beleaguered US government and where the Union war strategy coalesced.


★ Throughout the city, cultural institutions, museums and theaters will mark the 150th Anniversary through special exhibitions, events and off erings that complement the landmarks on every history- minded visitor’s must-see list. Discover special programs at Ford’s Theatre, where President Lincoln was assassinated in 1865. See a featured exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery or the National Museum of American History.


★ Learn about espionage during the war at the International Spy Museum and browse the history gallery at the Willard InterContinental Washington, which served as a gathering place for both sides of the confl ict. (washington.org)


Once across the river, they were helped by Elizabeth


Quesenberry, a member of the Confederate Underground, who prepared food and arranged fresh horses for the two men. Sarah Jane Peyton was home at Civil War Trails site Peyton


House when Booth and Herold arrived. Deciding since the man of the house was not around it was not appropriate to have two gentlemen in her parlour, she sent them to the Garrett Farm, where the fi nal drama was played out. Trapped in Garrett’s barn by Federal troops, Booth and Herold


refused to come out. When the cavalry set fi re to the tobacco barn, Herold surrendered but Booth refused. He was shot through the neck and then carried from the burning barn to the porch of Garrett’s house, where he died. A historical marker near the spot reads: “T is is the Garrett place


where John Wilkes Booth, assassin of Lincoln, was cornered by Union soldiers and killed, April 26, 1865. T e house stood a short distance from this spot.”


Ford’s Theatre


WATERFRONT VIEWS AND SOARING BALD EAGLES


★ Early on the Escape of an Assassin Civil War Trail, near Clinton, visit National Harbor, Maryland’s newest destination on the Potomac River. It has a variety of hotels and a wealth of restaurants off ering water-view dining. Rent a boat for a waterside view of National Harbor and the Nation’s Capital.


★ After crossing the Potomac River into Virginia, check out Caledon Natural Area, home to one of the largest concentrations of Bald Eagles on the East Coast of the United States.


★ Nearby Stratford Hall, the birthplace of Robert E Lee, sits on a bluff overlooking the Potomac River. The Great House was built in the 1730s, and today the site includes nature trails, a gristmill and formal gardens.


Stratford Hall


For more information about these and other Civil War Trails – with accompanying maps – log on to civilwartrails.org


capitalregionusa.org


Many Capital Region country roads follow the path of those used during the Civil War


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