Civil War buffs hope to preserve most endangered battlefields

WASHINGTON – The Civil War Preservation Trust recently unveiled its annual report on the status of the nation’s historic battlegrounds, identifying the most threatened Civil War sites in the United States and what can be done to rescue them.

The top 10 endangered battlefields cited in the report are: Atlanta, Ga.; Bentonville, N.C.; Chancellorsville, Va.; Corinth, Miss.; Franklin, Tenn.; Gaines’ Mill and Cold Harbor, Va.; Gettysburg, Pa.; Harpers Ferry, W.Va.; Richmond, Ky.; and Stones River, Tenn.

“Our Civil War battlefields are vanishing at an alarming pace,” said trust President James Lighthizer.

The sites mentioned in the report range from the famous to the nearly forgotten. However, all have a critical feature in common – each one or part of one is in danger of being lost forever. The battlefields were chosen based on geographic location, military significance, and the immediacy of current threats.

“With so many Civil War sites under siege from urban sprawl, we could easily have selected a hundred,” Lighthizer said. “These battlefields are the last tangible reminders of the valor of those who donned the blue and gray. They must be preserved.”