Merry Christmas everyone. I had the pleasure of traveling north again to Fredericksburg for Christmas with my family at Gretchen's house. While there I did some driving in what's left of the countryside. My goal was to see Hamiltons Crossing site and the site of Pelhams famous fight during the battle and Moss Neck site of Jackson's winter camp of 1862-63.

I found Hamiltons Crossing easy enough. http://www.hmdb.org/Marker.asp?Marker=21797 The site is off the road and accessible only by footpath. I couldn't walk to the site because the snow and rain had made that almost impossible. What I really wanted to see was the site of Pelham's gun position used during the fight that enfiladed the Federal attack and gave him his nickname "the Gallant Pelham". His position is at the intersection of Hwy 17 and Opal Rd. east of the crossing. I was surprised to find out that this famous site is not on NPS property. In fact one corner of it is on the property of a Rite Aid and 7-11 complete with car wash. Other corners of the intersection contain a strip mall with CVS, some run down buildings, a storage facility, and a small restaurant. There are at least a couple signs commemorating the event.

Traveling down Rt 2 and then Hwy17 south for about 10 minutes I found the front entrance to Moss Neck. The gate was locked and I was unable to see any buildings. I believe the actual home is about 2.5 miles off of Hwy 17. I understand that the manor still stands and has been renovated. It was for sale years ago for $4 million +. You can check out more on Moss Neck at http://fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2004/052004/05212004/1367694/index_html

Two more places to check off my list.