• Facebook
• Twitter
• Print

Save the Slaughter Pen Farm

Project Update from Jim Lighthizer, CWPT President

Dear Valued Friend,

And right now, looking forward, I have to make some very difficult decisions about just how much we can tackle in 2009. But there is one crucial expense that I cannot cut or put off, and that is CWPT’s annual $200,000 payment to the bank for the Slaughter Pen Farm at Fredericksburg, Virginia.

As you will recall, this June 2006 transaction was the largest private battlefield purchase in America’s history, and it was the biggest transaction that CWPT had ever attempted – by a factor of four! But with your help, we accepted the risk, and went after these 208 acres of supremely hallowed ground.

I have to say that your generosity and that of your fellow CWPT members has been nothing short of phenomenal. To have already paid off more than 50% of this land just three years after we bought it is a tremendous accomplishment.

Even better, the good folks at SunTrust Bank, who showed a lot of confidence in us to even make such a large loan, agreed to refinance our loan, saving us several percentage points and allowing us to repay over 20 years instead of just 5 years! We have 18 years left, and although I had hoped we could pay the entire balance off sooner, the downturn in the economy makes that goal very difficult to achieve right now, as you can imagine.

Already, hundreds of visitors have walked in the footsteps of heroes on this amazing field, which was once off-limits to the general public, and have had their long-held assumptions about this battle changed forever.

And before the economy tanked last year, I had confidence that we as an organization could handle the $200,000 annual payment without jeopardizing other projects.

Today, however, when the news is overflowing with bleak stories of foreclosures, job losses, shrinking retirement accounts and people cutting back both on personal spending and charitable giving . . .

. . . I am concerned that we might not raise enough this year to make our required payment AND save additional land that is coming onto the market.

Unfortunately, we cannot go back and retroactively use any of the $5.2 million in matching funds that the Commonwealth of Virginia has made available for battlefield preservation – that money is restricted for newer projects only.

And even though the real estate market in general is depressed, the market for “raw land,” – acres of contiguous open land – are still highly in demand by developers who are looking to “buy and hold” until the housing and commercial building markets recover.

And there’s no denying that many landowners are hurting financially, too, and a developer’s promise of ready cash for their raw land may prove too attractive for them to pass up, especially if they are unemployed, their pension is getting squeezed or other bills are piling up.

But you and I both know that the Slaughter Pen Farm at Fredericksburg cannot be truly considered saved until the final dollar of that debt is paid off. At the very minimum, CWPT needs to pay our $200,000 commitment or we risk default. So please, although I know you have already done so much to help CWPT recently, will you help once again with your gift to help make sure we can cover the $200,000 loan payment we owe for 2009?

That way, I can continue to work on the many other projects we have in the pipeline, including:

1. Nearly a dozen crucial efforts at key Virginia battlefields that CAN utilize the special $5.2 million in matching funds from the state, at key battlefields like Appomattox, Chancellorsville, Cold Harbor, Cedar Creek, Glendale and many more; this money goes away at the end of this year, so we are really under the gun;

2. We can continue to save land outside of Virginia as well, such as a crucial 12-acre site at the Battle of Tupelo, in Mississippi, where CWPT is putting up $27,850 to match an equal federal grant;

3. And we can take advantage of the greatest matching-grant multiplier in the history of CWPT, an astounding $185-to-$1 match by the State of Florida to save a 55-acre portion (most of the battlefield!) at the Battle of Natural Bridge. Sure, it’s not the first battle one thinks of when studying the War, but when a state government – in this economic climate – steps up with $3.7 million and asks us to finish the deal by paying just $20,000 in closing costs and it would represent the first hallowed ground CWPT has ever saved in Florida, well, I think that’s a “no brainer.”

So today, I ask you to please be as generous as you can – consistent with your other financial obligations – and help CWPT meet its financial obligations. I have no substitute for your generosity. You have my deepest thanks for all you are doing to save our nation’s history in one of the most difficult times we have ever faced together.

P.S. One quick but very important final thought: Please take this letter right now and go to your computer. In your web browser, type in this: www.civilwar.org/SPFMap. Then sit back and watch the very special animated map we have created, a presentation that brings our popular paper maps to life in a whole new way, and gives you an even greater appreciation for the importance of this hallowed ground that we are saving. While you’re there, you can watch our other animated maps on Chancellorsville, Chantilly, Bentonville and Cedar Creek. Then, to make things even easier for you, you can donate with ease, confidence and security by clicking on the “DONATE” button that you’ll see at the end of the map. Thank you very, very much.