The first clash between Civil War legends Robert E. Lee and Ulysses
S. Grant took place in a tangled mass of trees and scrub growth known
as The Wilderness, west of Fredericksburg.
The physical constraints of the Wilderness concentrated the struggle
along two roads, the Orange Turnpike and the Orange Plank Road. Visibility
was limited and troop movement nearly impossible. Even worse, fires
ignited by gunpowder swept through the forest, burning alive many of
the wounded.
After two days of intense fighting, Lee had effectively stymied the Union advance and Grant abandoned the Wilderness. The two armies left more than 25,000 dead and wounded in their wake.
Threat: Much like Spotsylvania County, its neighbor to the east, Orange County is transforming from a largely rural area to a more suburban community. Population growth -- predicted by the county to be 3.75 percent annually -- and home construction threaten many areas of the battlefield.
Located at the bustling intersection of State Routes 3 and 20, the northern portion of the Wilderness Battlefield is particularly vulnerable to sprawl. Development plans abound, such as a proposal to rezone 2,600 and 2,400 acres of formerly rural land around the intersection as mixed use and residential, respectfully. Such a change would pave the way for approximately 8,000 new homes -- some within the park's authorized boundary. Simultaneously, road expansion to support the higher population, including a plan to double the width of Route 20 as it passes by Ellwood and through Saunder's Field, could also endanger federally protected lands.
CWSAC classified the Wilderness as a Priority I, Class A battlefield, its highest designation.
