Ravaged Town

Fredericksburg had enjoyed more than a century of comfortable prosperity by 1860, and although its economic heydey was past, its elegant houses, numerous churches, and shady, tree-lined streets still reflected lingering wealth and refinement. The Civil War shattered that stately tranquility. On December 11, 1862, some 150 Union cannon fired on Fredericksburg, toppling walls and setting fire to buildings. Confederate artillery added to the destruction by targeting Union soldiers who occupied, then looted, the town. Terrified citizens fled, taking whatever they could carry. When they returned, their lives, like the town itself, were in shambles, and recovery would take decades.

Fredericksburg, Virginia · United States