A Place of Refuge

The Crew house and its outbuildings became one of the battlefield’s most recognizable features. Little is known of the family that lived there during the war except that they did not remain inside the home during the battle. Union soldiers, especially the wounded, sought its protection, and a nearby well became especially popular for the cool water it provided to those suffering from thirst. Many of those brought there did not survive. Confederate staff officer Joseph C. Brent later recalled that the small enclosed garden facing the James River in front of the house and the steps to the front porch were obstructed by Federal dead, that the wounded had all been moved, and that three dead men had to be removed before the porch could be reached.

Virginia · United States