Union Army Double-Track Corduroy Road

Union forces ordered and built a dual-track corduroy road in the Stafford area during the Civil War to keep artillery, troops, ammunition, and supplies moving through swampy or loamy ground in support of military operations. A Union staff officer explained that where roads crossed wet ground, corduroy construction should be carefully laid on longitudinal stringers and covered with brush and earth so it could withstand the travel of a large army, and he estimated that each man could build 15 inches of road per day. On February 15, 1863, from camp near Falmouth, the commanding general directed that the road from the Fitzhugh house, General Sickles’ headquarters, to the bridge across Potomac Creek and then to Stafford Courthouse be made passable for artillery at all times, with corduroy laid where needed along its entire length and, if possible, with material long enough to create a double-track roadway. The Third Corps, 11th Corps, and Twelfth Corps were assigned separate sections of the route, with officers designated to supervise the work, account for tools, and complete the road as rapidly as possible under the command of Major-General Hooker.

Virginia · United States