The department of Parks and Recreation, in partnership with the Chesterfield Historical Society of Virginia, will offer two distinctive Civil War guided tours. Saturday, October 8 from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. there will be a Howlett Line guided driving tour.
Learn about a larger ring of earthen fortifications that made up a line of defenses known as the Howlett Line. Constructed in late May 1864, after the Battle of Ware Bottom Church, this defensive position would prevent Federal troops from launching any further operations to capture Petersburg and keep the Army of the James entrenched at Bermuda Hundred. This tour will include stops at Battery Dantzler, Parker’s Battery, Ware Bottom Battlefield, Howlett Line Park, Fort Wead, and Sgt. Engle Park. The tour starts at Henricus Historical Park and the cost is $15 per person.
Transportation provided. Space is limited. Participants should wear comfortable shoes and bring snacks and water.
Saturday, Oct. 22, from 10 a.m. until noon, there will be a walking tour of Historic Point of Rocks that will illuminate the unique history surrounding this historic site. Learn about the military operation of the Union Army under the command of General Benjamin Butler in May of 1864 that became known as the Bermuda Hundred Campaign. Learn about one of the earliest naval battles of 1862. Visit the site of a Union hospital established here where Clara Barton tended to Union wounded, and walk the ground where President Lincoln visited in 1865. View Federal fortifications and learn why this location played a major role in the Bermuda Hundred Campaign. Wear comfortable shoes. This tour meets at the maintenance facility parking lot at Dodd Park at Point of
Rocks, 201 Enon Church Rd. Cost is $8 per person. Registration for both tours can be made in advance by visiting the CHSV Website at www.chesterfieldhistory.com.
For more information or details, please call (804) 751-4946. Registration and payment must be made in advance prior to the tour.
