2019 Highlights

1.Annual Conference

In April,more than 100 CVBT Preservation Partners gathered for a

weekend of history and tours, focusing on the “Opening of the Overland

Campaign” on the 155th Anniversary of that event.

2.Fifth Corps/Brock Road Tract

The Fifth Corps Tract along historic Brock Road has been officially secured

and paid for! The site played an important part in the Battle of Spotsylvania,

and now the 14.4 acres where Union troops rallied for attack has been

saved. Thank you for supporting this preservation project.

3.Fifth Corps Tract’s Structure Demolition

Once a piece of battleground has been

preserved and the funding is available,

CVBT starts the process of returning

the land to its 1860’s appearance. It

was an exciting moment in November

when the demolition of a 20th Century

structure at the Fifth Corps/Brock Road

Tract took place.

4.On The Front Line Magazine

CVBT’s former mailed communications—Skirmish Line and the

Fredericksburg Journal—were costly to produce, but we still wanted to

publish and share preservation news and fascinating articles.On The Front

Line Magazine offers breathtaking photos, articles by respected historians,

and preservation updates in each issue. Currently published twice per year,

the Winter and Summer 2019 were very popular and also made a splash

when with shared with colleagues in preservation.

5.Youth Day

In November, students from local high schools, living historians, and the

CVBT team met at Pelham’s Corner for a day of maintenance. The group

cleaned the site, planted trees and shrubs, and talked about the history that

happened there. At the end of the work, the students had the opportunity to

take a tour at the Sunken Road.

6.Touring Myer’s Hill

Myer’s Hill is the site of “forgotten

fighting” during the Battle of

Spotsylvania.CVBT is in the

process of preserving and retiring

the debt for several tracts of key

battlefield at this location. This

year—for the first time—a large

tour group of preservation partners

with historians and researchers

toured the property, learning about its significance and seeing this special

piece of land.

7.New Staff

This summer Terry Rensel journeyed from Alaska to join CVBT as the new

executive director. With his background in non-profit fundraising and vast

interest in history, Terry is bringing new energy and ideas to the battlefield

preservation community. In the autumn, Sarah Kay Bierle joined CVBT as

the new assistant to the executive director; she has a background in social

media, communications, event planning, and has authored several history

books. CVBT looks forward to a fast-paced future with this team who are

already working behind the scenes to secure land for preservation!

8.Preservation Awareness Outreach

We know that you love CVBT...but there are still a lot of people who have

not heard about our work at Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Wilderness,

and Spotsylvania. One of the board’s goals is to raise awareness to our mission,

challenges, and successes through outreach at events or community projects. This

year CVBT had several history and

preservation articles appear in local and

national publications, interviewed for a local

radio station, and set up an outreach table at

several historical events.

9.CVBT Represented at Round Tables and Conferences

We’re excited to “get out there” and talk to Civil War Round Tables and

share the Central Virginia preservation news at history conferences. CVBT

board members Chris Mackowski and Robert Lee Hodge have been

leading this charge, sharing about the mission at their lectures and handing

out lots of rack cards. We’ve met lots of new Preservation Partners...

10.Abundance of News

This autumn CVBT started trialing some new communications plans,

including a monthly e-newsletter and focused social media posts. We’ve

got so much history and preservation notes to share and are seeking the

best ways to make that information available and accessible! We promise

not to flood your inbox,and we are thrilled to have the option for regular

communications with our Preservation Partners.

With your help, we continue to work toward the retirement of our debt for

the Spotsylvania Myer’s Hill property, and, with grants on the horizon, this

will be realized soon. But there is no rest for the weary, and CVBT is

working on multiple opportunities at several battlefields. We look forward to

seeing what 2020 will bring and what preservation victories can be

achieved.Thank you for being part of saving history!

Everyday, Civil War battleground is lost. We save it.

Learn more:www.cvbt.org @vabattlestrust

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