A proposal to extend the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields National Historic District southward to include Rockbridge County has garnered local support.
The Board of Supervisors on May 26 adopted a resolution in support of Rockbridge County’s inclusion in an expansion of the historic district. The supporting resolution was requested by Keven Walker, chief executive officer of the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation.
The proposal was brought to the supervisors by Brandy Flint, Rockbridge County’s director of economic development. The district currently encompasses the nearby counties of Augusta, Highland and Rockingham as well as Shenandoah, Frederick, Page, Clarke and Warren counties. The district is managed through a partnership involving the foundation, the National Park Service and the participating localities.
Flint informed the supervisors that the district’s activities include “battlefield preservation, educational programming, museums, visitor centers, trails and related tourism and interpretive initiatives throughout the region. The foundation reports that its museums, visitor centers, and associated historic sites attract significant annual visitation within the Shenandoah Valley.
“The request to include Rockbridge County is based on the county’s historical connection to the broader Shenandoah Valley campaigns and Civil War-era history, including associations with Virginia Military Institute, the Battle of New Market, Stonewall Jackson and [Union] General Hunter’s 1864 raid through the area.”
Agenda materials included with the request acknowledged the “historical significance of Civil War-era sites and resources within Rockbridge County while emphasizing preservation, education, and historical understanding. The intent of the resolution is not to commemorate or celebrate the conflict itself, but rather to recognize that the events of the Civil War shaped the history of the Shenandoah Valley and continue to influence the region’s historical landscape today.
“The resolution supports preserving historically significant places and ensuring that future interpretation and educational efforts present a broad and thoughtful understanding of the period, including the experiences of the many communities and individuals affected by the war and its lasting consequences.
“The proposed language is intended to encourage responsible stewardship of historic resources in a manner that promotes learning, reflection, and a more complete understanding of the region’s shared history.”
Flint noted that participation in the National Historic District framework could open up the county to expanded grant opportunities, education programs, tourism marketing initiatives and other tourism-related benefits.
The supervisors adopted the resolution unanimously. Congress established the national district in 1996 and expansion of it to include Rockbridge County is subject to approval of Congress.
