Brandy Station Battlefield - Historic Context Statement

Groundwork Preservation LLC worked with prime consultant, MIG, Inc., and a team of subconsultants (including a historical architect and archeologists) on the development of a Cultural Landscape Report (CLR) for the Brandy Station Battlefield in Brandy Station, Virginia for the American Battlefield Trust. The Brandy Station Battlefield is the site of the inaugural battle of the historic Gettysburg Campaign during the American Civil War and the largest cavalry battle in North American history. In June of 2024, over 1,000 acres of the historic battlefield became a Virginia State Park. The CLR will provide comprehensive documentation of the past and present state of the battlefield to inform preservation measures for the rural landscape and handful of buildings and structures on the site and the development of park interpretive materials.

Groundwork conducted extensive primary and secondary research on the battlefield site, including at the Library of Virginia, the Museum of Virginia, the Library of Congress, local Culpeper County repositories, and online repositories such as Ancestry.com. Research topics included American Civil War history, Virginian history, and African American history and the history of enslavement in the United States. Groundwork’s research culminated in the completion of a historic context statement that provided a comprehensive narrative history of the site from the Native American population during the Pre-Contact period, to the Battle of Brandy Station during the Civil War, to the recent establishment of the state park in 2024. The historic context statement will inform the larger CLR evaluation.

Groundwork also supported MIG in leading a cultural landscapes workshop with participants from The American Battlefield Trust, the State of Virginia, City of Culpeper, NPS American Battlefield Protection Program, Journey Through Hallowed Ground, and the Brandy Station Foundation. The workshop will inform the development of treatment recommendations for the battlefield and Virginia Station Park to ensure preservation and interpretation of the battlefield into the future.