Buffington Island Battlefield (Portland, Ohio)

The Ohio Historical Society interpretive kiosk on the four acre parcel owned by OHS is quite nice. I helped to write those interpretive panels. They're very well cone.

I note that you took no photos of the sand and gravel pit, Bill. That's the spot where Judah's and Hobson's forces converged and squeezed Morgan's men. It's the site of the heaviest fighting. I was involved in the attempt to stop it from being built. We were unable to prevail--the sand and gravel company argued that the size and blend of gravel there was unique and could not be found anywhere else, and the Ohio Department of Natural Resources bought into the argument. After that, we failed with the Army Corps of Engineers, and it was all over. When the criminal Bob Taft refused to consider appropriating the land by eminent domain, it became cast in stone.

The worst part?

The sand and gravel company is under no obligation to fill that pit back in the when they're done. The proposal that was approved was to fill it as a lake for recreational purposes, meaning that the portion of the battlefield where the heaviest portion of the fighting occurred has been forever obliterated.

Come back some time, and I will take you to Duke's surrender site. It's impossible to find if you don't know where you're going or if you're not with someone who does know.

We had the same conversation about the gravel pits in the past. I didn't take any photos because it ticks me off to no end about this lack of preservation.

Bill

P.S. @Eric Wittenberg : I have exchanged emails with David Mowery. He has been a big help in my tours through Kentucky, Indiana and Ohio. The book "Morgan's Raid Across Ohio" is a wonderful tool!
 
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I visited this battlefield in 2011. The Ohio Historical Society was starting to build the kiosk and place markers in the area. They have done a wonderful job with this venue! It is just a shame the main section of the battlefield was not preserved. A gravel pit is covering it.

I would highly recommend a trip. After my first visit to the Buffington Island Battlefield in 2011 , I visited the Sherman house and museum in Lancaster, Ohio.

By the way, I have enjoyed my John Hunt Morgan Heritage Trail tour through Kentucky, Indiana and Ohio. I will complete the Ohio tour on Wednesday. My final stop will be the surrender site on SR 518 just west of West Point, Ohio.

Bill
I find it interesting that there is a statue in one of these cities of Morgan and that there are high schools and athletics named that are called Raiders. The fact that there is a John Hunt Morgan Heritage Trail that exists. The question how could a Union state have these things dedicated to a Confederate solider who invaded their land.This would be an interesting story .Source Wikileaks
 
I find it interesting that there is a statue in one of these cities of Morgan and that there are high schools and athletics named that are called Raiders. The fact that there is a John Hunt Morgan Heritage Trail that exists. The question how could a Union state have these things dedicated to a Confederate solider who invaded their land.This would be an interesting story .Source Wikileaks

I can't answer your question regarding the statue or team names. You can contact the cities and ask them, via phone call or email. I am sure they will provide an answer. If they do not have an answer right away, they will find one.

The John Hunt Morgan Heritage Trail is not only honoring a Confederate commander and his men. The trails in Kentucky, Indiana and Ohio are honoring the Federal commanders/troops and local militia chasing Morgan and his men. The trails are also telling a story of a Great Raid and how the local citizens reacted to an American Civil War event.

Most people don't have a clue about history, let alone Morgan's Raids of 1863. I commend the states of Kentucky, Indiana and Ohio for telling THEIR stories about the American Civil War.

Not everything regarding the American Civil War is about Gettysburg, Antietam and Shiloh.

Bill
 
* Today is the anniversary of the Battle of Buffington Island (Portland, Ohio).

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Nice picture. Is that the island on the other side of the river?

Negative.....

Buffington Island, West Virginia is south of this photo. This photo of the Ohio River was captured just north of Portland, Ohio. This county road was John Hunt Morgan's escape route on CR 124.

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Negative.....

Buffington Island, West Virginia is south of this photo. This photo of the Ohio River was captured just north of Portland, Ohio. This county road was John Hunt Morgan's escape route on CR 124.

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Ok. The river is on the right in your pic so you were facing northeast. Correct?
 
Kentucky, Indiana and Ohio have done a great job on the Morgan trails. Been on all of them. These heritage trails are well worth visiting and exploring.

Amen, Donna!

I might be biased but I enjoyed the Ohio Heritage Trail the best.

Bill
 
The USS Moose was one of three gunboats which assisted the Federal cavalry and infantry during the Battle of Buffington Island. The other gunboats were named the USS Allegheny Belle and the USS Imperial.
@Mark F. Jenkins

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Here's a fun fact:

The reason why Buffington Island belongs fo West Virginia instead of Ohio, which is. closer, is because the entire river, from bank to bank, belongs to WV. Thus, any and all islands therein belong to WV as well.

This happened because the new US Congress paid off their debts to Revolutionary War soldiers by giving them tracts of land in the Northwest Territory. It wasn't a state with a central authority or even a territory as those were later administered. It was just a collection of small land holders.

So Virginia claimed ownership of the whole river and when Ohio became a state they refused to cede control. So ironically, while in most border rivers the adjoining states meet in the middle, Ohio only owns a small strip of riverbank. Everything else, including Buffington, Blennerhasset (where Aaron Burr tried to organize the establishment of a new nation) etc. all belong to WV.
 
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I find it interesting that there is a statue in one of these cities of Morgan and that there are high schools and athletics named that are called Raiders. The fact that there is a John Hunt Morgan Heritage Trail that exists. The question how could a Union state have these things dedicated to a Confederate solider who invaded their land.This would be an interesting story .Source Wikileaks

My son's girlfriend grew up in Morgan county and attended the school with the mascot Morgans Raiders. She told me that the name was not related to Morgan's raid. but it is interesting that their mascot appears to be Confederate Cavalry....
 
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My son's girlfriend grew up in Morgan county and attended the school with the mascot Morgans Raiders. She told me that the name was not related to Morgan's raid. but it is interesting that their mascot appears to be Confederate Cavalry....

Morgan county is named in honor of Daniel Morgan, the Revolutionary War general who (a la Mel Gibson in The Patriot) won the Battle of Cowpens.
 
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Here's a fun fact:

The reason why Buffington Island belongs fo West Virginia instead of Ohio, which is. closer, is because the entire river, from bank to bank, belongs to WV. Thus, any and all islands therein belong to WV as well.

Another fun fact: the Battle of Buffington Island didn't occur on the island, but rather on the Ohio side of the river. (I think the island was the only notable local landmark...)

I didn't have time yesterday to make it over from Marietta, dernit.

ETA: Ah... re-reading the thread, I'm the Nth person to observe that the battle didn't take place on the island. Oh, well. (Great photos, Bill!)
 
Amen, Donna!

I might be biased but I enjoyed the Ohio Heritage Trail the best.

Bill
Was this country what was referred to as Mosby's Confederacy or was it Morgan or did one operate in this region and Morgan operated out of the Shenandoah Valley ? Was this country noted for its guerrilla warfare ? I have not read any honest history of Northern or Southern guerrilla warfare ,do you know of any honest ones? I do not think that the Union forces had any raiders as they were designated by the CSA, romantic and legal. Quantrille I do not give this title to.
 
Was this country what was referred to as Mosby's Confederacy or was it Morgan or did one operate in this region and Morgan operated out of the Shenandoah Valley ? Was this country noted for its guerrilla warfare ? I have not read any honest history of Northern or Southern guerrilla warfare ,do you know of any honest ones? I do not think that the Union forces had any raiders as they were designated by the CSA, romantic and legal. Quantrille I do not give this title to.

I highly recommend this book by David Mowery! It is an easy read packed with helpful information on Morgan's "Great Raid of 1863" and awesome photos/maps.

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