Please help with vacation plans

[ARW]

We are working on Vacation plans for this year and would love any suggestions about the places we are planning to visit. In Sept the wife and I are going to be in Virginia Beach for a week. I plan on going to Yorktown for a day. I had a 4x Grandfather who stormed the redoubt under Hamilton. Looks like most of the Civil War sites are in the same area. Any thoughts on what to see there?
On the way home we plan to meet our son at Monocacy in MD. Also want to see the CW Medicine Museum while there. Any don't miss ideas there?
Thanks for any advise you have.

 

[ErnieMac]

Cold Harbor, Gaines Mill and Fort Harrison are pretty close to Yorktown. Drewry's Bluff / Fort Darling (south of the James River) and Beaver Dam Creek (Mechanicsville) are a bit further away. Newport News has the Mariners' Museum (USS Monitor turret) and Hamton is the location of Fort Monroe.

 

[James N.]

When in old downtown Monocacy (where the CW Medical Museum is) you have to park in the large covered parking garage behind it because of the very narrow streets and limited parking, but not to worry - the museum staff will validate your parking ticket. It takes an hour or two at the most to tour it. Unfortunately, I believe Redoubt #10 at Yorktown has fallen into the York River, but the park is interesting anyway. The Visitor Center Museum is terrible but there's at least one of the British earthworks there that's original if you can locate it; the rest are either from the Civil War or are reproductions, as are all the cannon out in the earthworks. (There are original British naval guns in the museum though.) The main Civil War sites there I haven't seen, but I understand the Mariner's Museum has the Monitor turret and other things, Fortress Monroe has the Jefferson Davis Casemate where he was imprisoned, and some earthworks remain at Williamsburg. As for the latter, I visited there in July, 1986 on our way to Manassas with my friend Ed Owens who aptly described it as Disneyland - without the rides. During peak tourist season, as I like to say, Don't fail to miss it if you can.

 

[lelliott19]

We are working on Vacation plans for this year and would love any suggestions about the places we are planning to visit. In Sept the wife and I are going to be in Virginia Beach for a week. I plan on going to Yorktown for a day. I had a 4x Grandfather who stormed the redoubt under Hamilton. Looks like most of the Civil War sites are in the same area. Any thoughts on what to see there?
On the way home we plan to meet our son at Monocacy in MD. Also want to see the CW Medicine Museum while there. Any don't miss ideas there?
Thanks for any advise you have.

Defininitely dont miss the Museum of CW Medicine! Its fabulous! Around Yorktown, you'll definitely want to see Fort Monroe https://www.battlefields.org/visit/heritage-sites/casemate-museum-fort-monroe and the Mariner's Museum at Newport News. https://www.battlefields.org/visit/heritage-sites/mariners-museum

There are probably way more Civil War sites than one might think. When we visited, we engaged J. Michael Moore to guide for us (a full day) and we asked him specifically to take us to Dam No 1 since my regiment fought there. Michael co-authored, with John V Quarstein, Yorktown's Civil War Siege: Drums Along the Warwick. Quarstein is the director of Newport News Museums and Michael Moore is the curator of Newport News, Division of Historic Services and Museums. Theirs is the only book I know of that details the Siege of Yorktown, the battles therein, and explores its role in the 1862 Peninsula Campaign. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00XQW9HHQ/?tag=civilwartalkc-20

The Battle of Dam No 1 site is actually located in Newport News in Newport News City park. At 8,065 acres, it is one of largest city-run parks in the US. There are some fantastic original earthworks there and trails. There is some interpretive signage and its pretty easy to get a good idea of what happened there on April 16, 1862. https://www.battlefields.org/visit/heritage-sites/john-b-magruders-dam-no-1

Also nearby, check out the preserved earthworks at Lee's Mill along the Warwick River. The fortifications at Lee's Mill are many sided and include breastworks and redout. Still quite evident in the breastworks at Lee's Mill are numerous communication channels. https://civilwartalk.com/threads/foto-friday-3-8.155611/page-2#post-2004826

You might also swing by Young's Mill while you're in the area. On April 14, 1862, part of the Sixth Corps skirmished with Confederates defending the fortifications surrounding the mill. It's kind of hard to find, but if you engage Michael, he will show you where it is. https://www.battlefields.org/visit/heritage-sites/youngs-mill

Lee Hall Mansion http://www.leehall.org/ which served as Magruder's Headquarters and Endview Plantation http://www.endview.org/endview-plantation.php which served as McLaws' Headquarters (and briefly as a Confederate hospital) are both owned by the city of Newport News and are open to the public.

If you can get J Michael Moore to guide for you, I highly recommend it. Some of the places are not easily located and, being a local, he know knows all the shortcuts. Also, being curator for the city, he can get you onto some properties that would not otherwise be available. Call Lee Hall Mansion at 757.888.3371 and ask for J Michael Moore or just tell whoever answers that you need a guide and prefer Michael. We made a reasonable donation to the Division of Historic Services and Museums and had him to ourselves for a whole day! It was fantastic!

 

[lelliott19]

Another highlight of our trip was a Harbor Tour aboard the Miss Hampton II. What distinguishes their tours from other vendors' boat tours of Hampton Roads is the stop at Fort Wool. It was fantastic!!!

Here's the info from their website. "The tour continues past historic Fort Monroe and the Old Point Comfort Lighthouse. After an awe-inspiring view of the magnificent Chesapeake Bay the cruise will stop for a 45-minute guided walking tour of the Civil War island of Fort Wool (weather permitting). The highlight of the tour is an in-depth view of the massive warships at the Norfolk Naval Base, home to aircraft carriers, nuclear-powered submarines, and various types of support ships. The return trip to Hampton features a captivating review of the famous Battle of the Ironclads, as we sail across the waters of the original battle site. https://www.misshamptoncruises.com/harbor-tour

In case you couldn't already tell, Newport News and surrounding is one of my favorite places! We had such a wonderful trip there in September 2017, we are going back in a couple of weeks! We spent 2 days at the Mariner's Museum, a full day with Michael seeing Civil War sites, and another day doing the harbor tour and seeing Endview Plantation. (We ran out of time on the full day with Michael and had to do it the next morning.)

*****Be sure to eat lunch at the Yorktown Pub on the beach http://www.yorktownpub.com/

 

[lelliott19]

Here's a pic of us at Endview Plantation which served as McLaws' Headquarters

And one from the Yorktown Pub, on the beach at Yorktown

 

[ARW]

Thanks to everyone for the great ideas. Gives me some planning to do.

 

[Seduzal]

Enjoy your vacation and be safe in your travels.
Ps. take a lot of photos..