 |
| Traveling Clara Barton from Fairfax Station Railroad Museum |
Well, Traveling Clara Barton has been pretty quiet as of late, but today I got my last stamp for my sheet before I mail it to Clara Barton NHS. This time it is from Fairfax Station Railroad Museum in Virginia.
 |
| Stamp from Fairfax Station Railroad Museum |
This
one was pretty boring too. I just got my stamp back in an envelope. But yay! I am basically done with Traveling Clara Barton. All I have to do now is cut out all my stamps and paste them together and mail it with my completed Junior Ranger activity worksheet over to Clara Barton NHS. Then I will get the last stamp (which is from Clara Barton itself) and the badge. :)
One
step closer to the Clara Barton Civil War 150th Anniversary Junior Ranger badge. Five down, one to go! :)
About Fairfax Station Railroad Museum
 |
| Fairfax Station Railroad Museum Today Photo Courtesy fairfax-station.org |
The Fairfax Station Railroad Museum is NOT administered by the National Park Service. The Museum and Gift shop are open on SUNDAY ONLY from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. There is an admission fee ($3 adults, $1 children) and specialized tours are available if you pre-register for them. Special events are also offered at special admission rates ($5 adults, $1 children).
Early History
of Fairfax Station Train Depot
 |
| Historical Marker at Fairfax Station Photo Courtesy fairfax-station.org |
The
original Fairfax Station was built by Irish immigrants in the 1850s. After
being hired by the Orange & Alexandria Railroad Company, they settled into
the area surrounding the depot and established a community there. Because the
new Irish settlers brought their Catholic faith with them, they decided to
build a church for themselves, which would be called St Mary of Sorrows. This
church would later be instrumental to the aid effort Clara Barton provided
soldiers during the Civil War.
The
Fairfax Station served as the county seat of Fairfax, and when it was used as
such, it was known as the Fairfax Court House. The developers made sure to
locate the Station away from the town because the residents did not want to be
around the smoke and noise of the trains that would be using the tracks they
were building. The prominent families in the village and surrounding areas
played an important role in the economic development and politics of the area.
Its citizens also served in the wars engaged by the United States.
Fairfax
Station and the Civil War
 |
| Southern Railroad Train Caboose on display at the Museum Photo Courtesy fairfax-station.org |
The
railroad which served this train station was the Orange and Alexandria Railroad
and in 1860, it connected Alexandria to Lynchburg. The idea behind the railroad
was to get farm products to Alexandria and Washington, while getting supplies
from these big cities back to the farms. During the Civil War, the railroad and
particularly Fairfax train station, gained strategic value as a method of
moving troops and supplies. It was the most direct route to move troops between
Alexandria and Richmond; therefore sparking attacks and defenses with the
railroad's position always in mind. Many Civil War battles were fought over and
along the railroad line, and the train station aided in all of them.
It
first served as a supply base for Union forces during the summer of 1862. Later
that year, it would become a center for emergency treatment and evacuation of
the wounded soldiers following the battles of 2nd Manassas and Chantilly. The
more than 3,000 soldiers served here would first be transported via wagon to
the train station. They would be later put onto the trains and then
evacuated to hospitals in Alexandria and Washington DC. As the last train of
wounded soldiers left the station area, Union transportation officials gave the
order to burn the station to the ground. This order was carried out on
September 2, 1862. Unfortunately, there are no known photos of the
original train station, but soldiers described it as a two story structure:
Station Master's office on the second floor, with a passenger waiting room on
the first.
After
the Battle of Antietam, Union troops rebuilt the station; with a Union army
supply base in mind, numerous buildings were constructed in the area as well.
In August 1864, a skirmish occurred in the area between the train station and
St Mary's Church. The Confederate soldiers were riding up the road from the
station when they encountered the Union soldiers who had established a position
at the church door. The Confederates won that engagement.
Post-War
Fairfax Station
 |
| Fairfax Station Railroad Museum Today Photo Courtesy fairfax-station.org |
After
the war, newer stations were built to accommodate the expansion of wealth that
returned to the area. In 1894, the line adjacent to the Station became part of
the larger Southern Railway. The rail line was double tracked by the early
1900s, and the last train station was built in 1903. It operated with great
success until the late 1950s when trains became less popular, as more people
began to travel by car and airplane; however, there was still a demand for
trains to deliver packages and mail. When that demand also declined, Southern
Railway began closing stations. Fairfax Station, the last passenger station in
Fairfax County was closed down in 1973. It was saved from ruin by the Friends
of Fairfax Station, who turned the historic site into the Fairfax Station
Railroad Museum that it is today.
The Clara Barton Connection
 |
| Clara Barton. Photo Courtesy nps.gov |
Fairfax
Station played an important role in the American Civil War. It was a major
supply line and aided in transporting troops between Alexandria and Richmond, a
vital route that both the Union and Confederate armies wanted to control. The
result was many skirmishes along the rail line and the surrounding areas. The battles of Second Manassas (Bull Run) and Chantilly (Ox Hill) were fought in 1862. It was during these battles that Clara Barton and her four assistants arrived by train to Fairfax Station.
Clara
Barton used Fairfax Station as an important supply and medical evacuation site
during the Civil War as she assisted with relief and evacuation efforts. It was
at St Mary of Sorrows Catholic Church and the hill leading to the railroad
tracks that Clara Barton and her crew would nurse the wounded before they were
transported from the depot to hospitals in Alexandria and Washington DC.
What she saw during her time there shocked her. According to the soldiers that were there, the downstairs passenger waiting room of the station was used as an amputation center. She later said: "a little bad of almost empty handed workers, literally by ourselves in the wild woods of Virginia with 3,000 suffering men crowded upon the few acres within our reach."
Over
3,000 wounded Union soldiers would be brought to the station. It would take many
days to fill the trains with the wounded soldiers. So Clara Barton's role was
to attend to the wounded while they waited to board the outbound trains. Aside from nursing the wounded, she and her crew would also cook and distribute food and water. On the last day at the station, she and others loaded patients onto the train as bullets from the battle surrounding them flew all about them. Finally, Clara Barton would board the train with the last remaining injured men and as they pulled away from the station, she watched as the station was overcome by Confederate troops.
Clara
Barton would later be known for her efforts here, as one of several sites
where she tended to the wounded throughout the many engagements of the Civil War.
Sources: fairfax-station.org, nps.gov
Explore On, Junior Rangers! :)
No comments:
Post a Comment