In the Summer of 1864, the outcome of the Civil War looked so dire that President Abraham Lincoln believed that he would not be reelected that November. He needed decisive victories but so far Lee stood defiant in front of Richmond and Petersburg in spite of the massive casualties of the overland campaign. The Confederates had likewise hung on to Atlanta in the western theater.
Lincoln’s first break came with Sherman’s capture of Atlanta on Sept 1, the victory the President desperately needed. But the critical theater of Virginia remained defiant, and the Union still sought a breakthrough victory. It finally came on September 19, 1864, at the Last Battle of Winchester.
Scott Patchan will fill us in on the details about the largest and bloodiest battle ever fought in the Shenandoah Valley and its pivotal impact on the war in Virginia and Lincoln and the Union Party’s reelection quest.
Bio: Scott C. Patchan
A lifelong student of military history, Scott C. Patchan’s interest began as a child during summer visits to his grandparents’ home in Uniontown, Pennsylvania, which often included a sojourn to nearby Fort Necessity National Battlefield. Walking those historic grounds and learning from the interpretive staff created the foundation for his interest in the study and preservation of America’s historic sites. He grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, and graduated from James Madison University in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. He has published seven books with a heavy focus on the 1864 Shenandoah Valley Campaign of the U.S. Civil War. His most recent works include George Washington in the French and Indian War and Worthy of a Higher Rank: The Shenandoah Valley Campaign Journal of Col Joseph Thoburn, The Last Battle of Winchester, Shenandoah Summer, Second Manassas: The Struggle for Chinn Ridge, and The Forgotten Fury: The Battle of Piedmont. He has also written six feature length essays for Blue and Gray Magazine and dozens of articles and essays for various other publications over the years. He is currently completing books the Battle of Jonesboro in the Atlanta Campaign and the Battles of Fisher’s Hill through Cedar Creek. Each year, he conducts numerous historical tours and seminars on the colonial era, the Revolutionary War and the Civil War throughout the eastern United States. He currently resides in the Wilderness area of Spotsylvania County, Virginia, and is active in preservation and interpretive efforts with the Shenandoah Valley Battlefield Foundation and Kernstown Battlefield Association.
Shenandoah Valley Civil War Round Table SVCWRT 