News Release

26th Annual Appomattox Court House NHP and Longwood University Free Civil War Seminar 2025

Date: December 26, 2024
Contact: Patrick Schroeder, 434-694-8904

Appomattox, Va— Join the National Park Service and Longwood University at the annual free Civil War Seminar on Saturday, February 1, 2025, located in the Jarman Auditorium at Longwood University, Farmville, VA. Noted scholars will present a series of thematically related programs upon "Act 5: The Final Curtain."

This seminar is free and open to the public. No reservations needed. Parking is available on Longwood University campus. Lunch is available at the Longwood University Dining Hall.

The program schedule is as follows:

8:30 AM- Doors open

9:00 AM- Introduction by Dr. David Coles9:10 AM- Richmond Must Fall: The Richmond-Petersburg Campaign October 1864
Presenter: Hampton Newsome 
This presentation discusses the October 1864 battles between Grant and Lee in Virginia, as well as some broader aspects of the Richmond-Petersburg Campaign. Among other things, he will examine the Confederate attacks along the Darbytown Road on October 7 outside Richmond, one of Lee’s last offensive operations as well as Grant’s major offensive on October 27 to seize the South Side Railroad, the last open rail line into the Confederate stronghold at Petersburg.                

10:15 AM- Richmond Again Taken: New Frontiers of Digital Imagery
Presenter: Michael D. Gorman
In 1865, Richmond was swarmed with photographers hoping to capture images of the captured Confederate capital. These images were widely reproduced, but little understood until digitization made it possible to use them as the historical documents that they are. This program pulls back the curtain on a new frontier of Civil War research, using the photographs of Richmond as a microcosm and a manifesto for further research. Expect to see things unseen until now, and even breathe life back into the past using some of the first moving images of war.

11:30 AM- The Unvanquished: Jesse Scouts in the Appomattox Campaign
Presenter: Patrick K. O’Donnell
This talk reveals a vital shadow war that raged amid and away from the major battlefields that in many ways proved consequential to the conflict’s outcome. From their conception in mid-1863 to Appomattox, these Jesse Scouts engaged in dozens of raids and spy missions, often perilously wearing the uniform of the opposing army, risking the penalty of death if captured. These scouts operated behind enemy lines where they attacked critical supply lines and killed or captured high value targets. During the Appomattox Campaign these scouts played a part in securing the Federal Army a final victory. Their missions and incidents of the Appomattox Campaign will be brought to light.

12:30 PM- Lunch 
Lunch is available for purchase at the Longwood University Dining Hall

1:45 PM- Last Stand of the Savannah Volunteer Guards at Sailor’s Creek
Presenter: Joshua Lindamood
Amid the sharp and brutal fighting on April 6, 1865, the Savannah Volunteer Guards (18^th Georgia) were in the thick of it. Ultimately, the Guards defended a position in the middle of the Confederate line on the slope across Sailor’s Creek from the Hillsman House. As the fighting swirled around them in all directions, the 121^st New York Infantry flanked the Guards, and a viscous melee ensued. Finally, compelled to yield, the Guards sustained 82% casualties. Hear what Major William Starr Basinger wrote about his experiences and their near decimation at Sailor’s Creek, as well as accounts of other Guards.

2:45 PM- To the Bitter End: The Surrenders After Appomattox
Presenter: Bert Dunkerly
Appomattox is famous as the surrender of Lee to Grant, but there were three other major surrenders, and several smaller ones. How did the war finally end, and why does the memory of Appomattox overshadow the others? Park Ranger Bert Dunkerly will discuss all of the surrenders and how the war wound down.

Schedule is subject to change. Learn more about each presenter by visiting: https://go.nps.gov/CWSeminar. Directional signs will be posted on the Longwood University Campus. For directions to the campus go to www.longwood.edu. For more information contact Dr. David Coles at 434-395-2220 or Patrick Schroeder at 434-694-8904.

This annual seminar is sponsored by: Appomattox Court House National Historical Park; The Department of History, Political Science, & Philosophy, and the Center for Southside Virginia History at Longwood University; and Eastern National Bookstores.

—NPS— 
About Appomattox Court House National Historical Park: On April 9, 1865, the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia in the McLean House in the village of Appomattox Court House, Virginia signaled the end of the nation's largest war. The stories of Appomattox Court House go far beyond the final significant battles of this nation's Civil War. Learn more at www.nps.gov/apco. 

About the National Park Service: More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America's more than 430 national park units and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Visit us at www.nps.gov, on Facebook www.facebook.com/nationalparkservice, Twitter www.twitter.com/natlparkservice, and YouTube www.youtube.com/nationalparkservice.