Staunton spectator and vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1896-1916, 1903-08-21
1.-THE SURRENDER GROUND"
As 1t Looks After Thirty eight Years.

SUNNI NU6n uUVONO
As 1t Looks After Thirty. eight Years.
Appomattox c. H., Va.
1 am just back from the Surrender
Ground" as every one around here
calls the place where Gen. Lee turned
over the flag of the Confederacy, the
hopes of the South and the remnant
of his heroic army to General Grant,
April 9th, 1865. l drove out from the
depot 4 miles, behind "Hal" Floods
pair of pretty sorrels and drew reins
at a rail fence beside the red dirt road.
We dismounted, climbed the fence,
walked few steps and stood under a
poplar tree, which measured Z feet
around, and there was a cast iron tab
let about 3x2 feet resting at an in
cline upon short iron post, which had
been erected by the U. s. Government.
In raised letters, all iron, that will
surely see another century was this
inscription:
s'This tablet marks the spot upon
which Gen. Robert E. Lee, G. S. A.,
stood while reading his farewell order
to the army of Northern Virginia,
April 10, 1862 That was the day at
ter the surrender when that vanquish-
ed army Of heroes was breaking up.
AS I stood there and thought of the
grand old man. as sitting, heart brOk-
en-, on bis horse, he said good. bye to
the starved and ragged men who had
followed him four years through un-
paralleled victories, trials and disas-
tiers and tried to imagine their feelings
as they crowded around him and strOk-
ID FNrov yo1opc3t FOL nd
I was on cOnsecrated ground and TAX
ing off my hat, bowed my head in
memory of the man and his men,
though it was 38 years ago.
plucked few daises and sprig
of cedar that grew on the memorable
epot and silently left it. Some yards
off, in the woods, was another tablet
marking the spot where Gen. Lee tent
ed on the 9th and 10th April. A quar-
ter of mile south, near the road side,
in a little grassy field, was a tablet
with this lettering On It. Near this
spot, under an apple tree. Gen. Il. E.
Lee, G. 8. A.. waited to hear from Gen.
U. s. Grant, U. y. Al There is moth.
ing to show that tree ever stood there,
but two old apple tree snags, little
way of, suggest that an orchard had
once upon time occupied the place.
At the time the soldiers of both armies
had cut the tree down even digging up
it's roots and carried it away piece
meal, as relics of the fatal day. /
have since seen a confederate soldier
who said he got some of the last chips,
which laid around and another who
said he carried off good sized stick of
that same tree and .'toated'' it upon
his shoulder until it grew so heavy he
had to drop it.
A few hundred yards from this spot
across creek to the south by the
road side at the foot of a hill was some.
thing like a sign post with only this
on it. 1.-The Confederate outpost, and
at the top OF the hill In the road a
similar one, "The Union outpost. 81
So there the pickets of the two historic
armies stood about 200 yards apart in
sight and In easy gun shot of each 9th
er awaiting the grand finale of the
greatest civil war OF the ages, while
their leaders arranged the terms of the
surrender in the parlOr of the McLain
house. The house and lot has been
bought by some proposing speculatOr
and pulled down, the lumber now lying
in piles within high paling fence.
seemingly ready for removal, which
has been long delayed. My companion
vaulted over the palings and got a
slat out of one of the window shutters
and tossed it to me ''for keeps"
Between the Nolan House and .he
Union outpost tablet in field on the
east side of the road. is an old field
where another tablet marks the place
where the Union army, drawn up In
line, received the surrender of the Con.
federates who stacked arms in their
front. Imagine the tears that were
dropped and the hopes that were crush
ed along that ragged grey line. The
last tablet is placed under an old oak
in a field to the east Of the road, some
hundreds of yards from the McLain
house. This marks the spot where
Gen. Grant had his Headquarters on
April 10th, 1865, after all was over and
Lee and his army had turned their
faces homeward. The feelings of a
Confederate soldier as he goes over
this historic ground cannot be describ
ed and will not attempt it.
1t will be Interesting to MANY to
know that the old court house is burnt
as well as the Jail, and one or two 9th.
or houses of the little hamlet, though
the wayside inn still stands in a dllap-
edated condition. Some years ago,
the county seat was removed to the
railroad about three miles, where SUBJ
stantial court house has been built
with neat and convenient offices near
by. Here has sprung up around the
court house and depot a prosperous
village containing two we'll patronized
hotels, two newspaper offices, and a
number of attractive looking residences
among which is that of Hon. Hal
Flood, the popular Congressman of
the 10th District, who everybody IA
calls Hal. This is '.AppOmat-
tox. while the old place is 1.-THE Sur
render Ground.' T.C.M.