The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1904-07-24
Uncle Sans Troops of 1904 Will Find
Much the Same Natural Surroundings
as Did the Troops of 1861.
Interesting Reminders of the Two Battles
We'll Repay Visit to the Ground
and Neighborhood.

sas Gap Railroad at Gainesville north
easterly TO Leesburg. The road was
graded, hills cut through and low ground
filled No ties or iron was laid. the
war putting a stop to the work.
It was along this graded way that
jackson formed his line Tor the second
fight The line of the railroad is well
preserved today. The cuts" are grown
up in pine and cedar and the fills" are
also overgrown. but one may walk along
the roadbed from Gainesville to sudIeys
The particular "cut" where troops
fought with dubbed musxets. and stones
is about 1000 yards north Of the Dogan
house
Could Walk on Dead.
Pointing out over the field between the
house and the cut old Mrs. Dogan said
TO your correspondent dead men were
so thick out there that you couldn't
walk without stepping on them" BY
the side Of the cut. and where the dead
lay thickest. there was erected a rude
shaft Of stone in 1865. 1t is we'll pre-
served TODAY.
Groveton is one mile west, along the
Warrenton pike, from the central field
Of the first battle of Bull Run, and by
standing on a hill a few rods from the
Dogan house, one can see the Henry
House and the Henry field where the
Union advance. southwark from Sud
ley was checked Sunday afternoon. July
p, 1861, and where the panic seized the
Union troops. Mrs. Dogan saw that bat
tie.
This old lady was a star witness in
/ the Congressional inquiry, which revers-
ed the findings of the cOurt-martiaI in
the Fitz-John Porter case. She testi-
fed that Longstreet and officers of his
STAFF ate breakfast at her house early in
the morning Of August 2S and that his
| troops were coming down the pike from
the direction Of Gainesville
It was mainly her testimony which
proved that Longstreet had joined Jack
son in the morning of that day. and thus
that Longstreet was in front Of Porter's
| corps, which lay behind Dawkins
| branch. about two miles south Of Grove
John Porter's headquarters. three miles
north Of Manassas, has been moved four
miles 10 the south. but the old founda-
| ton is visible
Helped Bury the Dead.
The bells in sudley Meeting House and
! Centrevine Church still ring out every
! Sunday morning and old men pray there
today. who listened to the firing. saw
| gilmpses Of the struggles. carried water
TO the wounded, and helped bury the
dead. Some Of the old men who dwell
on the field are Confederate veterans
and survivors Of the fights.
| A shot from a Union battery which
made a breach in the walls of Sudley
Meeting House is preserved by a mem
Der OF the congregation. All the churches
which have been named were used as
hospitals during and after each battle.
Centerville has undergone little change
in the last forty-three years. Old
earthworks encircle the hamlet. The
Four-Chimney House. which was Nc
Dowell's headquarters before the first
battle. is in decay, but the house which
was Pope's headquarters after the sec
ond battle is occupied and we'll kept
When the Union army moved west
from the heights of Arlington IT
marched to CenterviIle. twenty miles
away.
Scenes at Centerville.
Blackburn's Ford. on Bull Run. where
Richardson's brigade encountered the
troops Of Jubal Early on July IS, 1861.
is three miles from Centerville. 1t was
from CenterviIle that Mcdowell moved