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Karen Stuebing | all galleries >> PAD Again >> A Photo A Day - June > The Battle of Pigeon Roost
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05-JUN-2006 Karen Stuebing

The Battle of Pigeon Roost

West Virginia

Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ5
1/320s f/3.6 at 16.5mm iso80 full exif

other sizes: small medium original auto
comment
Blaine Hypes 23-Jun-2014 14:44
This Battle was an attempt to reach and Destroy the Dublin Railroad Bridge and Depot at Dublin, Virginia, as was the Battle of Giles Courthouse also in 1862. The Confederates just met and stopped twice their numbers at Princeton. The Confederate lines ran in an East-West Direction on the ridge (Roselawn Cemetery) to State Route 20 just outside Princeton city Limits. Just below where this monument stands under the crest of the hill is where Federal Artillery were placed. The federal line of battle runs east-west from this point towards US 460... the Federals held the town. Three of the know soldiers buried at this monument were KIA trying to take the Federal guns. One of these Peter Carter is an Ancestor of mine. The Confederates routed and drove the Federal force from Princeton Court House.
In May of 1864, the Federals Again made a move to destroy Dublin Bridge and Dublin Depot(Important Rail and Supply Lines for the Confederacy). After a Fierce Battle at Cloyd's Mountain, Virginia... the Federals moved on and destroyed the Depot and Bridge... I Hope this helps Scott
Scott 15-May-2013 12:54
I've been trying to understand what led to this battle and I am curious about the exact location of the fight at Pigeon Roost. Some of the posts above suggest that it was along 20 and others place it about where Roselawn Cemetery is now sited. Looking at the map, Roselawn appears to be closer to modern route 19?
I'm also still trying to get oriented as to which road the Union forces involved in this battle were using in their approach to Princeton. The report of the commanding officer Lt. Col von Blessingh speaks of staring from Frenchtown, following East River Road to a location described as "Cross-Roads", from which they then were ordered to follow "the road to Princeton" to reinforce Union troops that were holding Princeton against a larger Confederate force. Which road would this road between Cross-Roads and Princeton be on a modern map? Can someone identify the location of Frenchtown and Crossroads? from the context of von Blessignh's report it seems that Frenchtown was probably near East River and I-77 on the approach to Rocky Gap VA and that perhaps Crossroads was roughly where the modern junction of 460 and 112 sits today? Overall this entire Union campaign seems to have been destined for failure because of geography- too few men, inadequate supply lines, and the Confederates would always be able to quickly concentrate superior numbers of men and supplies by virtue of the nearby Viginia-Tenessee Rail line.
Glen Sage 14-Oct-2012 21:21
Karen,

The mass grave site from the “Battle of Pigeon Roost” is actually a second grave site. My uncle, John Conley was operating a horse drawn road grader in the 1920’s and was widening Route 20 from being an old wagon road to one that allowed for 2 lane auto traffic. He struck the old grave site that was about 75 feet to the north of the current grave site. When the buried remains were moved it was discovered that those solders were buried without uniforms or shoes and their remains were wrapped in blankets. These clothing items must have been in such short supply that they were salvaged and given to the living. The current site is part of the old Oakwood Cemetery
Maggie 28-Feb-2011 05:47
Not all the Union soldiers were taken to Arlington for burial. My great-grandfather, a lieutenant in an Ohio regiment, was taken home to Upper Sandusky and is buried there.
Bob Arrington 13-Sep-2007 07:26
I would like to counter Roger Sharp's comment. West Virginia's history is a hidden history, very few people know it. The vote he mentioned was indeed heavily in favor of the Union. What most people don't know is that West Virginia had nearly 70,000 voters. Most paid no attention to the Statehood vote. Wheeling was a unpopular city in most of West Virginia. When the Secession Ordinance was voted upon, 24 counties, about 2/3's of the area of the state voted for Secession. And half of West Virginia's soldiers fought for the Confederacy, at least according to the West VA Dept. of Archives and History. If anyone wants to know more of the real history, find a copy of Richard Curry's book "A House Divided". He gives the county votes and you will not find that in any other book of West Virginia history.
Lois 09-Sep-2007 01:51
I live in Princeton and I'm a 24 year member of the Daughters of Confederacy Princeton Chapter, this year I lead the program for Memorial Day at this marker, we are proud of our ancestors and always will be, my great grandfathers fought the battle and lived others didn't, several Confederate Soldiers are buried in this cemetery, the Union Solders were removed from Princeton and taken to Arlington Virginia to be buried. The Battle of Pigeons Roost was fought on Rt. 20 on the land that is now Roselawn Cemetery and a housing development, it was a large battle and where they came on into Princeton to fight close to our Courthouse where our town was burned to keep the Yankees from taking over in the homes and getting our supplies, the Civil War history lives on in what few structures we have left. Proud History Buff. Lois M.
Roger Sharp 04-Sep-2007 00:14
I find your comment that West Virginia was FORCED into the union to be presumptuous at best and ridiculeous in fact. A vote taken by residents of the area overwhelming supported the remaining in the Union which then led to statehood. A vote of 12,000+ to just under 800 is not a FORCED action.
Amanda 26-Jun-2007 00:47
In the eighth grade, our school required all of the eighth graders to participate in a annual social studies fair. In West Virginia, eighth grade is also time for the Golden Horshoe Exam. Being this time, I chose to do my report on the Saint Andrews Cross a.k.a. the Confederate Battle Flag and the Stars and Bars: Pride or Prejudice? As I was researching I came across a lot of very interesting points. I myself am from the state of South Carolina, the first to seceed from the union. I moved here in the eighth grade, so I thought that my report was fitting. My teacher told me that my report was a very "racy and controversial issue." I asked her why and she said that it would offend some of the African American students. I myself am not racist, I have many friends of the African American race. I replied to her, "I don't understand, this is apart of my families history and also the history of this country. My friends know the true meaning of this flag and those who do not, I plan to educate them." She looked at me like I was trying to undermind her intelligence. She eventually came to the miraculos conclusion that it would probably be okay for me to do my project. I presented the project to my class and received a lot of positive feedback from my classmates; many African Americans. So now, I am in the eleventh grade and I am in advanced placement classes. We recieved our summer reading list. In addition to reading two books, we are supposed to write a controversial issue essay. I chose my topic to be on the legality of wv statehood. While I was in the process of moving to wv, many of my friends asked me if WV was near roanoke! I was a little bit confused at the time and said... "uhh yeah i think so." But now my intelligence has grown and I feel more like a west virginian. So really, it angers me to hear people say that wv is not in fact a state, a territory of virginia. Which in fact it is not. I have written such a long comment because I am in dire need of information or input. By the way, I really like this picture.
Ronnie 21-May-2007 22:08
This monument is in a cemetery in Princeton, Mercer County, West Virginia (my home town). It was not erected to honor men from Mercer County who fought in "The War of Northen Aggression." It was erected to honor both the Confederate men from Mercer County who fought In "The War of Northern Aggression" and also to honor the Confederate dead who liberated Princeton from "the yankees" who were holding it. The Confederate army ran the Union army out of Princeton on May 17, 1862. Let's try to stick to accuracy. That flag you see there among the flowers was The Third Natinal Flag of The Confederacy. It is not the Confederate battle flag (stars and bars)........ Ronnie
Greg Harp20-Jun-2006 22:04
Wonderfull shot Karen, and I agree with your points.
virginiacoastline13-Jun-2006 15:17
you have an amazing capacity for history . . . I don't know HOW you know all that you do, but coming to your site is a delightful education
Buz Kiefer08-Jun-2006 23:04
Good job and a wonderful commentary Karen.
Guest 08-Jun-2006 01:49
Wonderful photo and commentary, Karen.
Sheila07-Jun-2006 04:52
Great image and interesting commentary as always.
Char07-Jun-2006 02:34
Wonderful picture and great documentary. Food for thought and wonder. v
Barb07-Jun-2006 01:53
Wonderful shot so clear and well framed. With a excelent commentary.
Karen Leaf07-Jun-2006 01:49
As always Karen, very interesting read, and lessons. Glad you posted both the image and text.
s_barbour07-Jun-2006 00:46
Wonderful tribute Karen, very nice composition!
joanteno06-Jun-2006 23:37
Great shot with wonderful commentary..
Jvan Photography06-Jun-2006 22:03
Very nice photo...thanks for showing me something I probably will never see in person :-)
laine8206-Jun-2006 20:11
As always, there is more to your pictures than just pictures !!
Focus06-Jun-2006 18:48
Nice image and commentary..........
Guest 06-Jun-2006 17:04
Very clean image. I learned a lot reading your text.
purpod06-Jun-2006 16:35
Nice tribute, Karen. I wouldn't worry about offending anyone; each has his own opinion of History & it is directly related to their perspective. I'll never forgot how shocked I was in 2000 when we moved to New Bern, NC & saw how prevailent racism was in both white & black. I guess coming from such a diverse zoo as Los Angeles, I was not prepared for the small town ways of life in a community of 20K. I'm hopeful that everyone will realize a "colourless" fact: we all bleed red ~
Bryan Murahashi06-Jun-2006 15:22
Beautiful photo of this memorial. Nice to hear that attitudes are slowy changing toward
the positive.
Guest 06-Jun-2006 14:35
Nice memorial indeed, it is something we should remember and discuss so we can try to understand why our country was once so divided it was almost torn apart. We should not brush it under the rug and act like nothing ever happened. I heard that flag actually is just like a scottish flag and like you say represents peoples ancestry more than the Confederacy even though its meaning has be hijacked by some for other meaning. We have a confederate soldiers memorial in Charlotte too, though its hidden away and hard to find but i imagine when it was erected in the 1920's, people still felt strongly about the former confederacy. Now that Charlotte is part of the booming New South, it is something the city would like to move on from.
jypsee06-Jun-2006 14:05
The Civil War is what made this nation; it was that conflict that forged the notions only sketched by the founders at Philadelphia. However, to cling to the old notion of a right of confederacy/separation is only to perpetuate the issues rather than accepting the outcome. There needs to be a way to acknowledge the past and move on to the future. As for "history is history," the people who keep history mold the history, interpret the history, change the history. To the victors go the spoils, but to the storytellers go the histories.
Beverly Wickersham06-Jun-2006 13:59
Nice job. Karen. I had ancestors fight on both sides of the war, and it caused a great rift. Progress is being made, acknowledged mostly by those of us least affected by it. It's hard to imagine the feelings of others without having
walked in their shoes.
Guest 06-Jun-2006 13:57
The memorial honors the casualties of a war that was fought for far more than one reason. The Confederacy was also led by men of vision. It is a beautiful monument and your photograph also honors the memory of those who fell. Excellent picture and sentiment.
royalld06-Jun-2006 13:35
Beautifully composed shot.
History is history.
We can't always be proud of our history, but we should never deny it.
I didn't know that the Stars and Bars was not the national flag of the Confederacy.
What was the Confederate national flag?
As for racism... the world is full of -isms. Racism is just one of them.
Everyone on this planet is being discriminated against by someone for something.
That only changes when the discriminator discovers a non-threatening common bond with the discriminated.
Katie Chew06-Jun-2006 13:34
Nice image
Coleen Perilloux Landry06-Jun-2006 13:14
Very lovely photo, Karen and so clear I can read everything on the monument. My paternal grandfather fought in the Civil War for the Confederacy. History is history and cannot and should not be changed.
Gary Blanchette06-Jun-2006 13:09
This image was well taken. Nice work Karen.
Guest 06-Jun-2006 13:00
Very nice documentary and very well captured image.
Thanks to you, I don't have to re-read my history books.
Guest 06-Jun-2006 12:40
I'm interested in history, and I have lots of books to read. But I probably learn more from you than from any of them. A nice image, framed nicely with great color. Like it and the commentary. As an aside, I'm not sure about the heart changing business. I spent so many years earlier fighting for integration, yet, as you, I find racism today. I think it's part of the flawed nature of man to dislike differences. I feel now that it takes an intellectual decision, not a shift of the heart, to make people accept differences. And it's too bad humankind doesn't have that intellectual capability in any large degree.
Guest 06-Jun-2006 11:35
Crystal clear image and documentary. Great job.