Special Exhibit at Yorktown Visitor Center Displays Civil War Memorabilia of Yorktown Commander
On July 13, 1863, Brigadier General Isaac Jones Wistar issued his first orders as the new commander of the federal controlled District of Eastern Virginia, with headquarters at Yorktown. Under his direction, the garrison at Yorktown underwent many changes as he restored the Union fort to military order and cleanliness, developed housing for the African American contraband, secured federal control of the area to the banks of the Chickahominy River and received into his command some of the first United States Colored Infantry regiments to see service in the Civil War.
As part of the Civil War sesquicentennial commemoration, Colonial National Historical Park, in cooperation with the Archives at the Wistar Institute, is highlighting General Wistar’s contributions to the Yorktown area with a special exhibit at the Yorktown Visitor Center. Featured are some of the general’s Civil War accoutrements, including his sword, epaulets, and officer’s sash and his brigadier general’s commission signed by President Abraham Lincoln and Secretary of War Edwin Stanton.
The exhibit will be on display through May 4, 2014; the 150th anniversary of Wistar’s departure from Yorktown with the Army of the James.
Access to the exhibit is included in the $7 per adult entrance fee to Yorktown Battlefield. Interagency Annual, Access, Military and Senior passes, Colonial Annual Park passes and Golden Age passes are also accepted for park entrance. Children age 15 and younger are free.
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