Roads Through the Battlefield
Battle of Chancellorsville - 1863
Today, much like it was in the nineteenth century, Spotsylvania County contains very few east-west roads. The few that exist, such as Route 3 before you, are heavily used and follow the same routes as their antebellum predecessors.
The first improved east-west roadway in Spotsylvania was the Orange Turnpick, which opened in 1813. Constructed by the Swift Run Gap Turnpike Company, it followed an earlier path that stretched the 45 miles from Fredericksburg to Orange Court House. Complete with toll gates, the turnpike boasted a crushed stone surface. By 1860, the road had fallen into disrepair and the right-of-way was sold to the Fredericksburg and Valley Plank Road Company.
The Fredericksburg and Valley Plank Road Company sought to improve travel between Fredericksburg and Orange by using wooden planks and timbers as a road surface. Viewed as something of a novelty, the new road utilized segments of the turnpike, but in areas where the topography was hilly, a parallel route was constructed along better grades.
These two east-west routes figured prominently in Spotsylvania County’s battles. Even today, the turnpike (Route 3) and the plank road (Routes 3, 610, and 621) remain as vital transportation links.
Marker can be reached from Plank Road/Germanna Highway (Virginia Route 3) near Harrison Road.
Courtesy hmdb.org
