Symposium: Why Did War Come to Petersburg? & PBF Annual Meeting

Name: Symposium: Why Did War Come to Petersburg? & PBF Annual Meeting
Start: 2025-03-08T09:00:00-05:00
End: 2025-03-08T15:30:00-05:00
Location: 103 River St, Petersburg, VA 23803, United States

Schedule

Sat Mar 08 2025 at 09:00 am to 03:30 pm

UTC-05:00

Location

103 River St, Petersburg, VA 23803, United States | Petersburg, VA

Join the Petersburg Battlefields Foundation (PBF) at Petersburg’s historic Union Station for our first symposium in honor of our 10th anniversary! Petersburg was a supply and industrial center resting on the south bank of the Appomattox River at the fall line. It was a very strategic location for the armies in the Revolutionary War and the Civil War. The Symposium will feature five presentations (topics & speakers):
(1) “Petersburg, Virginia: The Making of a City” – An overview of over 400 years of history in Petersburg at the falls of the Appomattox River. ** Martha Mann Atkinson, Historical Interpreter & Curator at Magnolia Grange House Museum in Chesterfield County; has spent her career working at various museums and historic sites
(2) “The Revolutionary Battle of Petersburg, 1781” - Was the Battle of Petersburg during the American Revolution a turning point or an interesting side event? ** William M. Welsh, Founding President of the American Revolution Round Table of Richmond; served in the United States Marine Corp; author; retired administrator from Montclair State University
(3) “The U.S. Military Railroad and the Petersburg Campaign: 1864-1865” – The construction and importance of the U.S. Military Railroad, which was created to assist in supplying Union troops, will be discussed. ** James Blankenship, Jr., retired from Petersburg National Battlefield (Interpreter and Park Historian and Curator) and the U.S. Army Institute of Military History; local historic preservationist
(4) “Civil War – What was the Defense of Petersburg Anyway?” – A summary of the defense of Petersburg during the siege. ** John Horn, author most recently of The Petersburg Regiment in the Civil War: A History of the 12th Virginia Infantry from John Brown’s Hanging to Appomattox, 1859-1865 (Savas Beatie), which won the 2019 Army Historical Foundation Distinguished Writing Award for Unit History
(5) “Relics Reunited” – Focusing on the life story of Union officer LTC Richard S. Thompson and the relics from his Civil War military career, including his officer’s frock coat and shrapnel that caused his wounds which will be on display. ** Kenny Bage, President, Petersburg Civil War Roundtable; member and leader in a number of historical heritage groups
PBF will also hold its annual meeting during lunch, which will be catered by Firehouse Subs. We will present an Award for Preservation and Scholarship to Chris Calkins, historian, author, former Chief of Interpretation at Petersburg National Battlefield, and first Superintendent of Sailor’s Creek Battlefield State Park.
The venue is ADA accessible and there is free on-site parking. Space is limited. NO WALK-INS, NO TICKETS SOLD AT THE DOOR! Tickets must be purchased ahead of time BY WEDNESDAY, MARCH 5.