Yorktown visit on 5/6

We spent a pleasant Tuesday in the Yorktown area with Bill and BJ Sprague, touring the battlefield and walking the streets of Yorktown. What struck me most about the battlefield was the massive amount of effort put forth by the Continental  Army and the French to create the elaborate mound and trench network which encircled the British  for the Siege of Yorktown. It is even more impressive when considering that most of the work was completed in a very short period of time by a combined Army that had just finished the march South from New York. The trench was approximately 2000 feet long and it was completed in a single night. 

Part of the battlefield tour included a stop at redoubts 9 and 10 which were part of the British outer defenses. Approximately 400 French and 400 American’s troops stormed the two redoubts with a bayonet charge (unloaded muskets), scaled the walls of the redoubts and took the British positions. It is difficult to comprehend the determination and fortitude of soldier’s who took those redoubts.  Their efforts allowed the American and French Armies to solidify their positions and intensify the artillery fire on the British positions resulting in the surrender of the British within three days.

The final stop on the battlefield tour was at the Nelson house where capitulation terms were negotiated. It is a beautiful site on the bluffs above the York river. The picture shows Bill and BJ in front of the Moore house.  

After touring the battlefield we had a pleasant lunch at the Waterstreet Grill on Water street.

After lunch we walked down to the Cornwallis Cave. Unfortunately this site has never been restored and is a little disappointing. 

From the cave we walked up the hill to Main street to see the Nelson House, Customs House and other historic buildings but none of the building were open to the public. They are staffed by volunteers  and apparently none were available on Tuesday. We finished with a visit to the York county museum in the basement of the old courthouse.  The volunteer docent provided some background on the history of the area including the explosion at the Yorktown munitions yard which occurred in 1943.

On November 16, 1943, the equivalent of 150,000 pounds of T.N.T. exploded at the Yorktown Weapons Station, causing a hole 15 feet deep and over 500 feet wide and killing six workers in the incident.