First Battle of Winchester

Here Confederate Maj. Gen. Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson and his army, early on the morning of 25 May 1862, defeated Union Maj. Gen. Nathaniel P. Bank's forces during Jackson’s Shenandoah Valley campaign. Banks, outnumbered and outflanked, hastily retreated north through the streets of Winchester. The Confederate pursuit was lethargic, as the men were exhausted from a week of heavy marching, but they captured many Union soldiers and a large quantity of wagons and stores. Because of Jackson’s victory here, the Valley was temporarily cleared of Federal armies. President Abraham Lincoln diverted 30,000 men from the Union advance on Richmond to strike at Jackson.

Department of Historic Resources, 2006