The Stories Behind Lovettsville’s Civil War Trails Walking Tour

Presented by: Richard Gillespie, Public Historian

Sunday, September 14, 2025 at 2:00pm

St. James United Church of Christ

10 East Broad Way, Lovettsville

The Lovettsville Historical Society will be introducing the three new Civil War Trails signs in Lovettsville, and the stories behind them, at its Second Sunday lecture on September 14th, at 2:00 p.m. at St. James church in Lovettsville.  Following the lecture, a dedication ceremony will be held at the Town Office parking lot with Town and Lovettsville Historical Society officials participating.

The three signs – two updated, and one completely new – have been incorporated into the newly-established “Civil War Trails Walking Tour” through Lovettsville’s Historic District.  (The Historic District, recognized on the National Register of Historic Places, was the subject of our August lecture, which can be viewed here.)

The three new Civil War Trails signs are laid out chronologically:

• Sign No. 1, “Union Loyalists on the Border,” is set on the Town Square (the “Squirkle”) and portrays 1861-62 in Lovettsville.  The German Settlement (the area surrounding the town of Lovettsville) leaned Unionist, and in a Confederate state, this was certainly problematic for the residents.  The relocated, and now more-accessible sign has a good eastward-facing view of the town and sits close to the Veterans’ Memorial. 
• Sign No. 2, “Gateway to Virginia,” sits at the town’s original main intersection at East Broad Way and South Loudoun Street, and describes 1862-63 when the enormous Union Army of the Potomac marched through town after the Battles of Antietam and Gettysburg.  The viewscape better focusses on the view of that time a century-and-a-half ago.
• Sign No. 3, “Winter Camps,” sits in the northeast corner of the Town Office parking lot, and gives us a glimpse of the winter of 1865 when Lovettsville was occupied by a brigade of Union cavalry for two months.  Just behind the Town Office is a remnant of the old Presbyterian Church—its graveyard—and the sign tells how that church was turned into an army hospital during the winter encampment.

The first part of the September 14 program, starting at 2:00, will consist of Richard Gillespie relating some of the stories behind the Civil War signs, and will take place at St. James church.

The second part of the program, starting around 3:00, will be the dedication ceremony, which will take place behind the church at the Town Office parking lot on Pennsylvania Avenue.

This has been a cooperative effort between the Lovettsville Historical Society, the Town of Lovettsville, and Civil War Trails. Our previous article, and the brochure describing the Walking Tour is here.

A video recording of the September 14 presentation will be posted on the Lovettsville Historical Society website following the events.

  Admission is free, but donations are welcome to defray expenses of the program and to support the activities of the Lovettsville Historical Society.

  For more information, call 540-822-9194.