March 12, 2011

Mosby's Rock


I didn't post much here about the Mosby Tour that I attended through NVCC last May because it was mostly a repeat of a tour I took before and posted on my Civil War Field Trips site. However, Mosby's Rock in Herndon was a new stop for us, so I'll show it to you now.

The location felt a bit unusual. For one thing, it's a small green area surrounded by development (townhouses and a church), so it doesn't feel at all like the secret meeting place that it was 150 years ago. Also, it's not a large boulder, it's an unremarkable-looking outcropping. You would not notice it except for the historic marker.

Here's what the plaque tells us:
Mosby’s Rangers (43d Bn., Va. Cav.) used this rock as a rendezvous point and met here to divide the spoils after raids. The renowned Southern spy and scout Laura Ratcliffe, who lived nearby, showed this rock to Col. (then Captain) John S. Mosby, CSA, in 1863, and suggested he use it as a meeting place.
You can find directions to Mosby's Rock on HMDB.org.

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