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Saving history

January 6, 2006 12:50 am

Slaughter Pen Farm should be preserved

FOR YEARS it was simply a working farm. Now, those who have inherited it are ready to harvest its land value. But long, long ago, on a chill December day, it was the site of a battle between Blue and Gray. Soaked in the blood of the 2,500 soldiers who fought and died there, the land became hallowed ground. The Pierson Farm near Shannon Airport deserves to be preserved in their memory.

According to the Civil War Preservation Trust, nationwide 20 percent of the land associated with the War Between the States has already been lost to development. About 15 percent is under federal control. The rest needs our protection.

Of course, balance must be maintained between what the community and special interests desire and personal property rights. The individuals who own Pierson Farm, known to Civil War enthusiasts as "Slaughter Pen Farm," deserve fair value for their land. Fortunately, the CWPT and the Central Virginia Battlefields Trust have mustered their resources and entered negotiations to purchase the property.

Situated on Routes 2 and 17 next to Shannon Airport, the approxi-mately 200 acres is zoned for light industrial or commercial purposes. But few would argue that its highest use would be as a monument to the brave men who fought in that front of the 1862 Battle of Fredericksburg.

Once lost, Civil War land is gone forever. Kudos to the CWPT and CVBT for stepping forward, once again, to preserve an important piece of our history. May the negotiations go smoothly and the land remain undeveloped, a quiet testimony to the honor of those who suffered and died there.