Virginia Department of Historic Resources Virginia Department of Historic Resources
For additional information, read the Nomination Form PDF
VLR Listing Date 12/03/1997
NRHP Listing Date 09/24/1998
NRHP Reference Number 98001161
J.E.B. Stuart Birthplace in Patrick County is associated with the early life of Confederate cavalry commander General James Ewell Brown Stuart. Described by Robert E. Lee as “my ideal of a soldier,” Stuart realized that cavalry could provide a screen for troop movement unhindered by the enemy, and he used lightning-strike cavalry rides to gather critical intelligence support on enemy troop movements. His famous “Ride Around McClellan” in June 1862 provided Lee with vital intelligence that enabled him to thwart the Federal Peninsula Campaign’s attempt to capture Richmond. The nominated 71 acres of Stuart’s birthplace comprise the core area of a farm operated by J.E.B.’s father Archibald Stuart and include the archaeological remains of Stuart’s Birthplace, Laurel Hill, which burned in the late 1840s. The J.E.B. Stuart Birthplace Preservation Trust acquired the nominated tract in 1991.
Many properties listed in the registers are private dwellings and are not open to the public, however many are visible from the public right-of-way. Please be respectful of owner privacy.
Abbreviations:
VLR: Virginia Landmarks Register
NPS: National Park Service
NRHP: National Register of Historic Places
NHL: National Historic Landmark
Updated: August 4, 2021
