Virginia Department of Historic Resources Virginia Department of Historic Resources
For additional information, read the Nomination Form PDF
VLR Listing Date 12/13/1988
NRHP Listing Date 05/01/1989
NRHP Reference Number 89001058
Located atop a 70-foot-high cliff overlooking the Potomac River, the Civil War features that make up the Cockpit Point Confederate Battery consist of four individual batteries, forming the best preserved of several Confederate fortifications associated with the Southern blockade of Washington, D.C. Brig. Gen. Isaac Trimble, C. S. A., probably built the battery in the fall of 1861. On November 14, 1861, a sailing schooner loaded with firewood tried to slip past Cockpit Point. The batteries fired on it and three rounds found their mark. The sailors dropped anchor and then swam for the Maryland shore. A dozen Confederates rowed out and set the schooner afire, but soon afterward a group of Massachusetts soldiers extinguished the blaze and towed the ship to safety. The Confederate guns then dueled Union cannon on the Maryland shore, killing only a pig and a mule. The Cockpit Point Confederate Battery is listed in the registers under the Civil War Properties, Prince William County Multiple Property Documentation form.
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: February 13, 2023
