Solve History’s Mysteries
True or False: Stonewall Jackson died on May 3, 1863, the date inscribed on the granite marker in the cemetery at Ellwood Manor.
What does a tribute to an arm teach us about heroism? Are those lessons relevant today?
Spoiler Alert:
Secrets are revealed below!
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At the peak of the Civil War in 1863, Stonewall Jackson was one of the Confederacy’s superstar generals. During combat, he was accidentally shot by one of his troops at the Battle of Chancellorsville. A bullet shattered the bone below his left shoulder, and Stonewall Jackson’s left arm couldn’t be saved. The amputation took place at Ellwood Manor, the summer home of the Lacy family, which became a field hospital during the war. Paying tribute to the general’s heroism, a military chaplain named Beverley Lacy gave the arm a formal burial in his family’s cemetery at Ellwood Manor.
While Stonewall Jackson survived the amputation, he died on May 10, 1863 from pneumonia. His arm was laid to rest at Ellwood Manor, but the remainder of his body was buried at Oak Grove Cemetery–over 100 miles away. The takeaway: Stonewall Jackson has more than one burial site in Virginia!
But the story doesn’t end there. According to legend, Stonewall Jackson’s arm was dug up by Union soldiers in 1864, and it has since been reburied…at least twice! Today, the famous arm finally rests in peace at the cemetery at Ellwood Manor.
