Chinn Ridge: Cultural Landscape Inventory, Manassas National Battlefield, National Park Service

Oeschger, Jennifer

The Chinn Ridge cultural landscape is situated approximately 25 miles west of Washington, DC, in Prince William County, Virginia, five miles north of the city of Manassas. It is located in the south central section of Manassas National Battlefield Park. The property is currently known as Chinn Ridge, a moniker that developed out of the Chinn family ownership during the Civil War. Before the war, the property was a plantation called Hazel Plain. The boundary of the project area is based on the property associated with the Chinn farm, as it existed at the time of the First and Second Battles of Manassas, July 21, 1861 and August 28‑30, 1862, respectively. The National Park Service acquired the 523.74‑acre property in fee‑simple from a private landowner on July 30, 1936. Portions of two additional plots that historically made up the Chinn farm property were acquired in 1936 and 1937, one from George H. Ayers, and one from Golder O’Neil Jr., both in fee simple. The total acreage is 557 acres. In 1940, Manassas National Battlefield Park was established to preserve the scenes of First and Second Battles of Manassas. Chinn Ridge is significant in three distinct areas of history. First, the Chinn Ridge cultural landscape is associated with the Piedmont agricultural traditions of 18th century tobacco cultivation and subsequent diversified farming. The agricultural landscape of the Manassas region served as the stage for what many thought would be a quick and decisive Civil War. The Chinn Ridge cultural landscape’s primary significance lies in military history resulting from its role in the Battles of Manassas during the American Civil War. Union and Confederate troops met twice on this ground, once in July of 1861 and again in August of 1862. The high elevation of Chinn Ridge and the open pastureland lent itself to key military planning strategy during both Battles of Manassas. The cultural landscape is also significant in the area of battlefield commemoration for its memorial dedicated to an intrepid Union officer during the Second Battle of Manassas. Chinn Ridge contains a granite boulder with bronze plaque erected in 1914, to honor Colonel Fletcher Webster. The property also includes the Hooe Cemetery, a family burial plot where Bernard Hooe Sr., the builder of the Hazel Plain home and a Revolutionary War veteran, is buried. The Manassas Battlefield National Register nomination includes Chinn Ridge as a contributing feature, but it inadequately describes the physical landscape for the property. The commemorative elements and house ruins are mentioned, but their placement within the landscape is not addressed. Today the property exhibits integrity to the agricultural landscape, the Civil War field patterns, and the commemoration periods of significance. The ridge, in part, remains an open pasture as it was during the battles and is currently maintained through an agricultural leasing program. The structures including the Chinn House, the stables, and other outbuildings have been lost, but the spatial organization, circulation and vegetation, natural systems, and constructed water features retain integrity. The remains of the house, cemetery, cistern, and capped well are visible in their original locations. Since acquiring the property in 1936, the National Park Service made a good faith effort to preserve the Chinn House, but its advanced state of deterioration (not to mention a lack of funding during World War II) prevented it from being saved. The house was torn down in 1950. In the 1930s, the National Park Service cleared some of the successive forest that had grown up in the battlefield view shed. Unfortunately, the views and vistas significant to the battlefield are today obscured. A portion of the tour road and monuments continue to be maintained. They are key historic elements to the interpretation and commemoration of the battles.

Chinn Ridge: Cultural Landscape Inventory, Manassas National Battlefield, National Park Service

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