SEARCH SITE

VIRGINIA LAW PORTAL

SEARCHABLE DATABASES

ACROSS SESSIONS

Developed and maintained by the Division of Legislative Automated Systems.

2014 SPECIAL SESSION I


HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 5106
Commemorating the actions of Company I, 155th New York Volunteer Infantry during the Civil War battle at Sangster's Station.

 

Agreed to by the House of Delegates, June 12, 2014
Agreed to by the Senate, June 12, 2014

 

WHEREAS, during the Civil War, control of the Orange and Alexandria Railroad was of crucial importance to both the Union and Confederate States armies, and Sangster’s Station in Fairfax County was the site of numerous engagements; and

WHEREAS, the first battle at Sangster’s Station took place in March 1862 when Union cavalry from New York and New Jersey engaged the rear guard of a unit led by General Joseph E. Johnston, who had withdrawn his troops from Northern Virginia to defend Richmond; and

WHEREAS, in the summer of 1863, a Union brigade known as Corcoran’s Irish Legion was assigned to guard the Orange and Alexandria Railroad in western Fairfax County; the members of Company I, 155th New York Volunteer Infantry, who were mostly recruited from Buffalo, New York, were deployed near Sangster’s Station; and

WHEREAS, a larger battle took place in December 1863 when Company I, 155th New York Volunteer Infantry was ambushed by cavalry of the Confederate Laurel Brigade, which was leading a raid toward the Shenandoah Valley from Fredericksburg; and

WHEREAS, outnumbered almost 10 to one, Company I, 155th New York Volunteer Infantry fought gallantly, and after the war, the captain of the unit successfully petitioned the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors to erect the “Tears and Love” monument, memorializing the battle with the Laurel Brigade; and

WHEREAS, the Fairfax County Historical Society preserved plates from the original monument after it was dismantled in the 1960s; a new monument is planned for July 2014; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly hereby commemorate the actions of Company I, 155th New York Volunteer Infantry during the Civil War battle at Sangster’s Station; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors as an expression of the General Assembly’s admiration for the courage and sacrifices of Company I, 155th New York Volunteer Infantry and all Union and Confederate troops involved in the engagements around Sangster’s Station.