Tag: Patterson Creek

April 17, 1757: Col. Washington Orders Closing Ft. Ashby

On April 17, 1757, George Washington ordered the Virginia militia to abandon Fort Ashby in present Mineral County. Captain Ashby of the Virginia militia had overseen the fort’s construction, and Fort Cocke—to the south, during the summer and fall of 1755.

Ashby and Cocke were the first of several forts ordered built by Washington to defend the Western Virginia frontier during the French and Indian War. The effort was in response to Indian raids that had occurred along Patterson Creek in 1755. At the time, the colony of Virginia was trying to encourage settlement on its western frontier and protect those who’d already settled there.

By 1757, Washington could no longer provide enough forces to protect Forts Ashby and Cocke, so he abandoned both sites. Afterward, Ashby was likely garrisoned by local militia until the threat of Indian attacks ended.

Today, an old log building—probably a barracks—is all that remains of Fort Ashby. This structure, which was added to the National Register of Historic Places, is the last original structure associated with a frontier fort in West Virginia.

April 25, 1863: Confederate Soldiers Advance Through Greenland Gap

On April 25, 1863, about 1,500 Confederate soldiers under General William “Grumble” Jones advanced through Greenland Gap, a scenic 820-foot-deep pass in New Creek Mountain in Grant County. Jones’s Confederates clashed with 87 Union soldiers, who’d taken positions in a local church and cabins.

The Northern troops held off several assaults over four hours of fighting. After the church was set on fire, the Union forces finally surrendered. The Union side lost two killed and six wounded, while the Confederates lost seven killed and 35 wounded.

It was the beginning of what would become known as the Jones-Imboden Raid, an ambitious but ultimately unsuccessful bid by Confederates to disrupt the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad and weaken Union control in what would soon become the new state of West Virginia.

Today, Greenland Gap remains a place of stunning beauty, with towering sandstone cliffs. The North Fork of Patterson Creek, a popular trout stream, flows through the gap. Greenland Gap, which has been designated as a State Natural Landmark, is the centerpiece of a 255-acre nature preserve owned by the Nature Conservancy.

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