HCWHA US 250th GeoTour
Monocacy National Battlefield
Party like it’s 1776 with the Heart of the Civil War Heritage Area’s 250th GeoTour! Designed for beginner and veteran geocachers, participants will travel through time, solving puzzles and following clues to learn more about mid-Maryland’s rich history. In honor of the 250th anniversary of the United States, our 250th GeoTour will take you throughout Carroll, Frederick, and Washington Counties to sites of historical significance, including battlefields, houses of worship, museums, parks, and more!
Our tour is an opportunity to learn more about the people, places, and events that laid the foundation for our country. While supplies last, those who collect 15 or more will earn this Geotour’s limited edition geocoin commemorating the 250th. Happy hunting!
Courtesy of National Park Service
US Army forces were stationed at Monocacy Junction throughout the Civil War to ensure that the B&O railroad, which connected Maryland to West Virginia and Ohio, remained secure. On July 9, 1864, 15,000 Confederate soldiers marched towards Washington D.C. and were met by 6,500 Federal soldiers at the Battle of Monocacy. Among those Federal forces were the 14th New Jersey regiment, nicknamed “The Monocacy Regiment,” who were already very familiar with Monocacy Junction.
In the winter of 1862, soldiers of the 14th New Jersey Infantry constructed two blockhouses to protect the Junction. The 14th established Camp Hooker, where 800 to 1000 soldiers lived for almost a year.
In early July 1864, John Garrett, the president of the B&O railroad, warned Federal Major General Lew Wallace that the railroad bridge over the Monocacy River was in danger from Confederate attack. He feared that, should the iron bridge at Monocacy fall, the disruption to supply lines would severely limit the movement of men and materials along the railroad.
The New Jerseyans returned to the Monocacy Junction as reinforcements with the 3rd Division of the IV Corps under Brigadier General James Ricketts, and 140 men were killed or wounded during the Battle of Monocacy. General Wallace, during a eulogy for the fallen, declared that “these men died to save the National Capital, and they did save it.” Today, a monument dedicated to the 14th New Jersey, “the Monocacy Regiment”, honors “our boys [who] fought as if they were fighting for their own homes,” and those who died for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for all.
1862 Civil War Company H, 14th New Jersey Regiment Currier and Ives company roster. Retrieved from https://doi.org/doi:10.7282/T3W09424.
Biggs, Jeffrey R. “Civil War Ancestors: Alexander Springsteen, 14th New Jersey.” Hardtack Books. https://www.hardtackbooks.com/hardtackblog/blog-post-title-one -ht4a7-tp2y9-9ym33-ct3zm.
“The 14th New Jersey - the Monocacy Regiment.” National Park Service (2020). https://www.nps.gov/mono/learn/historyculture/14th_nj.htm.
Mark. “The 14th New Jersey Infantry at the Battle of Monocacy.” Iron Brigader: Civil War Info and Resources (2021). https://ironbrigader.com/2021/07/24/the-14th-new-jersey-infantry- at-the-battle-of-monocacy/.
“Nobody Gets Through: The heroic stand of the 14th New Jersey Infantry at the Battle of Monocacy.” American Battlefield Trust. https://www.battlefields.org/ learn/articles/nobody-gets-through.
The Monocacy National Battlefield Visitor Center is open daily from 8am–5pm except on New Year’s Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day. The park’s driving tour and hiking trails are open daily from 7am until 20 minutes past sunset. There are no fees to enter Monocacy National Battlefield. You are looking for a small lock-n-lock container. The terrain rating is for the last couple of steps to grab the geocache.
Entrance to the New Jersey Monument section of the Battlefield is only possible coming from the south on MD-355. If coming from the north, there are places to turn around past the entrance and come back up north.
Thanks to the following members of the Maryland Geocaching Society in placing the hides for this Geotrail: deepdish23, hunterKat, GR8Caches, Phos4s, Snurt, JediTrashPanda, Phos4s, and ALS Guide.