2846 Brooke Road | Stafford, VA 22554
Mid-Mar. to Oct., 8:00am - 8:00pm
Nov to Mid-Mar, 8:00am - 5:30pm
*Park closes occasionally due to tidal flooding.*
History | Park Info. | Honors & Trails | Suggested Readings | Thanks & Sponsors
BRIEF HISTORY
Aquia Landing is located at the confluence of Aquia Creek and the Potomac River in Stafford County, Virginia. As early as 1815, Aquia Landing served as a steamboat wharf. Southbound travelers came to this point by boat from Washington, DC and Baltimore, MD, then took stagecoaches south 15 miles to the city of Fredericksburg. In 1842, the Richmond Fredericksburg & Potomac (RF&P) Railroad was extended north to Aquia Landing, completing the line from Richmond,VA to the Potomac River. Aquia was the only direct rail-to-steamboat transfer point on the Potomac River between the capital cities of Richmond, VA and Washington, DC. This new means of transit reduced travel time from 38 hours by stagecoach to nine hours by rail and steamboat.
A pivotal transportation point between southern states and northern ports, Aquia Landing initially served as a domestic slave trade portal, as witnessed first-hand by slave Solomon Northup (1841). However, the site was later transformed into a gateway to freedom through which thousands of fugitive slaves passed en route to liberty. Among those slaves are believed to be William and Ellen Craft (1848) and Henry “Box” Brown (1849).
Shortly after the start of the Civil War, this important transportation hub became a site of interest to both sides. Union steamships and Confederate artillery exchanged fire for three days over the landing during the Battle of Aquia Creek (May 31-Jun 2, 1861). A year later in April 1862, the Union arrived en masse to Stafford, rebuilding the landing, and using it for an operations center for approximately five months. During that period, an estimated 10,000 freedom seekers who sought refuge behind Union lines passed through Stafford - many of whom are believed to have been shipped north from Stafford to Alexandria, VA and Washington, DC, including a slave named John Washington (1862). An exhibit interpreting the history of this site has given Aquia Landing the name "Gateway to Freedom."
AQUIA LANDING TODAY
Also, be sure to walk out the gate of Aquia Landing to the Patawomeck Park trailhead. Here, two more Civil War Trails markers can be found, and a Civil War battery can be visited by walking up the hill on the footpath. This trail graced by a Native American Medicine Wheel, located at the very top of the trail. The Medicine Wheel is a cultural site actively used by the Patawomeck Inidan Tribe. Please be respectful of this site and all the natural surroundings. If you have questions, please contact the Patawomeck Indians directly.
PARK INFOR
MATION & HOURS
Aquia Landing is maintained by Stafford County Parks, Recreation & Community Facilities, (540) 658-4871. No alcohol permitted. No boat trailers permitted; no boat ramp on site. Restrooms on-site. Picnic shelters are available for rent: (540) 658-5019. Aquia Landing is open to the public daily. HOURS: Mid-March to October, 8:00am - 8:00pm. November to Mid-March, 8:00am - 5:30pm.
MAP & PARK DIRECTIONS
Aquia Landing is located approximately eight miles east of Stafford Courthouse, or about four miles east of the Brooke VRE rail station. From I-95, take Exit 140. Turn east on Courthouse Road. Follow Courthouse Road about 1.0 mile. Cross U.S. Route 1, and continue east on Courthouse Road for 2.5 more miles. Turn right on Andrew Chapel Road, and proceed approximately 1.0 mile. Go under the Railroad Bridge, and turn left on Brooke Road. Continue 4.2 miles. Brooke Road ends at the gate to the park. Click here to see a MAP of Stafford County showing Aquia Landing Park and two other designated sites on the Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail.
HONORS & TRAILS
Aquia Landing is listed on the NPS National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom, the Civil War Trails, the Trail to Freedom, and the NPS Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail (PHNST).
SUGGESTED READINGS
To learn more about the history of this site, you can read a number of books that reference travel to and through Aquia Landing from slaves, soldiers, and general travelers.
- 150 Years Along the RF&P Railroad, by William E. Griffin, Jr.
- Adams Express Company History, by The Adams Express Company
- A Different Story
, by Ruth Coder Fitzgerald - Narrative of the Life of Henry Box Brown, by Henry Brown
- Pictorial Field Book of the Revolution, Volume II, by Benson J. Lossing
- Running a Thousand Miles to Freedom (The escape of William & Ellen Craft), by William Craft
- A Slave No More, by David W. Blight (story of John Washington)
- Slavery and the Domestic Slave-Trade in the United States, by Prof. E.A. Andrews
- Stafford County in the Civil War, by Homer D. Musselman
- They Called Stafford Home, by Jerrilyn Eby
- Things as They Are in America, by William Chambers
- The Unboxing of Henry Brown, by Jeffrey Ruggles
- Twelve Years a Slave, Narrative of Solomon Northup
*Historic images above are courtesy of the
Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Division.*
THANKS & SPONSORS
MARKER DESIGN UNVEILING - Gateway to Freedom Event
On Saturday, September 4th, 2010, three new interpretive marker designs were unveiled on the 148th anniversary of the Union army's first evacuation of Aquia Landing (see event photos on the Free Lance-Star website). These markers will be installed later in fall 2010. Family-friendly activities occurred after the ceremony. Special thanks to ceremony participants & exhibitors:
MUSIC & EXHIBITORS:
African-American Civil War Museum / Women of the Civil War Era
Fredericksburg Quilt Festival & Tabernacle UMW
National Park Service - Natl. Underground Railroad Network to Freedom
Staffford County Historical Society
U.S. Slavery Song Project
Virginia Star Quilters
SPECIAL THANKS
by a grant from the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities.
Also, special thanks to the members of the Gateway to Freedom exhibit committee for their leadership, commitment, and dedication to the development of these three markers. This important interpretive exhibit would not have been possible without you.