Closer Look

Monument at Appomattox honors N.C. troops

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Deena Bouknight

North Carolina’s impact, presence, and sway is more far reaching than within the 53,819 square miles it encompasses. And even though a Macon County connection is not always obvious, anyone who has lived in N.C. for very long holds some affinity and dedication to the state, which was not only one of the original 13 colonies, but also the first state to instruct its delegates to vote for independence from the British crown during the Continental Congress. Thus, this series spotlights some little-known people, places, general facts, etc. to broaden readers’ state-related knowledge. 

Anyone with a shred of interest in Civil War and general American history is familiar with the significance of an off-the-beaten-path, very rural area in Virginia known as Appomattox Court House. On April 9, 1865, the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia, led by Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee, to Union Gen. Ulysses S. Grant occurred. In a home, famously known as the McLean House, in the deserted village – due to area fighting – a civil, undramatic discussion ensued between the two military greats and terms were established that set in motion the end of a four-year, 600,000-plus-casualties war. 

And, although this area is now a National Park Service Historic Park, with many original buildings preserved or reconstructed and multiple museums available for the visiting public, only one monument exists that calls attention to a fighting force. That monument just happens to spotlight North Carolina soldiers. 

Erected on April 10, 1905, by North Carolina Civil War veterans on the 40th anniversary of Confederate soldiers paroled after the surrender, the monument marks the location of the last volley fired by the Army of Northern Virginia – most specifically by North Carolina troops. Down a quiet pathway through some woods, next to a wide pasture, sits the monument; it is just west of the Appomattox Court House village, on the south side of Virginia Route 24. 

THE MONUMENT near Appomattox Courthouse honors North Carolina soldiers who served in the Army of Northern Virginia who fired the last volley in the last battle of the Civil War.

The large monument reads: 

Last at Appomattox

At this place the North Carolina Brigade of Brigadier-General W.R. Cox of Grimes Division fired The Last Volley 9 April 1865. Major-General Bryan Grimes of North Carolina planned the last battle fought by the Army of Northern Virginia and commanded the infantry engaged therein, the greater part of whom were North Carolinians.

This stone is erected by the authority of The General Assembly of North Carolina in grateful and perpetual memory of the valor, endurance, and patriotism of her sons who followed with unshaken fidelity the fortunes of the Confederacy to this closing scene, faithful to the end.

Erected 9 April 1905.

North Carolina Appomattox Commission H.A. London, Chairman, E. J. Holt, W.T. Jenkins,
Cyrus S. Watson, A.D. McGill.

Two other small North Carolina markers are north of Virginia Route 24 along the old Richmond-Lynchburg stage road, reachable from a Confederate Cemetery parking area. For individuals who plan to put the historic site on their future bucket-list travel plans, the parking area is also the western trailhead for the Appomattox History Trail, which winds 4.5 miles through woods and along the Appomattox River to General Lee’s Headquarters site on the west side of the park.

Occasionally, visitors can catch reenactments at the North Carolina monument site.