Richmond National Battlefield Park Maggie L. Walker National Historic Site - National Park Service
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Richmond National Battlefield Park
National Park Service
Maggie L. Walker National Historic Site U.S. Department of the Interior
SUMMER DAYS
How have you been keeping cool this summer?
Here at the park, we’re braving the high
temperatures to staff contact stations, host
events, and keep the battlefields looking their
best. As we continue respecting federal COVID
protocols, our outdoor volunteers have really
stepped up, including trail, site, and monument
adopters. Though a return to fully normal
operations isn’t on the table quite yet, we’re
excited to have re-opened two visitor centers
and the first floor of the Walker House! Read
on for all the latest park news, upcoming
events, and re-opening protocols.
Above: a Navy volunteer holds a
branch of invasive privet he sawed
down at Gaines’ Mill. NPS photo.
Below: VIP John Fones shows off a
small insect caught at the Malvern
Hill BioBlitz. NPS photo.
Above: a group of volunteers pose with Rangers Mark and
Ben outside the St. Luke Building during the Maggie Walker
Day of Service in Historic Jackson Ward. NPS photo.
1
In Case You Missed It…
Summer Recap
BIOBLITZ 2021
Left: VIPs Sally
In early June, 25 professors, naturalists, Chamberlin,
and citizen scientists worked together to Tonya Bryant,
and Dr. John
document biodiversity at Malvern Hill. In
Hayden (left to
five hours, volunteers recorded 268
right) work to
unique species in and around the identify a tree
Malvern meadows. Detailed information species at the
about the species living in this area will Malvern Hill
help us conserve and manage meadow BioBlitz. NPS
habitats in the future. Special thanks to photo.
the Virginia Herpetological Society, the
Virginia Master Naturalists, and the University
BREEDING BIRD SURVEY
of Richmond for supporting this project.
Lynn Wilson, Carlton Noll, Mike and Brenda
Schlosser, Chris Pond, Alison Sinclair, Roz
Stein, Angela Carrico Stevens, Art Ritter,
Daphne Cole, and Gigi Charters have been
hard at work this summer documenting
birds at Malvern Hill. This annual survey
builds on years of data, giving us a deeper
understanding of how Richmond bird
populations and behaviors are changing over
time. By sharing our findings with the NPS
Mid-Atlantic Inventory and Monitoring
Network, we can also compare trends with 5
Above: Ranger Ajena poses with VIPs Miss Nell (left) and
other parks in the region. This summer, the
Audrey Thompson (right) at an information booth set up
for Ms. Walker’s birthday celebration. NPS photo.
most numerous birds included common
yellowthroats, field sparrows, indigo
MAGGIE L. WALKER DAY OF SERVICE & buntings, blue grosbeaks, and summer
CELEBRATION tanagers.
To commemorate Ms. Walker’s birthday and
her legacy of service, we collaborated with the
City of Richmond Parks, Recreation, and Left: sketch of an
Community Facilities to host a community Indigo Bunting,
clean-up on July 17th. More than 30 volunteers from VIP Art Ritter’s
and several park staff worked together to nature journal.
collect 27 bags of trash (almost 200 pounds!) Photo courtesy of
Art Ritter.
around Historic Jackson Ward and St. Luke Hall.
2
In Case You Missed It…
Summer Recap
INSTRUCTED AS SOLDIERS, MUSTERED OUT AS
CITIZENS
In mid-July, we released a documentary
alongside three other NPS sites which highlights
the service of the 114th and 116th USCT. These
units were raised at Camp Nelson, KY, and went
on to fight at Richmond, Petersburg, and
Appomattox. To watch the full documentary
(about 25 minutes), visit our Facebook page.
Above: Ranger Bert makes an appearance in the
“Instructed as Soldiers” documentary, speaking about
USCT units at Fort Harrison. NPS photo.
MAGGIE L. WALKER SUMMER YOUTH
LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE VISITOR CENTER AND WALKER HOUSE RE-
Our 12th year of the summer youth leadership OPENING
program was our largest ever, with more than
We are so excited to announce that our Visitor
20 students from across Greater Richmond.
Centers at Maggie Walker and Cold Harbor
Special thanks to instructors Joy Davis Cobb and
have re-opened, though we’re not bringing
Lisa Williams for adapting to the online
back volunteers just yet. We appreciate
classroom format for this unique year!
everyone’s patience as we continue adapting to
Participants made connections with history by
changing conditions. We have also re-opened
learning leadership skills rooted in Maggie L.
the first floor of the Walker House for tours, by
Walker’s example, carrying on her legacy and
reservation only – visit our website to book a
bridging the past to the present.
tour. Keep an eye on our social media pages for
more updates and announcements!
INVASIVE SPECIES CONTRACT
The park has recently negotiated a
contract with an invasive species
management company, which will
work to kill 80-90% of certain
invasive plants within designated
areas at Gaines’ Mill and Malvern
Hill. Alongside the work of our
dedicated outdoor VIPs, this
contractor will help reduce harmful
Above: a literal “screen shot” from this year’s virtual Leadership invasives in our historic landscapes.
Institute! NPS photo.
3
Upcoming Events
Fall 2021
SEPTEMBER 23: WEEKLY WORKDAYS RESUME Left: VIP John
McKenna
Beginning in mid-September, our weekly
treats invasive
outdoor workdays will pick back up! Every Tree of Heaven
Thursday morning, we host two-hour with herbicide
volunteer workdays focused on outdoor during a
projects including invasive plant management, workday at
trail maintenance, trash cleanup, and more. If Totopotomoy
you’d like to join us, contact Marie Pinto. Creek in June.
NPS photo.
SEPTEMBER 25: NATIONAL PUBLIC LANDS DAY OCTOBER 2-3: SECOND STREET FESTIVAL
NPLD is the largest single-day volunteer event 2021 marks the 33rd year of this celebration of
on public lands, held annually since 1994. For Jackson Ward’s history and culture. Headlining
this event, we’ll be planting grasses on the the festival on Saturday is jazz band Plunky &
earthworks around Totopotomoy Creek Oneness, and many other musicians will be
Battlefield. This will help reduce erosion, featured over the weekend. As always, this
provide habitat for wildlife, and keep the festival is free and open to the public.
earthworks looking nice. Join us on Saturday,
September 25th from 9:00 AM until noon – all
participating volunteers will receive a fee-free OCTOBER 8-10: RICHMOND FOLK FESTIVAL
coupon To register, contact Marie Pinto.
One of Virginia’s largest music festivals,
the Richmond Folk Festival is back for its
17th anniversary. This free event on the
downtown riverfront celebrates
American culture through music, dance,
crafts, storytelling, and food.
*A NOTE ON FALL FESTIVALS
We look forward to joining the festivities
in October with cautious optimism! Our
participation will hinge on NPS COVID
protocols, which ensure the safety of our
staff, volunteers, and visitors. Keep an
Above: a volunteer speaks with visitors at an NPS information eye on our website and social media
booth, set up outside the Walker House as part of the Second pages for updates in the coming weeks!
Street Festival in 2019. NPS photo.
4
Volunteer Contributions
Celebrating Your Work
HARTZOG AWARD NOMINEES DOCUMENT TRANSCRIPTION
Two of our VIPs, Jade Turpin (Maggie Walker) The following volunteers have been working on
and Tom Carlton (Richmond cannon crew), transcribing diaries and letters for the park
were nominated for the prestigious NPS archives: Linda Colwell, Richard Lewis, Diane
Hartzog Award, which recognizes outstanding Wingo, Erin Till, Adam Zimmerli, Nathan Raike,
contributions by Volunteers-In-Parks across the and Lorianne Stogsdill. These transcriptions will
country. Congratulations, Jade and Tom! be available to park staff and researchers in the
park library. Often containing information
found nowhere else, these are valuable assets
OUTDOOR WORKDAYS for doing research about the battles and the
Civil War in Richmond.
Though we’ve cut back on outdoor
workdays due to high temperatures, our
volunteers remain as dedicated as ever,
contributing more than 130 hours across
the 11 workdays we’ve hosted since late
May. Projects have included invasive
plant management, fence removal,
dump site cleanup, and earthwork
maintenance. Special thanks to VIP Kevin
Johnson for coordinating workdays for
Navy sailors stationed in Norfolk. Our
next workday will be at Drewry’s Bluff on
Saturday, September 4th from 9am- Above: VIP Bill Koetter (left) works with park biotechnician
11am; visit HandsOn RVA or contact Jarrett Wansley (right) to remove a large piece of metal
Marie Pinto if you’d like to join us! debris from a dump site at Cold Harbor. NPS photo.
ADOPT-A-TRAIL
Bill Koetter, Steve Ikenberry, Bill and
Jeanette Linka, John Bailey, and Mike
Bartos have continued monitoring
more than 10 miles of trails at
Malvern Hill, Cold Harbor, Gaines’
Mill, and Rural Plains. Their work to
keep the trails clear gives visitors a
safer experience, and their detailed
reports help us keep on top of trail
Above: a group of Navy volunteers pose with park staff after a
workday at Gaines’ Mill. Photo courtesy of Kevin Johnson. maintenance projects. Thanks, all!
5
Volunteer Contributions
Celebrating Your Work
SITE STEWARDS
Site Stewards continue to keep an eye on the
battlefields, replenish brochures, and report on
conditions. Thanks to Jim and Ellie Kisicki for
adopting Chickahominy Bluff and Beaver Dam
Creek; Art and Diane Wingo for Forts Harrison,
Hoke, and Brady; Richard Lewis and Bob Talbot
for Malvern Hill; Bill Handley for Drewry's Bluff
and Parker's Battery; John Held for Cold
Harbor; Marshall Johnson, Howard Motley, and Above: the park sign for Fort Johnson, recently
Gordon Grappone for Rural Plains; and Pat cleaned by Site Stewards. The letter “s” was left for
Ferrell and Adam Zimmerli for Gaines' Mill. If last to create this striking comparison! NPS photo.
anyone else is interested in helping, please
contact Bert Dunkerly. ADOPT A MONUMENT
The park's Adopt A Monument Program uses
volunteer groups to help keep an eye on the
ST. LUKE PENNY SAVINGS BANK MODEL
park's monuments and do basic cleaning. The
VIP Jim O’Brien has been working on a model of Civil War Buffs of Chesterfield County have
the St. Luke Penny Savings Bank, to be installed adopted the Parker's Battery Monument, the
as part of the model railway at the Richmond 12th VA Re-Enactment group cares for the
Railway Museum. Using historic photographs, Wilcox Monument at Gaines' Mill, and the
he has been re-creating this building in striking Richmond Battlefield Association takes care of
detail. Prior to taking on this project, Jim built the Texas Monument at Gaines' Mill. These
the Railway’s model of St. John’s Church. groups do periodic checks, pick up litter, do
basic cleaning of the stone, and report any
issues to the park. It is a tremendous help
having more eyes on the monuments as park
staff don't get to make the rounds very often.
Thank you to
these
groups!
Above: Jim’s model (in progress) of the Left: a historic
St. Luke Penny Savings bank. Photo photo of the
courtesy of Jim O’Brien. St. Luke bank.
NPS photo.
6
Comings and Goings
New and Retiring VIPs and Staff
WELCOME: PARK GUIDE FAREWELL: HBCUI INTERN STACEY CARVER, JR.
RYAN QUINT
Stacey is a rising senior majoring in biology at
Ryan is from Maine the University of Maryland Eastern Shore. He
originally, but moved to interned with Maggie Walker NHS this summer
Virginia about ten years through Greening Youth Foundation’s
ago to go to college. He Historically Black Colleges and Universities
graduated from the Internship Program. His help was invaluable in
University of Mary Washington with a degree in developing and hosting this year’s Leadership
history. Since then, he's worked for a couple of Institute and other interpretive and outreach
different museums, including the George events. We wish him the best as he pursues a
Washington Foundation, Colonial Williamsburg, career in zoology and environmental science!
and the National Park Service. Ryan started as a
seasonal with Fredericksburg & Spotsylvania
National Military Park in 2015 and is now a FAREWELL: INTERN GRACE HANDAKAS
permanent subject to furlough employee there.
Grace is a student in the Master of History
During his furlough he's been able to work at
program at VCU. This summer, she provided
Richmond National Battlefield Park, and hopes
support to our interpretation staff at Maggie
this pattern continues in the future. When not
Walker NHS, including help with walking tours
at work, he enjoys watching sports, reading,
of Jackson Ward, educational programs, and
and taking his dog for walks. Ryan will be
social media posts. Wishing her success in her
working in our Visitor Centers until October.
journey to work in museum education!
WELCOME: VIP CAREY BURCH
“I recently retired from a career in
environmental consulting, and joined the
Virginia Master Naturalist program (Riverine
Chapter) as a means to stay active, learn
more about the region's natural resources,
and seek opportunities to play in the woods
with like-minded people. That, combined with
a long-standing interest in Civil War history
makes volunteering for environmental
projects at the Richmond National Battlefield
Park an enjoyable way to spend a morning. I
look forward to more projects with
the National Park Service in the future.”
Above: summer interns Stacey (left) and Grace (right) pose
by a mural of Maggie Walker. NPS photo.
7
Final Wrap-Up
Closing Thoughts
CONNECT WITH US ON SOCIAL MEDIA Facebook.com/RichmondNPS
Facebook.com/MaggieL.WalkerNHS
Social media sites are a great way to keep up
with park news, including upcoming events, Instagram: @richmond.nps
volunteer opportunities, and re-openings. By Instagram: @maggiewalkernps
interacting with our posts, you can spread
awareness of the park to a wider audience YouTube: Richmond NBP
while we maintain reduced in-person capacity. YouTube: MaggieWalkerNPS
Thanks for your help as we continue navigating
the world of virtual visitor engagement! Twitter: @RichmondNPS
Marie Pinto: Community Volunteer
Ambassador INTERESTED IN VOLUNTEERING?
Contact RE: General Information,
Outdoor Workdays, NPLD If any of the projects or upcoming opportunities
marie_pinto@partner.nps.gov mentioned in this newsletter have piqued your
interest, please reach out! We could always use
Bert Dunkerly: Park Ranger more help from volunteers, and we have a
Contact RE: Site Stewards, Document
Transcription, Adopt a Monument variety of projects to fit your unique interests
bert_dunkerly@nps.gov and schedule. Contact Marie Pinto for more
information about volunteering in the parks, or
Kristen Allen: Chief of Natural and reach out to a specific staff member if you’re
Cultural Resources interested in a particular project. Looking
Contact RE: Adopt-A-Trail, biological
surveys, NPLD forward to hearing from you!
kristen_allen@nps.gov
Ajena Rogers: Supervisory Park Ranger
VISIT US: CURRENT OPERATING HOURS
Contact RE: Volunteer Opportunities at
Maggie L. Walker NHS
All Outdoor Battlefield Spaces and Trails:
ajena_rogers@nps.gov Daily, Sunrise - Sunset
Cold Harbor Visitor Center:
Wednesday - Sunday, 9:00 AM - 4:30 PM
Walker House Courtyard and Visitor Center:
Tuesday - Saturday, 9:00 AM - 4:30 PM
Walker House Tours: Daily, by Reservation Only
Left: VIPs set off into the Malvern Hill meadow
to begin the BioBlitz survey. NPS photo.
From the front page: daisy fleabane, seen at the
Malvern Hill BioBlitz. Photo courtesy of Patrick Wamsley.
8
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