A Stop in Dayton, VA

Yesterday was an errand day, starting with an appointment at the podiatrist's office in Harrisonburg and progressing through various stops at stores and the bank, etc. Frank needed a haircut and he asked a waiter to recommend a place. "The Hair Corral in Dayton is the only place I go," was the answer. So we went there.

When we left Dayton, I saw an arrow to a Civil War Trails marker and decided to follow it. We crossed the railroad and found markers for the spot where Union Lieutenant John Meigs was killed, sparking a retaliation against local civilians.
There are two Civil War Trails markers next to Meigs Lane. Here's how the story begins:

Here on the old Swift Run Gap Road on the evening of October 3, 1864, Union Lt. John Rodgers Meigs was killed in a fight with three Confederate scouts guided by local resident Pvt. Benjamin F. “Frank” Shaver, 1st Virginia Cavalry. Meigs, of Gen. Philip H. Sheridan’s staff, and two orderlies encountered the Confederates, who had entered Union lines that morning to observe the dispositions of Sheridan’s army camped around Harrisonburg. A firefight ensued and Meigs wounded a scout, but the others returned fire and killed Meigs. His body was recovered the next morning. One of the orderlies reported to Sheridan that civilian “bushwhackers” had murdered Meigs. (Because of a drizzling rain, the scouts had worn “rubber raincoats” over their uniforms.) Sheridan retaliated, ordering that buildings over a large area, including the town of Dayton, be burned to the ground. He soon rescinded the order concerning Dayton, but thirty other dwellings were destroyed in what came to be known as the “Burnt District.” Sheridan justified his actions by asserting, “Since I came into the Valley, from Harpers Ferry up to Harrisonburg, every train, every small party, and every straggler has been bushwhacked by people.” In this case he was wrong, and innocent people paid the price.

See the rest of the marker on HMDB.org.

I followed the trace of the old road for a short distance and found the stone marker that was placed on the approximate spot of Meig's death.

Returning to the two "trails" markers, the right-hand one continues the story quoted above. This excerpt tells why people in the valley still feel bitter toward Custer (pictured on the right).

On October 4-5, the 5th New York Cavalry of Gen. George A. Custer’s division began displacing local families and burning their homes to the ground. Some residents went to live with more fortunate family members and friends. Others joined a 400-wagon-long train of refugees that left Harrisonburg on October 5 for the North...
Ironically, most of the refugees were pacifist and antislavery Mennonites and Brethren, commonly called Dunkards or Tunkers.