This page provides an overview of Crow's Nest, including basic information about the area along with descriptions of the history and ecology of the peninsula. We invite you to explore and learn!
Crows Nest is a nearly 4,000 acre peninsula in
Virginia Historical Society, Richmond, Virginia vahistorical.org
print from 1619 (left) depicts the abduction of Pocahontas in the waters
off of Crow's Nest.
Albert Z. Connor Jr., in his book, A History of Our Own: Stafford County, Virginia, has documented the history of Crows Nest and surrounding environment.
The Potomacs, Native Americans whose descendants still reside in
The land comprising Crows Nest was originally granted to Col. Gerard Fowke.
In 1662, Raleigh Travers received a patent for 3,540 acres on Potomac Creek, encompassing
what is now the heart of Crows Nest. A large brick house, Crows
Nest, was built on a high ridge that paralleled Potomac Creek. The home was named
after The Crow, a black sailing ship owned by
the Travers family. It was harbored in Potomac Creek.
Peter Daniel (1706-1777) married Sarah Travers (1717-1788), daughter of Raleigh
Travers. An advocate of freedom from
Supreme Court Justice Peter Vivian Daniel (1784-1860) and diplomat and Civil War
editor John Moncure Daniel were born in Crows Nest. (See Daniel
family letter supporting the preservation of Crow's Nest.)
(See Daniel family letter supporting the preservation of Crow's Nest.)
Like many such properties, Crows Nest plantation was destroyed during the
Civil War. Union troops were encamped throughout the Crows Nest peninsula. Many
fierce battles and heroic construction efforts took place as opposing troops built,
destroyed and rebuilt supply bridges across Potomac Creek.
Crows Nest is a unique wildlife habitat. It is home to nesting bald eagles and over 1,000 blue herons (the bird that can be seen in the "Save Crow's Nest" banner logo). It also plays a critical role in supporting migratory bird populations. In 1999, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service identified fifty-seven species of neotropical birds that landed there during the Spring migration.
Click to enlarge
Nest peninsula is in the background of this
The Crows Nest peninsula, home to union soldier encampments during the Civil War, lies just seven miles east of I-95. The remains of tent huts and a gun pit are on the peninsula itself. Local lore recounts that soldiers camped here to be near the several taverns on the peninsula. But perhaps the most important aspect of Crows Nest is the opportunity it provides to interpret nearby Civil War sites.
a union field hospital, was located on Marlborough Point, across from Crows Nest. In
his army letters, U.S. Christian Commission field agent John A. Cole described his visit
to the hospital: I have just come from
Windmill Point Hospital where are about 4,000 sick soldiers, some of them have suffered
terribly and many die daily
. many lives I believe have been saved within the past
three weeks and many souls have passed from darkness into light. (
Two major Civil War sites are
across Potomac Creek from Crows Nest. Neither of these sites is readily accessible
by land. Belle Plains, which was a primary Union supply port during part of the 1864
Overland Campaign, is southwest of Boykins
A shy "mud turtle," one of many animals that call Crow's Nest home, retreats in its shell.
(Prepared July 2002)
A brief summary of some of the peninsula's ecological attributes follows. More details can be found in a report linked at the end of this section.
Sources of information:
Final Environmental Assessment: Proposed Accokeek Creek National Wildlife Refuge. U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Region 5. October 2000.
Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation,
Division of Natural Heritage.
Preliminary Ecological/Biodiversity Assessment .
More detailed information can be found in the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Final Environmental Assessment which is broken into five .pdf files, listed below. This report was done in 2000 for the then-proposed national wildlife refuge. Unfortunately, federal funding for land acquisition was cut, preventing this plan from moving forward. However, good information about the peninsula can be found in this report.
1. The main text, a large file that may take a moment to load
2. Appendix A, a list of the bird and plant species found on Crow's Nest
3. Appendix B, a management plan for the then-proposed national wildlife refuge
4. Appendix C, discussion of compatibility with deer hunting, fishing, etc.
5. Appendix D, the land protection plan