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Auburn Battlefields National Register Listing

In 2008 and 2009, the Jennings Gap Partnership has been conducting the archival research and a field survey to prepare a National Register for Historic Places nomination form for the Auburn I and Auburn II Civil War battlefields in Fauquier County, Virginia for Citizens for Fauquier County (CFFC). 

The initial research and field work has been completed and JGP has been coordinating a preliminary archeological assessment of the battlefield with Dr. Clarence R. Geier, archaeologist, and Dr. Joseph W. A. Whitehorne, historian, both of whom meet the Secretary of the Interior’s professional standards.  Using GIS mapping and other tools, Geier and Whitehorne produced a draft technical survey report that summarizes the results of the archeological surveys for JGP.  (Download the draft report.)

Building on the technical survey report, JGP will prepare a National Register for Historic Places nomination for the battlefields that will determine historical significance and boundaries of military conflict and identify natural and cultural resources.  In preparing the nomination documents, JGP will create an inventory of significant cultural resources related to the Auburn Civil War battlefields.


Buckland Mills Battlefield Preservation Plan

The Jennings Gap Partnership is working with the Buckland Preservation Society to develop a preservation plan for the Buckland Mills battlefield in Fauquier County, Virginia.

The Buckland Mills Battlefield Preservation Plan will be developed to set priorities for preservation that will validate and guide the land protection actions of the society, local government, and other partner organizations.  It will follow a format perfected by JGP in the Cross Keys and Port Republic Battlefields Preservation Plan, the Fisher’s Hill and Tom’s Brook Battlefields Preservation Plan, and the McDowell Battlefield-Staunton-to-Parkersburg Pike Corridor Concept Plan. 

Through broad participation of local government, landowners, and other stakeholders, the planning process will use a steering committee to develop community consensus and foster support for preservation.  The process will educate participating landowners about options for land protection and foster an increased level of support for the concept of battlefield preservation.  The plan will provide data to allow for focused and effective policymaking and fund raising.  It will direct battlefield protection as parcels and funding become available.  The plan will be detailed and specific, and include recommended goals and actions for preservation. 


Recent News:
Supervisors Resist Road Widening In Buckland
U.S., Va. Still Have Say in Preservation
The Washington Post
Sunday, April 12, 2009; PW03

Strengthening Shenandoah’s Conservation Organizations: A Project to Build Fundraising Capacity

Since 2007, the Jennings Gap Partnership has been working with a network of conservation organizations in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley to assess and strengthen each organization’s fundraising efforts.  The project started with an assessment of each organization’s goals, projects, funding needs, and organizational capacity for a comprehensive fundraising effort, establishing tangible baseline measures including membership and donor base, annual income, and staffing level.  JGP is then developing various case statements for each participating group for use in various contexts that will provide a foundation for future fundraising appeals.  The project includes researching and identifying potential funding sources and developing applications and letters of introduction to prospective funders.  Finally, to foster a self-sustaining development program for each group, JGP will assist staff and leaders with initial outreach to prospective donors and develop recommendations for each group regarding its future fundraising program.

     Rockingham County’s Community Alliance for Preservation
     Preserve Frederick
     Shenandoah Forum
     Shenandoah Pure Water 2000
     Wild Virginia


Improving Interstate 81: Advocating for a Better Plan

As the Federal Highway Administration and the Virginia Department of Transportation have promoted an $11 billion plan to widen Interstate 81 to eight or more lanes along two-thirds of its 325 miles, the Jennings Gap Partnership has worked with the Shenandoah Valley Network to analyze the widening plan and its impact on communities and natural and historic resources in the corridor.  

In a lawsuit filed by the Network and others in Federal District Court in December 2007—intended to suspend the planning process and force the agencies to fix the errors in the plan—JGP is serving the plaintiffs’ legal team, consulting on the planning issues, the natural and historic resources that would be impacted by the widening project, and the legal framework under which the plan was developed.

In 2008, on behalf of Network member organizations in the Valley, JGP led a successful lobbying effort in the Virginia General Assembly to enact legislation that would require VDOT to obtain the legislature’s approval prior to imposing tolls on the interstate—a funding mechanism proposed by the agency to finance its plan to expand the highway.  The governor signed the legislation in March.
"Land Battle” 
The News-Virginian (Waynesboro), 2008 January 13 

Hutchinson says the tolls are unfair because, for one, it’s the first time he knows of that a toll would be applied to an existing highway – rather than a new one – and two, it’s the only highway in Virginia that would be subject to a toll. That’s something he says is unfair to those who have to use I-81.  The result of the tolls, Hutchinson said, would be heavier truck traffic on secondary roads, such as U.S. Routes 11 and 340 – at least a 15-percent increase or more. The Virginia Trucking Association has told Hutchinson that the percentage “would be a lot more than that...”

Hutchinson also says there would be environmental damage resulting from more traffic. For starters, he says a larger highway will only bring more truck traffic through the Valley, which would result in more pollution and runoff... “It will significantly degrade the environment in Virginia,” Hutchinson said. “It will degrade our transportation resources and quality of life.”  (read more>)
More news:

   VDOT budget woes cut into I-81 safety improvements
    The Winchester Star
    April 9, 2009

Opponents take arguments to federal judge
Attorneys: VDOT did not consider alternative fixes
Northern Virginia Daily
April 7, 2009

More hitch a ride to lawsuit against expansion of I-81
Northern Virginia Daily
February 16, 2008

U.S. Attorney sets timeline in case; plaintiffs call for a mix of improvements including diverting freight from truck to rail
Northern Virginia Daily
April 2, 2008

Bills try to take tolls off table for I-81
Northern Virginia Daily
January 25, 2008

Senate eyeing ban on unauthorized I-81 tolls
Northern Virginia Daily
February 1, 2008

I-81 toll bill clears panel, would keep VDOT at bay
Gilbert's legislation seeks to give lawmakers final say
Northern Virginia Daily
February 6, 2008

Signed bill provides layer of protection for Interstate 81 and is called victory for valley
Northern Virginia Daily
March 18, 2008
JGP President John Hutchinson receives CPEAV citation for planning work.  Learn more>

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