Ben Lomond Historic Site in Manassas hosts Civil War hospital experience

After the Battle of First Manassas on July 21, 1861, Ben Lomond House served as a Confederate field hospital where soldiers from Virginia, Georgia and Mississippi were treated for their battle wounds.

On Saturday, July 22, 2023, the Ben Lomond Historic Site, located at 10321 Sudley Manor Drive in Manassas, hosted a Civil War Hospital experience from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. with demonstrations, activities and talks about how the Civil War hospital operated for 35 days. 

The event featured hospital demos and demos related to the medical side of the Civil War,”  said Ben Lomond Historic Site Manager Kevin Pawlak. Visitors were able to participate and learn what a prospective Civil War soldier had to do to prove that he was physically fit to join the army. There were demonstrations that allowed visitors to be a clerk, which was important part of a hospital. Visitors could build stretchers and then try out the stretchers as if they were carrying wounded, Pawlak added.

Visitors to the free event were also able to take part in a demonstration on how to bandage wounds and to try their hands at Civil War handwriting. 

There wasa wide variety of medical activities that people were able to actively participate in, Pawlak said. 

The Ben Lomond house is fitted with background audio of Civil War Hospital sounds to enhance the visitor experience. Historians from area living history organizations, dressed in period clothing, were onsite to answer questions, asking with county historical staff.

Reenactors playing Civil War nurses gave a first-person talk about the role nurses played in the war. 

Call 703-367-7872 for more information.