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=== American Civil War === During the [[American Civil War]], Lynchburg served as a [[Confederate States Army|Confederate]] transportation hub and supply depot. It had 30 hospitals, often placed in churches, hotels, and private homes.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |title=Confederate Hospitals in Lynchburg |url=https://www.gravegarden.org/confederate-hospitals-in-lynchburg/ |access-date=2025-05-16 |website=Old City Cemetery |language=en-US}}</ref> In June 1864, [[Union (American Civil War)|Union]] forces of General [[David Hunter]] approached within {{convert|1|mi|km|adj=on}} as they drove south from the [[Shenandoah Valley]]. Confederate troops under General [[John McCausland]] harassed them. Meanwhile, the city's defenders hastily erected breastworks on Amherst Heights. Defenders were led by General [[John C. Breckinridge]], who was an invalid from wounds received at the [[Battle of Cold Harbor]]. Union General [[Philip Sheridan]] appeared headed for Lynchburg on June 10, as he crossed the [[Chickahominy River]] and cut the [[Virginia Central Railroad]]. However, Confederate cavalry under General [[Wade Hampton III|Wade Hampton]], including the [[2nd Virginia Cavalry]] from Lynchburg under General [[Thomas T. Munford]], defeated his forces at the two-day [[Battle of Trevilian Station]] in Louisa County, and they withdrew. This permitted fast-marching troops under Confederate General [[Jubal Anderson Early|Jubal Early]] to reach within four miles of Lynchburg on June 16 and tear up the tracks of the [[Orange and Alexandria Railroad]] to inhibit travel by Union reinforcements, while Confederate reinforcements straggled in from Charlottesville. On June 18, 1864, in the [[Battle of Lynchburg]], Early's combined forces, though outnumbered, repelled Union General Hunter's troops. Lynchburg's defenders had taken pains to create an impression that the Confederate forces within the city were much larger than they were in fact. For example, a train was continuously run up and down the tracks while drummers played and Lynchburg citizens cheered as if reinforcements were disembarking. Local prostitutes took part in the deception, misleading their Union clients about the large number of Confederate reinforcements. [[Narcissa Chisholm Owen|Narcissa Owen]] ([[Cherokee]]), wife of the president of the [[Lynchburg and Tennessee Railroad]], later wrote about her similar deception of Union spies.<ref>''A Cherokee Woman's America: Memoirs of Narcissa Owen, 1831β1907''. Edited by Karen L. Kilcup. Gainesville, FL: University Press of Florida, 2005. p.</ref> From April 6 to 10, 1865, Lynchburg served as the capital of Virginia after the Confederate government fled from Richmond. Governor [[William Smith (Virginia governor)|William Smith]] and the Commonwealth's executive and legislative branches escaped to Lynchburg as Richmond surrendered on April 3. [[Gen. Robert E. Lee]] surrendered to Gen. [[Ulysses S. Grant]] at [[Battle of Appomattox Court House|Appomattox Courthouse]], roughly {{convert|20|mi|km|adj=on}} east of Lynchburg, ending the Civil War. Lynchburg surrendered on April 12, to Union General [[Ranald S. Mackenzie]].<ref name="scruggs"/> Ten days later, Confederate Brigadier General [[James Dearing]] died. He was a native of nearby Campbell County and descendant of John Lynch; he had been wounded on April 6 at [[Battle of High Bridge|High Bridge]] during that Appomattox campaign. Mackenzie had visited his wounded friend and former West Point classmate, easing the transition of power.<ref name="scruggs">Philip Lightfoot Scruggs, ''The History of Lynchburg Virginia 1786β1946'' (Lynchburg: J.P. Bell Co., Inc.), pp. 103β114</ref>
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