Civil War lecture set at MSV

Winchester — A Civil War lecture from an award-winning historian will highlight today’s Galleries at Night at the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley from 4 to 9 p.m.

The lecture will detail how inexperienced soldiers saved the ammunition train belonging to Stonewall Jackson’s army during the famous Shenandoah Valley Campaign of 1862. The 7 p.m. lecture, “Saving Stonewall’s Bacon: The Charlottesville Artillery at Port Republic,” will be presented by Charlottesville-based author and historian Rick Britton.

Britton will detail how the Charlottesville Artillery — a green unit just organized in 1862 — found itself virtually alone defending the army’s vital baggage and ammunition train when Federal cavalry overran the town of Port Republic on June 8, 1862, one day before the Battle of Port Republic.

Born in Richmond, Britton has served as desk editor of the Richmond-Times Dispatch broadcast news department, as a contributing editor of Albemarle Magazine, and editor of the Magazine of Albemarle County History. He has written more than 200 articles, the majority about Virginia history, and is the author of “Albemarle & Charlottesville: An Illustrated History” and “Jefferson: A Monticello Sampler.” The latter was awarded a bronze medal for nonfiction at New York City’s Book Expo in 2009. Britton teaches classes on the history of Albemarle County, conducts tours of Civil War battlefields, illustrates maps for history publications, and is a frequent radio commentator.

Wine and beer will be available for purchase in the lobby for $5 a glass, the galleries will be open for tours, and from 5 to 9 p.m. the Museum Café will offer a special Galleries at Night dinner menu.

Along with attending the lecture, Galleries at Night attendees may tour “An American Turning Point: The Civil War in Virginia — Waging War” in the MSV Changing Exhibition Gallery. Organized by the Virginia Historical Society in partnership with the Virginia Sesquicentennial of the American Civil War Commission and the National Endowment for the Humanities, Waging War includes 73 objects and interactive state-of-the-art audiovisual programs to tell the stories of the Union and Confederate soldiers and sailors who experienced the Civil War in Virginia.

Civil War firearms, technology, naval warfare, mapmaking, and the role of immigrants and African Americans in both the Union and Confederate armies are among the topics highlighted in the exhibition, which will be on view through Dec. 2.

Admission to Galleries at Night, which includes the lecture, is free to members and youth ages 12 and under. Admission is $5 for all others.

Those interested in attending the lecture are encouraged to arrive early; seating is limited and will be on a first-come, first-served basis.

Lecture tickets will be available at the visitor information desk beginning at 4 p.m.

Additional information is available at ShenandoahMuseum.org or by calling 540-662-1473, ext. 235.