On June 21, 1863, near what is now a prosaic Route 50 intersection east of Winchester, Virginia (shown above), Confederate general J.E.B. Stuart skirmished with Union forces.
He prevailed in that minor battle, and his success gave him the freedom to move north across the Potomac River to Gettysburg, where he joined General Robert E. Lee.
Confederate and Union armies met at Gettysburg from July 1 to July 3, 1863, and the Confederate forces were defeated. Many regard that defeat as the turning point in the Civil War.
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Photos by the author.