Tredegar Iron Works was the top producer of artillery and ammunition for the Confederacy during the American Civil War. Now the South’s largest munitions foundry in Richmond, Virginia has repositioned itself under the slogans “Your Gateway to the Civil War” and “Your Story Starts Here.”
Richmond was the capital of the Confederacy and at the heart of the 1861-1865 conflict that became the defining event in American history. So it is fitting that the National Park Service has teamed up with the American Civil War Center to provide spellbinding exhibits on the 8.3-acre Tredegar site that tell the gripping story of that epic war and emancipation.
Gateway to the Civil War
Staggering death tolls, courage under fire, the very future of the country and its founding principles of freedom – these are the tales that are told at Tredegar today.
As the official Gateway to the Civil War, park rangers and visitor center staff will orient visitors to the entire conflict and provide guidance to the region’s 13 battlefields and many other significant sites.
The Tredegar grounds are open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Within easy walking distance are two islands used during the Civil War, one where women and children manufactured ammunition and the other a prisoner-of-war camp for thousands of Union solders.
