Stuart’s Hill Loop Trail in Manassas National Battlefield Park

Length: 2.25-mile loop (according to park literature)
Difficulty: ★☆☆☆☆

Maybe it was the lawnmower man’s day off, but I could not make it all the way around the Stuart’s Hill Loop Trail because the grass was way too high, and beyond a certain point there was no path at all. I picked up two ticks on the short stretch that I did hike, so I had no desire to go farther. A park volunteer who hikes regularly at Manassas National Battlefield Park told me that there is a marked trail but that the National Park Service rarely mows it, and therefore you can’t see the trail signs. The best time to hike the trail is in the winter when the grass has died off. With that said, here’s a recap of the section that I did hike.

According to the trail information panel, the two points of interest on the Stuart’s Hill Loop Trail are the Cundiff House site and the Lewis House site. After getting attacked at Brawner Farm to start the Second Battle of Manassas, Union wounded were evacuated from the Warrenton Turnpike (today’s Highway 29) and brought to the Cundiff House. A road ran from here down to the Lewis house and then on to Manassas Junction, which is why this area was so important.

To start the Stuart’s Hill Loop Trail hike, walk out on the grass path at the end of the parking area. The trail is lollipop shaped, meaning that you must hike out on the stick before getting to the actual loop. After passing through a short stretch of forest, the trail comes out at an open field.

Stick portion of the Stuart’s Hill Loop Trail in Manassas National Battlefield Park

I was able to follow the trail across the field, but only because the yellow flowers that topped the grass had not yet grown back on the section that had once been mowed. I picked up one tick before getting fifty yards from the forest.

Overgrown path on the Stuart’s Hill Loop Trail that leads out the Cundiff House site in Manassas National Battlefield Park

At the far end of the field is the Cundiff House site, which is where the loop begins. According to a wayside exhibit, the foundation of the house is still there, but seeing that the grass had nearly swallowed the exhibit itself, there wasn’t much chance of finding it.

Wayside exhibit at the start of the loop portion of the Stuart’s Hill Loop Trail in Manassas National Battlefield Park

A sign points towards the Lewis House, but as you can see in the photo below, there wasn’t a path, at least not during my visit. I could see an area where people had beaten down the grass, which meant that it hadn’t been mowed any time recently. Thus, this is where my hike ended. I never set foot on the loop portion of the trail, but I do know that the loop runs mainly through the forest.

Field at the Cundiff House site along the Stuart’s Hill Loop Trail in Manassas National Battlefield Park

Without any battlefield tour stops, Stuart’s Hill is sort of isolated. This area was only added to Manassas National Battlefield Park in 1988 after it was nearly turned into a residential and business development. Thirty years later, it doesn’t seem like the National Park Service has much interest in integrating it with the rest of the park. The oddball tourist may drop by to see what the place has to offer, but that’s about it. Even the wayside exhibit that you first come to suggests that you start your visit to the battlefield at Brawner Farm. Aside from the trail and a few picnic tables, this area appears to be mainly used as the park headquarters. As the park volunteer pointed out to me, it is due to the low visitation that the Stuart’s Hill Loop Trail is not regularly maintained.

During the Civil War, Stuart’s Hill—then called Monroe Hill—was where Confederate general Robert E. Lee set up his headquarters when he arrived on August 29, 1862, one day after the Second Battle of Manassas began. It also served as the staging ground for Confederate general James Longstreet’s army and the point from where he launched his attack on Chinn Ridge and Henry Hill to end the battle late in the day on August 30^th.

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