Interior of the McLean House where Grant and Lee signed surrender documents, Appomattox Court House National Historical Park

PARK OVERVIEW

Appomattox Court House National Historical Park in Appomattox, Virginia, preserves the town of Appomattox Court House where Confederate general Robert E. Lee surrendered to Union general Ulysses S. Grant on April 9, 1865, after a brief battle that morning. While often thought of as the end of the Civil War, Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia was only one of many Confederate armies fighting in the southern states at the time, and his surrender had no official bearing on the outcome of the war. However, by that time most Confederate military leaders knew that the war was a lost cause, and when word of Lee’s surrender reached them, nearly all surrendered as well.

The last land battle of the Civil War took place in Texas in early May 1865. The last Confederate military unit to surrender was the crew of the naval ship CSS Shenandoah, which did so on November 6, 1865, in Liverpool, England. The ship, which was essentially acting as a pirate ship raiding international cargo to support the Confederate war program, continued to operate due to the lengthy delay for news of the Confederate surrender to reach the crew members. The official end of the war wasn’t until August 20, 1866, when President Andrew Johnson made a declaration ending the war.

Appomattox Court House was the county seat of Appomattox County up until 1892 when the county courthouse building burned down. Since a new courthouse was now needed, the citizens voted to move the county seat two miles west to Appomattox Station where the railroad junction was located, and people began moving away from Appomattox Court House. The Department of Defense, which oversaw all national battlefield parks at the time, looked into preserving the town for historical purposes, though other than installing metal informational signs in front of the most important buildings, nothing was done. In 1930, Congress authorized the purchase of a one-acre plot of land for a monument. In 1933, the site was transferred to the National Park Service.

In April 1940, Appomattox Court House National Historical Park was officially created, though by then half of the original buildings were gone. The half-dozen or so residents who still lived in the village were given the option to sell or to live out their lives in their homes with the agreement that the house would go to the park upon their deaths.

The buildings standing today were all standing in 1865 except for the courthouse and the McLean House. What you see today are reconstructions. The McLean House was rebuilt using some of its original construction materials. The house was taken apart in the early 1890s in order to move it to Chicago for the 1893 World’s Exhibition. However, the project went bankrupt, and the disassembled house sat for nearly 50 years. During this time souvenir hunters took many of the bricks, and the wooden materials rotted.

Upon arriving at Appomattox Court House National Historical Park, be sure to stop at the Visitor Center (housed in the Courthouse building) to pick up a park brochure and watch a film about the events that took place at Appomattox Court House. Afterwards, you can walk the streets of the former town and see the buildings, some of which are open to the public. There are over ten miles of trails within the park and a few places to have a picnic. There are also seven points of interest along Highway 24 that are pertinent to the fighting that took place at Appomattox Court House and Appomattox Station on April 8 and the morning of April 9, 1865.

OPERATING HOURS

The Visitor Center for Appomattox Court House National Historical Park and select town buildings are open daily from 9 AM to 5 PM, except when closed on Thanksgiving, Christmas Day, and New Year’s Day. The facilities close at 2 PM on December 24th and 31st.

The grounds of the park are open from dawn until dusk. However, the main parking lot is only open during standard business hours. If you wish to hike the trails or walk around the town site after hours, you must use the parking lots at other locations. The closest to the town is at the Confederate Cemetery.

Keep in mind that times can always change, so before heading to the park, be sure to get the current schedule on the National Park Service’s Operating Hours and Seasons web page for Appomattox Court House National Historical Park.

FEES

There is no fee to visit Appomattox Court House National Historical Park.

SCHEDULING YOUR TIME

Visitor Center (Courthouse Building)
allow 30 to 60 minutes

Appomattox Court House Tour
allow 1 to 3 hours

Battlefield Driving Tour
allow 1.5 hours

Hiking Trails
10 miles of trails

Back to the Top