Conner-Sweeney Cabin Trail at Appomattox Court House National Historical Park

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See the Hiking Trails page for a trail map.

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Length:  .5 mile (.8-mile with a return trip on the Sweeney Trail)
Time: 45 minutes round trip with the Sweeney Trail
Difficulty: Easy

The Conner-Sweeney Cabin Trail (which I’ll call the Cabin Trail from here on out) at Appomattox Court House National Historical Park starts at the north end of the park at a parking lot on Horseshoe Road. The Sweeney Trail also begins here, and the only sensible way to do the hike is to combine the two and form a loop. Hike out on the Cabin Trail and return on the Sweeney Trail.

Trail maps for Appomattox Court House National Historical Park are usually available at each trailhead, but just in case the brochure box is empty, you can also pick one up at the Visitor Center. Once on the trails, you don’t really need the map because they are very well marked. There is directional signage at every turn, even if there is only one possible way to go.

The Cabin Trail starts off west from the parking lot, following along Horseshoe Road through an open meadow, but in less than a tenth of a mile it turns south. The terrain is relatively flat, and it remains that way for the duration of the hike. There are small hills here and there, but nothing that will get your heart racing.

Start of the Conner-Sweeney Cabin Trail at Appomattox Court House National Historical Park

North end of the Conner-Sweeney Cabin Trail passes through a meadow, Appomattox Court House National Historical Park

After a quarter mile, the trail enters the forest, but just before that you can get a look at the Conner-Sweeney Cabin in the distance. It’s a good ways off, so short of climbing a barb-wire fence and hiking across a meadow and picking up ticks or whatever else lives in the tall grass, this is as close a look as you’ll get. The cabin was built by Jennings Conner around 1866. His wife was Missouri Sweeney, sister of Joel Sweeney, the famous banjo player.

Cabin of Jennings Conner and Missouri Sweeney built around 1866, Appomattox Court House National Historical Park

The Cabin Trail remains a wide path, even in the forest. During my late September hike, there were plenty of gnats on the wooded section of the trail.

Forested section of the Conner-Sweeney Cabin Trail at Appomattox Court House National Historical Park

For the next tenth of a mile, the Cabin Trail darts in and out of the forest before finally emerging onto the meadow for good and following the tree line south.

Southern end of the Conner-Sweeney Cabin Trail at Appomattox Court House National Historical Park

The Cabin Trail dead ends into the Sweeney Trail a half mile from the start. You have the option to turn right and continue south on the Sweeney Trail. If so, you might as well add the Ferguson Wildlife Trail to your itinerary and loop back on the Sweeney Trail, a hike of about 2.5 miles. If you just want to get back to the parking lot, turn left and head north on the Sweeney Trail. The hike is uphill all the way, though the slope is gradual, nothing more than easy at any given time.

Intersection of the Conner-Sweeney Cabin Trail and the Sweeney Trail at Appomattox Court House National Historical Park

Once back at the parking lot, there are two more sites that might be of interest to you. One is a short trip (100 yards) to the spot where the Allan Conner House once stood. The house was used as a Confederate hospital during the fighting at Appomattox Court House on the morning of April 9, 1865. There is nothing at the spot today other than a wayside exhibit about the former house.

Allan Conner House site at Appomattox Court House National Historical Park

Across the street from the parking lot is a dirt road that leads up a steep hill to the O’Brien Family cemetery. Most of the graves are of people born in the mid-1800s and died in the early to mid-1900s, but there is at least one grave from 2002, so the cemetery appears to still be in use.

Road to the O’Brien Cemetery at Appomattox Court House National Historical Park

Tombstones in the O’Brien Cemetery at Appomattox Court House National Historical Park

Tombstones in the O’Brien Cemetery at Appomattox Court House National Historical Park

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