Last updated: October 10, 2024
Place
Auto Tour Stop #11: Portici
Photo: NPS / Claire Hassler
Quick Facts
Amenities
3 listed
Historical/Interpretive Information/Exhibits, Parking - Auto, Trailhead
The plantation house of Francis Lewis, known as Portici, stood atop the ridge to your east. Massive brick chimneys flanked the frame house. The house was destroyed by fire in 1862.
The house served as Confederate headquarters during the First Battle of Manassas. Following the Battle, the house served as a hospital. Among those taken care of here were Union officers Orlando Wilcox and James B. Ricketts.
The grounds of Portici served as the site of the 1861-1862 winter encampment for a brigade of Alabamians and Virginians commanded by General Cadmus Wilcox.
Some of the last fighting at Second Manassas occurred on these fields on 30 August 1862 when Confederate cavalry, on a mission to cut off the Union army's line of retreat, were stopped by Union cavalry.
Inscription:
Inscription #2:
On the ridge ahead of you stood "Portici," an important landmark of both battles of Manassas. In 1861, Frank Lewis resided here with his wife Fannie and two small children. Their middling plantation consisted of 769 acres. The family owned eleven slaves to work the property- cultivating grain, herding livestock, and performing domestic chores.
The arrival of war shattered Portici's peaceful existence. During the First Battle of Manassas, the home served as both a headquarters and a hospital. Thirteen months later, Union and Confederates cavalry clashed in the adjacent fields. Returning to utter devastation at war's end, the Lewis family began the arduous process of rebuilding their lives, a scene repeated countless times throughout the ravaged South.
A short walk leads to the site of Portici. Exhibits there discuss the property's prominent role during the two battles. The trail to the left leads to the Ball family cemetery and Holkum's Branch.
The house served as Confederate headquarters during the First Battle of Manassas. Following the Battle, the house served as a hospital. Among those taken care of here were Union officers Orlando Wilcox and James B. Ricketts.
The grounds of Portici served as the site of the 1861-1862 winter encampment for a brigade of Alabamians and Virginians commanded by General Cadmus Wilcox.
Some of the last fighting at Second Manassas occurred on these fields on 30 August 1862 when Confederate cavalry, on a mission to cut off the Union army's line of retreat, were stopped by Union cavalry.
Inscription:
Action Behind the Lines
The Lewis Plantation known as "Portici" saw service as a Confederate headquarters and hospital at the First Battle of Manassas in July 1861 and as the setting of a small cavalry action at the end of the Second Battle of Manassas in August 1862. Follow the mowed path to the site of the house, where a vista offers views of the surrounding area.Inscription #2:
On the ridge ahead of you stood "Portici," an important landmark of both battles of Manassas. In 1861, Frank Lewis resided here with his wife Fannie and two small children. Their middling plantation consisted of 769 acres. The family owned eleven slaves to work the property- cultivating grain, herding livestock, and performing domestic chores.
The arrival of war shattered Portici's peaceful existence. During the First Battle of Manassas, the home served as both a headquarters and a hospital. Thirteen months later, Union and Confederates cavalry clashed in the adjacent fields. Returning to utter devastation at war's end, the Lewis family began the arduous process of rebuilding their lives, a scene repeated countless times throughout the ravaged South.
A short walk leads to the site of Portici. Exhibits there discuss the property's prominent role during the two battles. The trail to the left leads to the Ball family cemetery and Holkum's Branch.