Between 1861 and 1865, Union armies repeatedly set out to capture Richmond, capital of the Confederacy, and end the Civil War. Three of those campaigns came within a few miles of the city. The park commemorates eleven different sites associated with those campaigns including the battlefields at Gaines' Mill, Malvern Hill, and Cold Harbor. Established in 1936, the park protects 763 acres of historic ground, all federal.
Located at the Historic Tredegar Ironworks, the American Civil War Museum (ACWM) explores, inspires, and promotes the public’s understanding of the Civil War – its causes, course, and consequences. The award-winning museum building encases the original Tredegar Iron Works ruin wall. The main exhibit, A People's Contest: Struggles for Nation and Freedom in Civil War America, features hundreds of original artifacts, dynamic theater experiences and compelling imagery. Visitors will be able to explore, understand and feel the dramatic story of the American Civil War and its legacies.