History at Sunset is an annual series that focuses on areas rarely visited, stories rarely told, or familiar sites seen through a different lens. Park rangers lead each History at Sunset program. All programs are free and take place every other Saturday evening at 6:30 pm. Most include walking, with distances ranging from about 0.5 to 1.5 miles. Participants are recommended to bring bug spray and water and to wear sturdy and comfortable walking shoes.

2024 History at Sunset Schedule

All programs begin at 6:30 pm and are about 90 minutes.

July 13 – “To Care for Him who Shall Have Borne the Battle”: Stories from the Fredericksburg National Cemetery

6:30 pm-8 pm
Battlefield walk, 0.25 mile, meet at the side entrance to the Fredericksburg National Cemetery atop Marye’s Heights (park at the visitor center, 1013 Lafayette Boulevard, Fredericksburg, VA, 22401)
The Civil War produced devastation – both in terms of human loss and physical destruction – that the United States had never encountered before. This devastation in turn produced fundamental changes in the individual lives of soldiers’ families and the way the federal government operated. Join park rangers for a program that examines the stories of some of the soldiers killed during the war and how their families navigated the difficult realities that war produced. This tour will also explore how the country made meaning out of the devastation of war.