The Stonewall Procession - From Rail to Water - Lynchburg's Tribute to a Fallen Hero

For the history of the packet boat Marshall, click here.

The following is an excerpt regarding Jackson's funeral from Stonewall Jackson ~ The Black Man's Friend:

Jackson’s funeral train departed Richmond on May 13 for Lynchburg. All along the way, grief-stricken Virginians paid their last respects as they tearfully lined the tracks, the train winding its way through the hamlets and villages of Virginia’s war-ravaged countryside. Inside the train, in addition to Jackson’s immediate family, rode Sandie Pendleton, Hunter McGuire, Governor John Letcher, James Power Smith, Senator G. A. Henry of Tennessee, and the ever-present Jim Lewis. Arriving at Lynchburg at six-thirty that same evening, the funeral party met other dignitaries and made their way to the wharf on the James River. Here, Jackson’s casket was loaded onto the packet boat The Marshall, which arrived at Lexington the next day, Thursday, May 14, as the sun was setting below the Allegheny Mountains. The vessel was met by the corps of cadets, and the young men bore their professor back to the institute. His body was placed in his old lecture room, where it laid in state throughout the remainder of the night. Just as it had in Richmond, sadness gripped the hearts of all present. One man observed, “It was a touching scene and brought tears to many eyes. When the body was deposited just in front of the favourite chair from which the lectures were delivered, professors, students, visitors, all, were deeply moved by the sad, solemn occasion, and gazed in mute sorrow . . . an air of gloom was visible on every face.”

Mort Kunstler's latest painting, Going Home, depicts the funeral cortege being transferred to the Marshall at Lynchburg. This new painting will be unveiled at the Lynchburg event in May.