"The Stonewall Jackson Death Site"

In the fall of 2019, Laurie and I were on our way back up to Northern Virginia from one of our "retirement recon" trips, when I spotted a sign on I-95 for the "Stonewall Jackson Death Site." That seemed like an obvious title for a short story and we weren't in a hurry, so we got off at the exit and wound our way through the Virginia countryside to the deserted farm where General Jackson breathed his last.

Well, almost deserted. There was a park ranger inside the old farmhouse, and he took us around and told us the story of Jackson's fatal wound and final days. By the time we left, I had the idea for the story roughed out, and I wrote it within a day or two of our returning home.

Down & Out: The Magazine had just put out a call for submissions, and that was a market I hadn't previously tried, so I decided to give them first look. Editor Rick Ollerman liked the story and bought it, and the issue came out in December 2020.

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