Convention Army Historical Marker

This is the historical marker for the Albemarle Barracks, erected in 2011 by the Virginia Department of Historic Resources. It is located on Barracks Farm Road (County Route 658) near Garthfield Lane in Albemarle County. It reads:

“Convention Army The Barracks. In Jan. 1779, during the American Revolution, 4,000 British troops and German mercenaries (commonly known as “Hessians”) captured following the Battle of Saratoga in New York arrived here after marching from Massachusetts. It was called the Convention Army after the instrument of its surrender. Most prisoners lived in primitive huts spread out over several hundred acres of the barracks camp, where they endured great hardships. Supplying and guarding the Convention Army taxed the resources of the community and militia. By Feb. 1781, the last of the prisoners had been relocated.”