Tag: American Civil War

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Historic America

A Trip to Hampshire County, West Virginia and Vicinity

History abounds in the mountainous region where West Virginia, Virginia, and Maryland meet.

Earlier this month, I took a trip up to the Romney, West Virginia area to visit some Civil War sites and take pictures for Spirit of ’61, an encyclopedia of early Civil War Virginia. It was a beautiful, warm day, but it was clear I would spend most of it in the car. My goal was to hit the Romney, Keyser, Cumberland triangle and parts in between. This area was well-trod over by Civil War armies and changed hands dozens of times. Most of the skirmish sites are unmarked, but a few Civil War Trail signs have been erected in the past several years.

My first stop was Winchester, Virginia, to visit Turner and Richard Ashby’s and George and Waller Patton’s graves in the Confederate portion of Mount Hebron Cemetery. Lt. Col. Waller T. Patton was in the 7th Virginia Regiment and mortally wounded during Pickett’s Charge at the Battle of Gettysburg. If you pay close attention, you can see Ted Turner portraying him in the movie Gettysburg.

I also stopped by the Kernstown Battlefield, since I missed it on a previous trip to Winchester. Driving from Winchester to Romney along U.S. Route 50 is a distance of only 42 miles, but it’s easy to see how challenging it would be for an army to make that journey. U.S. Route 50 roughly follows the old Northwestern Turnpike through the Appalachian Mountain’s Valley and Ridge Zone.

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Historic America

Corbit’s Charge, Westminster, Maryland

In this small but dramatic Civil War action, a cavalry officer foolheartedly delayed J.E.B. Stuart at great personal risk.

The Skirmish at Westminster, Maryland (aka Corbit’s Charge) was fought on June 29, 1863 between elements of the 1st Delaware Cavalry Regiment commanded by Maj. Napoleon B. Knight and Cpt. Charles Corbit and Confederate cavalry commanded by Brig. Gen. Fitzhugh Lee in Westminster, Carroll County, Maryland during the American Civil War. Though a Union defeat, the skirmish prompted Confederate Maj. Gen. J.E.B. Stuart to bivouac his cavalry in Westminster for a night, delaying his reunion with the rest of Confederate General Robert E. Lee’s army in their invasion of Pennsylvania.

On June 29, 1863, Lee issued his fateful order to concentrate the Army of Northern Virginia at Gettysburg in southern Pennsylvania. His cavalry commander, Maj. Gen. J.E.B. Stuart, was still trying to link up with his army somewhere south of Harrisburg. Stuart’s goal was to disrupt Federal logistics behind the lines, so he sent Brig. Gen. Fitzhugh Lee’s brigade to the important railhead at Westminster, Maryland, ten miles from the Pennsylvania border.

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Historic America

Action at Aquia Creek, Stafford, Virginia

Beachgoers enjoying the summer at this Virginia park are seldom aware of the Civil War drama that unfolded there.

The Engagement at Aquia Creek was fought from Wednesday, May 29 to Saturday, June 1, 1861 between Union forces commanded by Commander James H. Ward and Virginian forces commanded by Brig. Gen. Daniel Ruggles and Capt. William F. Lynch in Stafford County, Virginia during the American Civil War.

Several small fleets of U.S. Navy ships and converted civilian vessels had been enforcing an economic and military blockade on Virginia ports since April 27th, 1861. Their mission was to close the Chesapeake Bay to maritime traffic, and open up the Potomac River to Union ships, which was vital to securing Washington, DC.

By the end of May 1861, there was no longer any doubt as to which side Virginia would take in the American Civil War. On May 23rd, Virginia voters ratified secession by a large majority, and the next day, Union troops crossed the Potomac River and seized Arlington Heights and Alexandria, Virginia. Armed conflict on Virginia soil was inevitable, but no one quite knew where it would ignite.

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The “Siege” of Carlisle, Pennsylvania

This minor skirmish in the Gettysburg Campaign is often overlooked, but was no less dramatic for the citizens of this small town who endured hours of artillery fire.

The Battle of Carlisle was fought on July 1, 1863 between Union militia forces commanded by Maj. Gen. William F. “Baldy” Smith and Confederate cavalry commanded by Maj. Gen. J.E.B. Stuart in Carlisle, Pennsylvania during the American Civil War. This inconclusive skirmish, part of the Gettysburg Campaign, resulted in approximately 21 total casualties and the destruction of Carlisle Barracks. The next day, Stuart reunited with General Robert E. Lee’s army at Gettysburg, too late to have a significant impact on that battle.

In June 1863, after a dramatic victory at the Battle of Chancellorsville, Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee made the fateful decision to move north with his Army of Northern Virginia and invade Pennsylvania. The Union Army of the Potomac was slow to respond, and Confederate forces met little resistance as they fanned out across southern Pennsylvania. Confederate cavalry under Maj. Gen. J.E.B. Stuart, however, became trapped east of the Union army, and Stuart’s exhausted troopers fought several skirmishes to cut their way back to Lee’s army.

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Ambush at Vienna, Virginia

A peaceful biking trail in Northern Virginia was once the scene of a deadly Civil War ambush.

The Engagement at Vienna was fought on Monday, June 17, 1861 between Union forces commanded by Brig. Gen. Robert C. Schenck and Confederate forces commanded by Col. Maxcy Gregg in Fairfax County, Virginia. This unplanned encounter caused enough Union casualties to halt their advance cold, and it was the last engagement in northeastern Virginia until the two main armies squared off along Bull Run in mid-July.

On May 24, 1861, Union troops crossed the Potomac River into northern Virginia and brushed aside a token defense at Arlington Heights and Alexandria. A few days later, on June 1st, a Union cavalry patrol was chased out of Fairfax Courthouse and a small skirmish erupted at Arlington Mills. Though minor, these incidents convinced Union war planners to proceed more cautiously. They would not advance deeper into this part of Virginia until mid-June.

Early in the morning on June 16th, Confederate Col. Maxcy Gregg of the 1st South Carolina Infantry Regiment left Fairfax Courthouse with 575 men from his regiment to conduct a reconnaissance toward the Potomac River. He linked up with a cavalry troop and Capt. Delaware Kemper with two 6-pdr guns from his Alexandria Light Artillery, then scouted the area. They made camp for the evening having observed only a few Union troops.

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Skirmish at Sporting Hill, Pennsylvania

This often-overlooked clash near Harrisburg was the northernmost engagement of the Gettysburg Campaign.

The Skirmish at Sporting Hill was fought on June 30, 1863 between Union forces commanded by Maj. Gen. Darius N. Couch and Confederate cavalry commanded by Brig. Gen. Albert G. Jenkins outside Harrisburg, Pennsylvania during the American Civil War. Though small, this inconclusive skirmish represented the northernmost armed engagement of the Gettysburg Campaign and resulted in approximately 52 total casualties.

In June 1863, after a dramatic victory at the Battle of Chancellorsville, Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee made the fateful decision to move north with his Army of Northern Virginia and invade Pennsylvania. The Union Army of the Potomac was slow to respond, and Confederate forces met little resistance as they fanned out across southern Pennsylvania raiding towns, sending escaped slaves south, and paying for supplies in worthless Confederate currency. Advanced units of Lt. Gen. Richard S. Ewell’s Second Corps neared the Susquehanna River by June 28th.

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Action at Mathias Point, King George, Virginia

Visit the scene of an early Medal of Honor winner and where the first U.S. Naval officer was killed in the Civil War.

The Engagement at Mathias Point was fought on Thursday, June 27, 1861 between Union forces commanded by Commander James H. Ward and Confederate forces commanded by Colonel Daniel Ruggles and Colonel John M. Brockenbrough in King George County, Virginia during the American Civil War.

Since Virginia declared its intention to secede in early May 1861, the Union Navy had been enforcing a blockade of its ports. It attempted to close the Chesapeake Bay to maritime traffic, and open up the Potomac River to Union ships, which was vital to securing Washington, DC. Virginia, for its part, erected batteries at strategic points along the shoreline to keep Union ships away.

At the end of May, the Union Potomac Flotilla failed to silence a Confederate shore battery near Aquia Landing on the Potomac River. Nearly a month later, Flotilla Commander James H. Ward sought to clear Mathias Point of Confederate skirmishers, who were using the woods as cover to harass passing ships with small arms fire. He was determined to keep the river open from Washington, DC to the Chesapeake Bay.

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