Staff Ride Guide 

BATTLE 

OF 

BALL'S BLUFF 

by 

Ted Ballard 

CENTER OF MILITARY HISTORY 

UNITED STATES ARMY 

WASHINGTON, D.C., 2001 
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data 

Ballard, Ted. 

Battle of Ball's Bluff / by Ted Ballard. 

p. cm. - (Staff ride guide) 

Includes bibliographical references. 

1. Ball's Bluff, Battle of, 1861. I. Center of Military History. 

II. Title. III. Series. 

E472.63 .B16 2001 

973.7'31-dc21 

2001037180 

First Printing- CMH Pub 35- 1- 1 
FOREWORD 

The U.S. Army has long used the staff ride as a tool for professional 

development, conveying the lessons of the past to contemporary soldiers. 

In 1906 Maj. Eben Swift took twelve officer-students from Fort 

LeavenwOlih's General Service and Staff School to the Chickamauga 

battlefield on the Army's first official staff ride. Since that time Army 

educators have employed the staff ride to provide Army officers a better 

understanding of a past militaty operation, of the vagaries of war, and of 

militaty planning. It can also serve to enliven a unit's esprit de corps- a 

constant objective in peacetime or war. 

To support the Army's initiatives, the Center is publishing staff ride 

guides such as this one on the Battle of Ball's Bluff, Virginia. This 

account is drawn principally from contemporaty after action rep otis and 

from the sworn testimony of participants before the Joint Committee on 

the Conduct of the War, a congressional entity created to investigate the 

Union defeats at First Bull Run and Ball's Bluff. 

Although not in a class with Antietam and Gettysburg or other great 

Civil War clashes with respect to size or consequences, the Battle of 

Ball's Bluff nevertheless provides important lessons in small unit actions, 

leadership, tactical planning, and the role of courage and military professionalism under fire. This small volume should be a welcome training aid 

for those undetiaking a Ball's Bluff staff ride. 

Washington, D.C. 

22 June 2001 

111 

JOHN S. BROWN 

Brigadier General, USA 

Chief of Milit31Y History 
THE AUTHOR 

Ted Ballard has been a historian with the U.S. Army Center of 

Military History since 1980 and a palt of the Center's staff ride program 

since 1986. Battle of Ball's BlufJjoins his other battlefield guides to First 

and Second Bull Run, Antietam, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, 

Gettysburg, and Wilderness/Spotsylvania. In addition to being the author 

of numerous altic1es on military history, he was a contributor to the 

Center's publication, The Story of the Noncommissioned Officer COl'pS; 

the author of Rhineland, a brochure in the Center's series commemorating the fiftieth anniversary of World War II; and a contributor to the U.S. 

Army Training and Doctrine Command publication, American Military 

Heritage, and to the Virginia Anny National Guard publication, The 

Tradition Continues: A History of the Virginia National Guard, 

1607- 1985. 

lV 
PREFACE 

On the night of20 October 1861 , Union Brig. Gen. Charles P. Stone 

put into action a plan to attack what had been reported as a small, 

unguarded Confederate camp between the Potomac River at Ball's Bluff 

and Leesburg, Virginia. Later, after Stone learned there was no camp, he 

allowed the operation to continue, now modified to capture Leesburg 

itself. But a lack of adequate communication between commanders, 

problems with logistics, and violations of the principles of war hampered the operation. What originally was to be a small raid instead 

turned into a military disaster. The action resulted in the death of a popular U.S. senator and long-time friend of President Abraham Lincoln, 

the arrest and imprisonment of General Stone, and the creation of a congressional oversight committee that would keep senior Union commanders looking over their shoulders for the remainder of the war. For 

such a small and relatively insignificant military action, Ball's Bluff 

would cast a long shadow. 

The purpose of a Ball's Bluff staff ride is to learn from the past by analyzing the battle through the eyes of the men who were there, both leaders and rank-and-file soldiers. The battle contains many lessons in command and control, communications, intelligence, weapons technology 

versus tactics, and the ever-present confusion, or "fog," of battle. 

Hopefully, these lessons will allow us to gain insights into decision making and the human condition during combat. 

Today, the battlefield is enclosed in the 225-acre Ball's Bluff Regional 

Park, managed by the N0l1hern Virginia Regional Park Authority. A short 

trail includes interpretive markers and a small national cemetery containing the remains of fifty-four soldiers. Through the years the park has 

become overgrown but plans are currently under way to return the battlefield terrain to its 1862 appearance. 

Several persons assisted in the creation of this staff ride guide. At the 

U.S. Army Center of Military History, Diane Sedore Anns of the Editorial 

Branch edited the manuscript and, in the Graphics Branch, Teresa K. 

Jameson designed the final product and S. L. Dowdy turned sketch maps 

into finished products. Edwin C. Bearss, Historian Emeritus, National 

Park Service, took time out from his busy schedule to review the manuscript for historical accuracy. Also, Daniel D. Lorello, New York State 

Archives, provided a plethora of primary source material on the New 

York regiments involved in the battle. My thanks to all. 

v 
In the nanative the names of Confederate personnel and units appear 

in italic type, Union personnel and units in regular type. 

Any enors that remain in the text are the sole responsibility of the 

author. 

Washington, D.C. 

22 June 2001 

Vi 

TED BALLARD 
CONTENTS 

Page 

Ball's Bluff: An Overview. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 

Prelude to Battle .. . ..... . ................... ... .... 3 

The Battle ............ .. ................... ... .... 9 

SU111111ary ..... ...... .............................. 37 

Further Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 40 

Chronology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 41 

Order of Battle, October 1861 ......... .. ......... .... .... 50 

Casualties .......................... ....... .... ..... . 52 

Organization ........ .. .......... ... ............... . . . 54 

Tactics. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 56 

Small Arms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 57 

Aliillery ..... .. .......... .. ................. .... .... 59 

Artillery Projectiles ....... . ... ........ ........ ...... 61 

Logistics ....... ..... ..... .. ................... ...... 63 

Bureau System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 63 

Supply Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 64 

Selected Biographical Sketches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 67 

Union Officers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 67 

Confederate Officers ................ ........ ........ 72 

Maps 

No. 

l. Order of Battle, 15 October 1861 .................. .. . 4 

2. Harrison's Island, 20 October 1861 ......... . . . . . . . . . . . 8 

3. Ball's Bluff, 21 October 1861 , Situation at 0630- 0730 .... . 12 

4. Ball's Bluff, 21 October 1861 , Situation at 0800 . . . . . . . . .. 14 

5. Ball's Bluff, 21 October 1861 , Situation at 1200 . . . . . . . . .. 19 

6. Ball's Bluff, 21 October 1861 , Situation at 1400 . . . . . . . . .. 23 

7. Ball's Bluff, 21 October 1861 , Situation at 1500 . . . . . . . . .. 26 

8. Ball's Bluff, 21 October 1861, Situation at 1530 . . . . . . . . .. 28 

9. Ball's Bluff, 21 October 1861 , Situation at 1730 . . . . . . . . .. 31 

10. Ball's Bluff, 21 October 1861 , Situation at 1800 . . . . . . . . .. 33 

Vll 
Illustrations 

Page 

Brig. Gen. Charles P. Stone's "Slight Demonstration" at 

Edwards' Ferry. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 

Col. Edward D. Baker's Command Crossing to Ball's Bluff. . . .. 20 

The Death of Colonel Baker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 

Union Retreat From Ball's BluffInto the Potomac River ....... 32 

Artillery Supporting Union Troops at Edwards' Feny ...... .. . 36 

Retreat of Union Forces From Edwards' Ferry to the 

Maryland Shore .. .. ...... .... ...... ... ....... .. ... 37 

Cannon Firing Positions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 59 

Artillery Proj ectiles . .. . ...... .. ... .. . ....... . ....... . . 61 

Charles P. Stone. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 67 

Edward D. Baker . . ...... .... .. ........ ... ....... ... .. 68 

Charles P. Devens ... .. ................ . . .... ...... . .. 69 

William R. Lee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 70 

Isaac 1. Wistar ........... . . . ... ... ...... .. ........... 70 

Milton Cogswell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 71 

Nathan G. Evans. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 72 

Eppa Hunton ... ......... . .. . ... .......... . ...... .... 73 

Cover: Cannonading on the Potomac, October 1861, by Wordsworth 

Thompson, from The White House Collection, cOUltesy of the White 

House Historical Association. 

Vlll 
BATTLE 

OF 

BALL'S BLUFF 

BALL'S BLUFF: AN OVERVIEW 

Prelude to Battle 

On 22 July 1861 , the day after the Union defeat at the Battle of First 

Bull Run (also known as First Manassas), President Abraham Lincoln 

summoned 35-year-old Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan to Washington 

and assigned him command of all troops in the Washington area. 

McClellan's recent military victories in western Virginia had thrust him 

into the limelight and brought public acclaim. Lincoln believed 

McClellan could restore the morale of the beaten Union Army and rebuild 

it for future operations. McClellan began immediately the complex task 

of organizing and training a large force capable of defeating the Southern 

army in Virginia. A month after being assigned command, he designated 

his force the Army of the Potomac and had molded it into a formidable 

fighting machine, more than 100,000 men strong. 

On the other side of the Potomac River the Confederate Army, commanded by General Joseph E. Johnston, numbered about 40,000. After 

the Confederate victory at Manassas, Johnston contemplated going on the 

offensive, crossing into Maryland, and threatening either Washington or 

Baltimore. However, Johnston felt his offensive would require no less 

than 60,000 men and requested reinforcements from Richmond. In late 

September the Confederate government advised Johnston that it would be 

unable to provide additional troops. The Confederate commander was 

forced to go on the defensive and reluctantly began to withdraw his army 

from the vicinity of Washington. I By mid-October the main part of the 

Confederate Almy was at Centreville, where Johnston took up a defensive line and prepared winter quat1ers. Near Leesburg, Johnston left a single brigade to guard the narrow river crossings north of Washington and 

to provide a line of communications between Confederate forces at 

Winchester and those at Manassas. 

In Washington, McClellan had organized his Army of the Potomac into 

eleven divisions and began posting them to protect the capital. (Map 1) 

Aware that Johnston had troops at Leesburg, he became concerned that the 

Confederates might attempt to cross the Potomac above Washington. To 

1 Joseph E. Johnston, Narrative of MilUmy Operations . .. (New York: D. Appleton, 

1874), pp. 76- 77. 

3 
ORDER OF BATTLE 

15 Octobe r 1861 

D 

D 

Union Units 

Confederate Units 

10 

I 

Miles 

20 

I 

W • estminster 

~ BANKS 

• Darnestown 

• Dranesville 

• Fairfax 

• Rockvil le 

~ ? SMITH McDOWELL 

PORTER 

~ . 

JOllNSTON · Centreville exa nd" a 

FRANKLIN 

HEINT

~ ZELMAN 

MapJ 
guard against such a move, the 6,500-man division of Brig. Gen. Charles P. 

Stone, known as the Corps of Observation, was encamped near Poolesville, 

Maryland, to watch the several fords and ferries to the east of Leesburg. 

Stone's division consisted of three infantry brigades. Brig. Gen. 

Willis A. Gorman's brigade included the 2d New York State Militia (later 

redesignated the 82d New York Infantry), 1st Minnesota Infantry, 15th 

Massachusetts Infantry, and 34th and 42d New York Infantries. The 

brigade of Brig. Gen. Frederick W. Lander contained the 19th and 20th 

Massachusetts Infantries, 7th Michigan Infantry, and one company of 

Massachusetts sharpshooters. Col. (and U.S. senator) Edward D. Baker 

commanded what was known as the California brigade: the 1 st, 2d, 3d, 

and 4th California Infantries. These regiments had been recruited mostly 

in Pennsylvania, and, after the Battle of Ball's Bluff and the protest of the 

Pennsylvania governor, the regiments were redesignated the 71 st, 69th, 

72d, and 106th Pennsylvania Infantries, respectively. Stone's division 

also included six companies of the 3d New York Cavalry, a detachment 

of Maryland cavalry known as the Putnam Rangers (later redesignated 

Company L, 1st Maryland Cavalry), and three batteries of artillery: 

Battery I, 1st U.S. Artillery; Battery B, 1st Rhode Island Light Artillery; 

and Battery K, 9th New York State Militia (later redesignated 6th New 

York Independent Battery).2 

To guard crossing sites farther north, the division of Maj. Gen. 

Nathaniel P. Banks, headquartered at Darnestown, Maryland, established 

pickets at the mouth of the Monocacy River and some miles northward. 

About twenty-three miles southeast of Leesburg the division of Brig. 

Gen. George A. McCall was encamped just below the Potomac at 

Langley, Virginia. 

Opposite Stone's Corps of Observation, on the Virginia side of the 

river, was the 7th Brigade of Col. Nathan G. Evans. Evans' command 

consisted of the 13th, 17th, and 18th Mississippi Infantries; 8th Virginia 

InJantfY; Companies B, C, and E, 4th Virginia Cavalry, and Company K, 

6th Virginia Cavalry; and the 1st Company, Richmond Howitzers, a total 

force of about 1,700 men. 3 About two miles east of the town Evans had 

an earthen fort constructed, designated it Fort Evans, and established his 

headqualiers there. 

During October Evans' brigade was covering a seven-mile distance of 

the Potomac River east of Leesburg. Along this stretch Evans' pickets 

' U.S. War Department, The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records 

of the Union and Confederate Armies (Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 

1893) (hereafter cited as OR), ser. 1, vol. 5, pp. 16, 293. 

3 Ibid., p. 350. 

5 
guarded crossing sites including Conrad's Ferry (known today as White's 

Ferry), Smart's Mill, and Edwards' Ferry. About halfway between 

Conrad's and Edwards' Ferries is Ball's Bluff, named for the local Ball 

family. Rising 100 feet above the river, covered by trees and rock outcroppings, the bluffs overlook Harrison's Island. Harrison's Island itself is flat 

and at the time of the battle was about 350 yards wide and 3 miles in length. 

On the Maryland side of the island the Potomac River was about 250 yards 

wide, but on the Virginia side it was only 60 to 80 yards wide. Along the 

Maryland shore the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal transported barges between 

Cumberland, Maryland, and Georgetown, D.C. General Stone maintained 

pickets on Harrison's Island and had small entrenchments thrown up to protect the men from any Confederate fire from the Virginia bluffs. 

Through the end of summer and early fall of 1861, the opposing pickets along the river fell into a daily practice of watching the crossing sites. 

Although fraternization between Confederate and Union pickets was forbidden, the soldiers sometimes traded newspapers, tobacco, or other items 

by making small rafts and allowing them to drift across to the other side. 

Or when the river was low, they might wade out into the center of the 

water and engage in conversation with one another. Occasionally, there 

would be shots exchanged but generally the duty was routine and dull. 

In mid-October, after receiving reports that the Confederate Army had 

fallen back to Centreville and Manassas, McClellan saw an opportunity 

to secure the river-crossing sites north of Washington and perhaps occupy Leesburg. He hoped that a show of force would cause Evans' 

Confederates to abandon the town without a fight, giving McClellan an 

easy victory and satisfying a Congress anxious for the Union Army to 

take the initiative. On 19 October McClellan ordered General McCall to 

march his division from Langley to Dranesville, about fourteen miles 

south of Leesburg. This movement was not only meant to intimidate 

Evans into withdrawing from Leesburg but was an opportunity to learn 

the position of the Confederates and allow Army topographical engineers 

to prepare maps of the area. Once his mission was completed, McCall 

was to return to Langley the following day. By midnight on the nineteenth, Evans was alerted to McCall's advance when a Union courier carlying instmctions to McCall's command was captured. Instead of evacuating the area, Evans moved his brigade to a defensive position on the 

Leesburg Turnpike and along the north side of Goose Creek. The following morning, 20 October, a Union signal station at Sugar Loaf Mountain, 

now unable to see Evans' force, reported to McClellan that the enemy had 

apparently moved away from Leesburg. 4 

4 Ibid., pp. 32, 349. 

6 
McClellan, unsure whether the Confederates had actually evacuated 

the town, decided to apply additional pressure with General Stone's division. He sent a message to Stone saying McCall's division had advanced 

to Dranesville and told Stone to keep a lookout toward Leesburg to see if 

McCall's movement would drive the Confederates away. McClellan 

ended the communique with "Perhaps a slight demonstration on your part 

would have the effect to move them." McClellan failed to tell Stone that 

the movement of McCall's division to Dranesville was only temporary 

and that McCall would return to Langley the following day. He also neglected to explain to Stone that the "slight demonstration" was expected to 

be no more than a show of force on the Maryland shore and that no troops 

were expected to cross the river for the purpose of fighting. 5 

On the afternoon of 20 October Stone moved a portion of General 

Gorman's brigade, consisting of the 2d New York State Militia and 1st 

Minnesota Infantry, to Edwards' Ferry for the demonstration. (Map 2) 

Gorman's 34th New York Infantry was at Seneca, Maryland, eight miles 

downstream. Gorman's 42d New York Infantly was ordered to the vicinity of Conrad's Feny, while the 15th Massachusetts Infantry remained on 

picket duty in the vicinity of Harrison's Island along with General 

Lander's 19th and 20th Massachusetts Infantries. The movement of 

Gorman's units to the ferry was joined by the 7th Michigan Infantry of 

Lander's brigade, along with the Putnam Rangers and two companies of 

the 3d New York Cavalry.6 

At the ferry, General Gorman had three flatboats removed from the 

canal and placed in the river preparatory to a crossing. As Union artillery 

fire drove the Confederates from view and while the remainder of his 

command waited on the Maryland shore, Gorman began crossing only 

two companies of the 1 st Minnesota Infantry. 

While the Confederates were being distracted by the demonstration at 

Edwards' Ferry, Stone ordered Col. Charles P. Devens, 15th Massachusetts Infantly, to send 38-year-old Capt. Chase Philbrick of Company 

H and twenty men on a scouting expedition toward Leesburg via Ball's 

Bluff. To support the reconnaissance and protect the group's return, 

Colonel Devens was also ordered to cross to Harrison's Island four companies of his regiment, Companies A, C, G, and I, where they would join 

the remainder of Company H already there on picket duty. Stone anticipated that Philbrick would depart in time to accomplish his mission at the 

same time as the Edwards' Ferry demonstration concluded. However, due 

to a delay in delivering the order to Philbrick, the scouting party did not 

5 Ibid., pp. 32, 33. 

6 Ibid., p. 293. 

7 
" " " " " \I " " " " 

Map 2 

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'" '" '" '" '" 

HARRISON'S ISLAND 

20 October 1861 

Union Units 

Confederate Units 

.A. Picket 

'" 

Miles 

'" 0.., 

'Z-'V< 

II 

Ii 

" 1/ " 1/ 

1/ " 1/ 

1/ 

Ii 

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" 0;;:.":::-,;::..:;,. 

'::::-'::::-..:::-.:;,. 
General Gorman's brigade arriving at Edwards' Ferry for General Stone's 

"slight demonstration, " 20 October 1861 (Library of Congress) 

cross the river until just before dark, after which it climbed to the bluff 

and cautiously followed a path through the woods. 7 

With the approach of darkness Stone ended his demonstration at 

Edwards' Ferry and withdrew the Minnesota troops to the Maryland 

shore. At this point Stone had successfully carried out McClellan's suggestion for a slight demonstration, and he informed McClellan of the 

temporalY crossing and of the scouting patty still near Leesburg. 8 

The Battle 

Meanwhile, Philbrick's scouting party had walked in the dark less 

than a mile from the bluffs when it spotted what appeared to be a row 

of about thirty tents silhouetted along a ridge line near the home of the 

Jackson family. Although no Confederates could be seen, Philbrick and 

his group fell back to the bluff, crossed back into Maryland, and about 

2200 informed Stone of the discovery of the unguarded camp. Seeing 

an opportunity for a quick raid, Stone decided to send a force across the 

river to destroy the camp. Although General McClellan had not ordered 

7 Ibid.; Report of the Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War (hereafter cited as 

RJCCW), 3 vols. (Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1863), testimony of 

Genera l Stone, p. 277. 

, OR, ser. I , vol. 5, p. 33. 

9 
such a river crossing in the Leesburg area, Stone was acting with proper authority. Two months earlier, McClellan had instructed Stone that 

"should you see the opportunity of capturing or dispersing any small 

party by crossing the river, you are at liberty to do so, though great discretion is recommended in making such a movement."9 In Stone's 

words this was "precisely one of those pieces of carelessness on the part 

of the enemy that ought to be taken advantage of." He quickly wrote 

orders for Colonel Devens to take five companies of the 15th 

Massachusetts Infantry across the river with silence and rapidity to 

destroy the camp.l0 

To cover the return of Devens' force, Col. William R. Lee, commanding the 20th Massachusetts Infantry, was ordered to cross his regiment to Harrison's Island and to send two companies across the river to 

the bluff. Stone also ordered the 2d New York State Militia at Edwards' 

Ferry to send eight men along with two 12-pounder mountain howitzers 

up the canal towpath to a point opposite Han·ison's Island. Second Lt. 

Frank S. French, Battery I, 1st U.S. Artillery, was assigned to command 

the guns, and four men of Battery I were assigned to the crews. These 

guns would be under the overall control of Colonel Lee and could fire 

onto Ball's Bluff to protect a hasty withdrawal. AttillelY from Battery B, 

1 st Rhode Island Light ArtillelY, would also be placed in support, with 

four 12-pounder rifled guns being ordered to the canal towpath near the 

island. The other two guns ofthe battery would remain north of Conrad's 

Ferry, near the mouth of the Monocacy River. 11 And finally, Stone 

ordered the 1 st California Infantry, commanded by Lt. Col. Isaac J. 

Wistar, and the 42d New York Infantry, commanded by Col. Milton 

Cogswell, to wait at Conrad's Feny, ready to provide additional support 

if needed. 

In addition to attacking the Confederate camp, Devens' orders stated 

that after accomplishing his mission he was to return to the Maryland 

shore, unless a strong position was found on the Virginia side of the river 

that could be held until reinforcements arrived. He was then to hold on 

and report. About midnight on 20 October Devens and Companies A, C, 

G, H, and I (about 300 men) quietly moved to the crossing site on the 

9 RJCCW, testimony of General Stone, p. 267. Quote from OR, seL 1, vol. 5, pt. 1, pp. 

557- 58. 

iO Quote from RJCCW, testimony of General Stone, p. 277. OR, seL 1, vol. 5, p. 299. 

II RJCCW, testimony of Colonel Lee, p. 474, and of Capt Dennis De Courcy, p. 304; 

William L. Haskin, The HistofY o/the First Regiment 0/ Artillel)l . .. (Portland, Oreg.: B. 

Thurston, 1879), p. 150; Jolm H. Rhodes, The HistofY o/Battery B, First Regiment Rhode 

Island Light ArtillelY in the War To Preserve the Union, 1861- 1865 (Providence, R.I.: 

Snow & Farnham, 1894), p. 33. 

10 
western side of Harrison's Island. Despite the cold, Devens ordered his 

men to march without overcoats or knapsacks, explaining that they might 

be cold for two or three hours in the early morning but during the day they 

would be warm enough. There were only two boats available for the 

crossing: a lifeboat that could hold twenty-five men and a skiff capable of 

carrying less than ten men. To increase the number of men crossing, 

another skiff was brought across the island from the Maryland side and 

placed in the river. After much difficulty, the crossing was completed 

about 0400 on 21 October. Once on the Virginia shore, the companies followed the riverbank southward about seventy yards and climbed a narrow, steep path to the top. When the last group had climbed the bluff, 

Colonel Devens crossed over, briefly getting lost in the dark along the 

riverbank before finding the path to the top. After checking on his men, 

Devens returned to the riverbank to make sure the two companies of the 

20th Massachusetts Infantry could find their way to the top of the bluff.12 

Colonel Lee had chosen Companies D and I of the 20th to make the crossing and accompanied them himself, leaving the remaining five companies 

on the island under the command of Maj. Paul Revere, grandson of the 

Revolutionary War hero. 

At first light, shortly before 0600, Devens led his men down a narrow 

path and into the woods beyond, leaving Lee and his companies on the 

bluff. With Philbrick's Company H in the lead, Devens' force soon 

reached the ridge where the enemy camp had been seen the night before. 

(Map 3) However, on reaching the site, Devens discovered that Philbrick 

had been deceived. A row of trees on the ridgeline running perpendicular 

to the path, with the night sky showing through the openings between the 

h'ees, had presented only the appearance of a row of tents. With no camp 

to attack, Devens decided to salvage something from the mission. While 

the rest of his command waited in the woods, Devens, Philbrick, and 1 st 

Lt. Church Howe, the regimental quartermaster, crossed over the ridge 

and scouted toward the town. After a short while they returned, having 

seen no enemy troops and only a few distant tents. Devens then decided 

to exercise the discretion allowed in his orders and not return to the bluff. 

About 0700 he sent Lieutenant Howe to Stone to report that there was no 

enemy camp, and Devens would hold his position and await further 

orders. 13 

To distract Confederate attention from Devens' movement, Stone had 

earlier ordered General Gorman to make a second crossing at Edwards' 

12 OR, ser. 1, vol. 5, pp. 299- 300; RJCCW, testimony of Colonel Devens, pp. 404- 05, and 

of Colonel Lee, p. 475. 

13 RJCCW, testimony of Colonel Devens, pp. 405-06, and of Lieutenant Howe, p. 375. 

11 

Ferry. Under cover of artillery fire, two companies of the 1st Minnesota 

Infantry and a detachment of about thirty horsemen of the 3d New York 

Cavalry would cross over to the Virginia shore. While infantry covered 

the crossing site, the cavalry would advance as far as the Leesburg 

Turnpike and report on the number and disposition of any enemy seen. 14 

Back at the bluff, as the sky grew lighter, Colonel Lee took a quick 

look at his surroundings. His troops were on the edge of an open field, 

trapezoidal in shape. Woods surrounded the field on all sides, and the 

path leading toward Leesburg crossed the field and entered the woods 

almost four hundred yards away. Lee sent out pickets to check the woods 

to the north and south of the field and continued to await the results of 

Devens' operation. About 0730 several enlisted men of Company I, 20th 

Massachusetts Infantry, in the woods to picket the slope above a ravine 

north of the open field, were fired upon. On the opposite slope, pickets of 

Company K, 17th Mississippi Infantry, south of Smart's Mill, had seen 

the group coming and opened fire, wounding a sergeant and sending the 

Massachusetts men scurrying back up the slope. 15 

The Confederate pickets quickly informed their commander, Capt. 

William L. Duff, of the Union crossing. DLiff forwarded the news to 

Evans, then marched from his camp at Big Spring less than a mile away 

with the remaining forty men of his company, following a long ravine to 

the top of the ridge near the Jackson house. Devens' pickets spotted DLiff 

and his men about 0800 and alerted Devens. Captain Philbrick was 

ordered to advance Company H over the ridge and confront the 

Confederates, while Capt. John Rockwood, with his Company A, moved 

to the right to block the road to Smmt's Mill and prevent the enemy from 

escaping to the north. Surprised by the sudden appearance of Union soldiers and outnumbered, Duff and his men quickly fell back about 300 

yards down the slope, closely followed by Philbrick's company. (Map 4) 

As Philbrick's unit drew closer, Duff ordered his men to take aim, while 

repeatedly calling on the Union troops to halt. Philbrick's men called out 

that they were "friends," but, when the two companies were less than a 

hundred yards apalt, Duff gave the command "fire," knocking down several of the Massachusetts men and opening a lively skirmish. Devens was 

about to order Company G to Philbrick's aid when he was warned of the 

approach of Confederate cavalry from the direction of Leesburg. 16 

Lt. Col. Walter H Jenijer, commanding four companies of Virginia cavalry, had been camped nearby and heard of the Union crossing at Ball's Bluff. 

14 OR, ser. 1, vol. 5, p. 294. 

IS RJCCW, testimony of Colonel Lee, p. 476. 

16 OR, ser. 1, vol. 5, p. 363; RJCCW, testimony of Colonel Devens, p. 406. 

13 
.. c- Smar.t's Mill /; 

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15 Mass 

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Map 4 

BALL'S BLUFF 

21 October 1861 

Situation at 0800 

ELEVATION IN METERS 

! ! 

200 250 300 350 and Above 

1000 

\ 
With Companies B, C, and E, 4th Virginia Cavalry, and Company K, 6th 

Virginia Cavalry, Jenifer hurried to support Duffs command.17 Devens 

ordered Philbrick and Rockwood to fall back. After waiting a few minutes on 

the east side of the ridge, and unsure of the size of the Confederate force on 

the other side, Devens marched his command back to the bluff. Duff also fell 

back another 300 yards, where he was joined by Jenifer's cavalry. In the short 

skirmish Philbrick had lost one killed, nine wounded, and two missing. Duff's 

casualties were three wounded, one seriously.18 Both Duff's and Jenifer's 

commands searched the site of the skirmish, gathering dropped weapons and 

making prisoners of several of the Union wounded. Later, an order arrived 

for Jenifer to repOlt to Fort Evans, so he and his cavalry departed. 

Back at the bluff Colonel Lee had heard the firing to the front. 

Expecting Devens' command to be returning shortly, Lee placed 

Company D on the left side of the path and Company 1 on the right side. 

About 0830 Devens and his men appeared and halted on the path in front 

of Lee's command. Devens, according to Lee, seemed angry at the result 

of the operation. When Lee suggested to Devens that he form his men 

into a line of battle, instead of them standing in column on the path, 

Devens did not respond. After remaining about half an hour Devens, 

without saying a word to Lee, marched back up the path and out of sight. 19 

Arriving at his earlier position in the woods near the Jackson house, 

Devens waited for orders from Stone. 

Meanwhile, at Edwards' Ferry, two companies of Minnesota troops 

began crossing the river, along with about thirty horsemen of the 3d New 

York Cavalry. While the infantry guarded the crossing site, the cavalry 

scouted toward the Leesburg Turnpike, where it had a brief encounter 

with the 13th Mississippi Infantry before returning to the ferry. Watching 

the Edwards' Ferry operation from the Maryland shore, General Stone 

received Devens' report about 0830 on the error regarding the 

Confederate camp. Unaware of Devens' morning skirmish, Stone 

informed McClellan that Devens had crossed the river and had proceeded to within a mile and a half of Leesburg without seeing any enemy and 

that Stone's cavalry had briefly skirmished with Confederates at 

Edwards' Ferry. McClellan responded with, "I congratulate your command. Keep me constantly informed."20 

17 OR, ser. 1, vol. 5, p. 368; Kenneth L. Stiles, 4th Virginia Cavalfy (Lynchburg, Va.: H. 

E. Howard, 1985), pp. 7- 8; Michael P. Musick, 6th Virginia Cavaby (Lynchburg, Va.: H. 

E. Howard, 1990), p. 5. 

l' OR, ser. 1, vol. 5, pp. 308, 353. 

19 RJCCW, testimony of Colonel Lee, pp. 476- 77. 

20 OR, ser. I, vol. 51 , pt. 1, p. 498. 

15 
Shortly after Devens had returned to the vicinity of the Jackson house, 

Lieutenant Howe arrived with orders from Stone. Devens was to remain 

where he was and a detachment of cavalry would arrive for the purpose of 

scouting toward the town. Howe also said that the remaining five companies ofthe 15th Massachusetts Infantry commanded by Lt. Col. George H. 

Ward would be crossing over to the Virginia shore and marching to 

Smart's Mill, on Devens' right flank. After expressing concern that Ward 

should join him at the front rather than going to Smart's Mill, Devens sent 

the quartermaster back to Edwards' Ferry with word of the morning skirmish. On the way back Howe met Ward preparing to cross and told him 

of the morning skirmish and Devens' desire that Ward support him as soon 

as possible. Ward sent word to Stone that instead of marching to Smart's 

Mill, Ward wouldjoin Devens' command. Ward then crossed the river and 

marched directly up the same path Devens had followed. By 1100 all ten 

companies had united, giving Devens a force of about 650 men. 21 

In the meantime, about ten cavalrymen, led by a noncommissioned 

officer and sent by Stone to scout for Devens, crossed the river from 

Maryland and arrived on the Virginia riverbank. Accompanying them 

was Capt. Charles Candy of General Lander's staff, temporarily acting as 

an aide to General Stone. While the cavalrymen waited below, Candy 

rode to the top of the bluff where he met with Colonel Lee. After writing 

down Lee's evaluation of the general situation, Candy returned to the 

riverbank and crossed back to the Maryland shore. For unexplained reasons, the cavalrymen, instead of reporting to Devens, followed Candy 

back across the river. 22 Thus Devens, and later Baker, was deprived of a 

means of obtaining advance information about the approach of any 

Confederate force. 

Soon after Devens had returned to the Jackson house, Colonel Lee 

sent a note to Major Revere on the island, telling him that Devens had 

encountered the enemy and that "we are determined to fight." This 

prompted Revere to begin crossing his five companies of the 20th 

Massachusetts Infanhy to the Virginia shore, a move that by noon would 

increase Lee's force to 317 men. Lee had also stopped Lieutenant Howe 

as he passed by on one of his trips to and from Edwards' Ferry. In 

response to a question from Howe regarding Lee's assessment of the situation, Lee said to tell Stone that "if he wished to open a campaign in 

Virginia, now was the time."23 

21 Ibid., p. 309, and vol. 5, pp. 309- 10. 

22 RJCCW, testimony of Colonel Lee, p. 477, and of Lieutenant Howe, p. 376. 

23 First quote from Ibid., testimony of Colonel Lee, p. 477. Second quote from Ibid., testimony of Lieutenant Howe, p. 376. 

16 
Lee posted his seven companies, A, C, D, E, G, H, and I, along the 

bluff. The men were placed in line parallel with the eastern edge of the 

open field, with their backs to the river, behind a slight rise of ground and 

just in front of the wood line. Company D was thrown out as skirmishers 

in the woods on the left, while Company H was placed in the woods on 

the right. Revere's troops, with difficulty, had also brought the two mountain howitzers. The guns were hauled up the bluff and placed along the 

wood line on the northern side of the field. 

Earlier that morning Colonel Baker, commanding the California 

brigade, had ridden down the canal towpath to the 1st California Infantry, 

stationed at Conrad's Ferry. A little after 0900 Baker met with Colonel 

Wi star, commanding the 1st, and asked if Wi star thought Baker should go 

down to Stone's headquarters at Edwards' Ferry. Wi star responded that 

he didn't know but his own orders were to remain at Conrad's Ferry, 

unless he heard heavy firing on the bluff, at which time he was to cross 

over in support. Baker then decided to ride to Edwards' Ferry to see 

Stone. 24 

Around 1000 Baker arrived at Edwards' Ferry and met with Stone. 

Baker was informed that McCall's division had advanced to Dranesville. 

(In fact, by that time McCall was well on his way back to Langley.) Baker 

was also told that p0l1ions of Devens' and Lee's commands were in 

Virginia at Ball's Bluff and that Gorman was crossing troops at Edwards' 

Ferry and would push them to the Leesburg Turnpike. General Lander 

was away in Washington, so Stone assigned Baker command of the division's "right wing" in the area of Harrison's Island. Stone would remain 

at Edwards' Ferry to coordinate the movements of Baker and Gorman. 

Baker was ordered to hold any ground previously occupied on the 

Virginia shore and not yield any ground without resistance. He was not, 

however, to fight a superior force. In case of heavy firing on the bluff, 

Baker was to advance forces to support Devens and Lee or to pull all 

forces back across the river "at your discretion." Baker asked that these 

orders be put in writing, and Stone wrote them ouf.25 

Shortly before 1100 Baker rode back up the canal towpath toward 

Harrison's Island to take command of Stone's right wing. On the way, he 

met Howe headed for Stone's headquarters. From Howe, Baker learned 

of Devens' morning fight and Ward's five companies going to his support. Baker immediately ordered an aide to ride ahead and have Colonel 

Wistar and the 1st California Infantry cross the river and support Devens 

and Lee. Baker then rode on toward the island. Howe continued to 

" Ibid., testimony of Colonel Wistar, p. 307. 

25 Ibid., testimony of General Stone, p. 275 . 

17 
Stone's headquarters and informed him of the morning skirmish and of 

Colonel Ward's companies marching to join Devens. Stone replied that 

Baker was now in command of that wing and that he would arrange 

things there to suit himself. 26 

Soon after 1100 Stone wrote McClellan, "The enemy have been 

engaged opposite Harrison's Island; our men behaving admirably." 

According to McClellan, this was the first intimation that Stone's movements across the river might be more than a mere scout. McClellan immediately telegraphed McCall to remain at Dranesville but, after learning 

McCall had already returned to Langley, McClellan ordered McCall and 

Banks to hold their divisions in readiness for a possible move to support 

Stone. McClellan also sent a note to Stone asking, "Is the force of the 

enemy now engaged with your troops opposite Harrison's Island large? If 

so, and you require more support than your division affords, call upon 

General Banks, who has been directed to respond. What force, in your 

opinion, would it require to carry Leesburg? Answer at once, as I may 

require you to take it to-day; and, if so, I will support you on the other 

side of the river from Darnestown." Stone responded by saying he 

thought the enemy was about 4,000 strong, but he believed his command 

could still occupy Leesburg that day. He ended his message with, "We are 

a little short of boats."27 

Meanwhile, Devens deployed three companies as skirmishers around 

the Jackson house. While Devens' remaining seven companies waited in 

the wood line, Colonel Jenifer returned from Fort Evans with Companies B 

and C, 4th Virginia Cavalry, and Company K, 6th Virginia Cavalry. 

Shortly after 1100 skirmishing broke out between Jenifer's and Devens' 

commands as Duff s Company K, 17th Mississippi Infantry, moved about a 

quat1er of a mile to Jenifer's left. Jenifer had earlier requested reinforcements from Colonel Evans and soon two companies of the 18th Mississippi 

Infantry and one company of the 13th Mississippi Infantry arrived on the 

right of the Virginia cavalry. As the skirmishing increased in intensity, 

Jenifer sent for additional h·oops from Evans. 28 By noon the Confederates 

had pushed Devens' pickets east of the Jackson house. (Map 5) 

As Devens' men continued to skirmish, Lieutenant Howe arrived 

with news that Colonel Baker would soon arrive with his brigade and 

take command. But Baker, rather than cross over from Harrison's Island 

immediately and make a commander's reconnaissance of what was 

26 Ibid., testimony of Lieutenant Howe, p. 376. 

27 First quote from OR, ser. 1, vol. 5, p. 33. Second and third quotes from Ibid., vol. 51 , 

pt. 1, p. 499. 

28 Ibid., vol. 5, pp. 368- 69. 

18 
Map 5 

BALL'S BLUFF 

21 October 1861 

Situation at 1200 

ELEVATION IN METERS 

200 250 300 350 and Above 

1000 

I 

Feet 
Colonel Baker's command crossing from Harrison's Island to Ball's Bluff, 21 

October 1861 (John D. Baltz, Colonel E. D. Baker's Defense in the Battle of Ball's 

Bluff ... , 1888) 

about to become a battleground, instead chose to supervise personally 

the tedious crossing of the troops. When he first arrived on the island, 

Baker had been surprised to see the inadequate means of transporting 

infantry across the river. The only boats available for the crossing from 

the Matyland side to the island were tlu'ee flatboats, each capable of carrying forty to fifty men. From the island to the Virginia shore there were 

still the three boats used in the morning crossings. Therefore, the passage 

of troops across to the island was slow. Small trees had to be cut to make 

poles, and the boats had to be poled up shore a distance, before being 

loaded, then poled diagonally to the landing site. Baker spent some time 

overseeing the raising of a small boat from the canal and also the unsuccessful stretching of a rope from the Maryland shore to the island. Later, 

others succeeded in extending a rope to the island, making it easier for 

the boats to cross. 29 Shortly after noon the 1 st California Infantry had 

crossed eight companies onto Harrison's Island, one of which had continued to the Virginia shore. While the Californians continued crossing 

to the Virginia shore, Baker sent orders for the 42d New York Infantry 

also to begin crossing over. 

29 RJCCW, testimony of Lieutenant Howe, p. 377; of Colonel Lee, p. 476; and of Col 

Edward W. Hinks, p. 435. 

20 
At the same time, Devens' posItIon near the Jackson house was 

becoming precarious. In response to Jenifer's call for more troops, 

Colonel Evans had sent the 8th Virginia Infantry, commanded by Col. 

Eppa Hunton , to Jenifer's aid. Hunton had left one of his ten companies at Goose Creek and arrived about noon with almost 400 men on 

the right of Jenifer's three Mississippi companies. This brought the 

total Confederate force facing the 15th Massachusetts Infantry to 

over 700 men. On the Confederate left Duff's Mississippi company 

shifted toward the river. With the attack spreading around his flanks, 

Devens was forced to pull his men back a short distance. Three times 

he sent Lieutenant Howe back to locate Baker and hurry up the reinforcements. 3o But Baker had yet to cross over from Harrison's Island, 

and without reinforcements Devens would have to withdraw his men 

back to the bluff. 

At Edwards' Ferry Stone had ordered the remainder of Gorman's 

brigade to cross the river into Virginia along with artillery. As soon as 

Baker began his advance Stone would have Gorman's forces strike the 

retreating Confederates. While his troops were crossing, Gorman 

remarked to an aide, "My boy, we will sleep at Leesburg tonight."31 

By 1300 Colonel Cogswell and his 42d New York Infantry were 

crossing onto Harrison's Island, along with two rifled guns of Battery B, 

1 st Rhode Island Light Aitillery. In the temporary absence of the battery 

commander the two-gun section was placed under command of 1st Lt. 

Walter Bramhall, 9th New York State Militia. When he arrived on the 

island, Cogswell presented Baker with a message from Stone. In the message Stone estimated Confederate strength at about 4,000, and he 

instmcted Baker to push the enemy if he could. If Baker drove the 

Confederates beyond Leesburg, he was not to follow far, but establish a 

strong position near the town. Baker was also told to repOlt frequently so 

that when Stone was aware that the enemy was falling back Stone would 

have Gorman's command come in on the Confederates' right flank. 

Baker responded that he would cross his forces as rapidly as possible and 

would advance when his command was strong enough. Baker, referring 

to Gorman's attack at Edwards' Ferry, ended his message with, "I hope 

that your movement below will give advantage."32 

About an hour later Baker crossed the river, reached the top of the 

bluff, mounted his horse, and assumed command. Upon meeting Colonel 

Lee, Baker bowed and said politely, "I congratulate you upon the 

30 OR, ser. 1, vol. 5, p. 364; RJCCW, testimony of Lieutenant Howe, p. 377. 

JJ RJCCW, testimony of Major Bannister, p. 283. 

32 OR, ser. 1, vol. 51 , pt. \, p. 502. 

21 
prospect of a battle." While Baker and Lee inspected the positions of the 

troops, Devens and his men came marching down the path, and Baker 

congratulated Devens "for the splendid manner in which your regiment 

behaved this morning."J3 

Baker, feeling he did not have sufficient forces to advance, decided to 

establish a defensive line across the bluff until more troops had crossed 

the river. He ordered Devens to place the 15th Massachusetts Infantry just 

inside the wood line along the northern side of the field, facing south, and 

perpendicular to the 20th Massachusetts Infantry. By now four companies 

of the 1st California Infantry had climbed the bluff, and Baker placed two 

of the companies on the left flank of the 15th Massachusetts Infantry and 

two companies on the left of the 20th. (Map 6) Due to a lack of reconnaissance by Baker, the spot assigned to the 15th was a poor one. The 

ground sloped away from the open field and made it difficult for most of 

Devens' men to see any Confederate troops unless the enemy approached 

to within yards of the Massachusetts' position. Somewhat out of the fray, 

many of Devens' men sat down in the woods.34 The two California companies on Devens' left also lay on the ground, their field of fire paltially 

blocked by the right flank of the 20th. 

Crossing behind the four California companies, Colonel Wistar 

reached the top of the bluff and consulted with Colonel Baker. Baker 

eagerly sought Wistar's opinion of the disposition of the troops, and the 

two inspected the line. Wistar, however, offered no opinion. Instead, he 

expressed concern about a deep ravine and thick woods on the south side 

of the field. If the Confederates occupied those positions, he told Baker, 

the Union left would be outflanked. Wistar asked Baker's permission to 

extend his line a few paces in that direction, and Baker responded, "I 

throw the entire responsibility of the left wing to yoU."35 Wistar shifted 

the two California companies toward the ravine, where they discovered 

and relieved Company D, 20th Massachusetts Infantry. 

Jenifer's command and the 8th Virginia Infantry had followed 

Devens and soon arrived on the western edge of the field and in the 

woods to the north. Although Devens' right flank was somewhat protected from small arms fire by woods, the dismounted Confederate cavalry 

and Dufj's company moved around the Massachusetts' flank and into the 

rear of Devens' position. To counter this threat, Devens detached 

Companies A and I, in skirmish order, and they moved to the rear of 

J3 First quote from RJCCW, testimony of Colonel Lee, p. 478. Second quote from Ibid., 

testimony of Colonel Devens, p. 408. 

J4 Ibid., testimony of Colonel Devens, p. 408. 

35 OR, ser. 1, vol. 51, pt. 1, p. 500. 

22 
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Devens' line and faced slightly northward. They were joined on their 

right by the skirmishers of Company H, 20th Massachusetts Infantry. 

As Jenifer's and Hunton's men kept up a steady fire against Baker's 

right, Stone began to receive reports of heavy firing in the Ball's Bluff 

area. Assuming that Baker had begun his advance, Stone informed 

McClellan that "There has been sharp fighting on the right of our line, 

and our troops appear to be advancing there under Baker. The left, under 

Gorman, has advanced its skirmishers nearly 1 mile, and, if the movement continues successful, will tum the enemy's right." Obviously, Stone 

was mistaken about any advance by Baker, but his optimistic message 

prompted McClellan to respond with a coded message, "Take Leesburg." 

When the message arrived at his headquaJ1ers, Stone discovered he did 

not have the code to decipher it. He sent a cryptic message back to 

McClellan that "I have the key, but I don't have the box," but 

McClellan's message was never decoded and Stone was unaware of its 

contents.

36 Meanwhile, at Edwards' Ferry Stone had sent three infantry 

regiments from Gorman's command across the river. Although Stone had 

implied to Baker that these troops were to come in on the right flank of 

the Confederates confronting his command, only a few of Gorman's 

troops advanced, halting about a mile from the ferry. 

About 1430 Colonel Cogswell and Company C, 42d New York 

Infantry, crossed from the island to the Virginia shore. Cogswell also 

brought over one of the rifled guns of Battery B, 1st Rhode Island Light 

Artillery. None of the boats then being used to transport troops had a bottom strong enough to hold the weight of the gun, so a flatboat was hauled 

around from the Maryland side of the island, and the gun and crew 

crossed with Company C. The horses and limber crossed over on a second trip. During Cogwell's crossing Confederate skirmishers on the 

bluffs north of the landing site took potshots at the group, but after landing on the Virginia shore Cogswell had Company C drive them away 

from the edge of the bluff.37 

Colonel Cogswell then climbed to the bluff and met with Colonel 

Baker. As he had with Colonel Wi star, Baker invited Cogswell to examine the line and comment on the disposition of troops. No enemy could 

be seen, but sporadic small arms fire still fell on the Union position, and 

Baker ordered officers and men to lie down to avoid the incoming rounds. 

When Baker and Cogswell arrived at Wistar's position on the southeast 

comer of the field, Baker read aloud Stone's message giving the estimate 

36 First quote from RJCCW, testimony of General Stone, p. 488. Second and third quotes 

from OR, ser. I , vol. 5, p. 32l. 

J7 RJCCW, testimony of General Stone, p. 488. 

24 
of 4,000 enemy troops, then ordered Wistar to send out two companies of 

skirmishers. Wistar, now with six companies of the 1st California 

Infantry on Baker's left, responded by saying that, considering the time it 

had taken Stone's message to reach Baker, the 4,000 men must then be in 

front of them. To send out two companies of skirmishers would be to sacrifice them. Baker replied that he needed to know what was out there and 

reiterated the order. Wistar then advanced two companies across the open 

field. As the first company entered the wood line at the far side, the 8th 

Virginia Infantry, which was lying in the woods, rose up and with a yell 

charged into the right flank of the lead Californians. Caught off guard, 

Wistar's men opened fire and after a short but violent melee fell back into 

the wood line on the south side of the field. 

Earlier, Evans, now believing that the main Union thrust would be at 

Ball's Bluff, had sent the rest of Co!. Erasmus Burt's 18th Mississippi 

Infantry (eight companies) and Col. Winfield Scott Featherston's 17th 

Mississippi Infantry (nine companies) to support Jenifer. About 1500 

Burt's men arrived on the right of the 8th Virginia Infantry. (Map 7) 

Hunton's troops had been keeping up a steady fire, particularly against the 

two howitzers posted in the open. Burt's regiment halted, fired a couple 

volleys, and charged the guns. The attack drove the gun crews back to the 

safety of the woods, but Burt was mortally wounded, and his men fell back 

to the wood line. Lt. Col. Thomas M Griffin assumed command of the 

18th, discovered a gap between his command and the 8th, and detached 

two companies of the 18th to extend his left. Griffin also sent another of 

his companies to the right to drive back remnants of the two California 

companies still in the edge of woods on the south side of the field. 

In the meantime, the rifled gun of the Rhode Island battery was hauled 

up the bluff, limbered to its team of horses, and drawn through the ranks 

of the 20th Massachusetts Infantry. Just as the gun was unlimbered on a 

slight rise (the site of a present-day national military cemetery), the 18th 

Mississippi Infantry and 8th Virginia Infantry opened fire, immediately 

wounding several crewmen and killing or mortally wounding all the horses. The frightened horses bolted at the gunfire and dragged the limber 

back through the 20th's line. 38 Cogswell ordered the remaining crewmen 

to return fire, but the shells were ineffectual against the Confederates in 

the thick woods. 

About 1530 more of Colonel Featherston's 17th Mississippi Infantry 

arrived at the battlefield. (See Map 8.) A 200-yard gap still existed 

between the 18th Mississippi Infantry and the 8th Virginia Infantry, so 

Featherston moved into the opening and immediately opened fire on the 

38 Ibid., testimony of Colonel Lee, p. 479. 

25 
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Map 7 

21 Octobe r 1861 

Situation at 1500 

ELEVATION IN M ETERS 

200 250 300 350 and Above 

1000 

I I 

Feet 

• h ' ''''''''' -

_ 'U.-Ov :: :;J' 

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rifled gun, knocking down the remainder of the crew. Although wounded, Lieutenant Bramhall remained with the gun and, along with Colonels 

Wistar and Cogswell and volunteers from the 1st Califomia Infantry, 

manned the gun to keep it firing. Even Baker assisted in pushing the gun 

back into position several times after its recoi1. 39 However, Confederate 

fire was too severe, and the gun fell silent, having fired less then ten 

rounds. To the right, the two mountain howitzers also sat silent, their 

crews suffering the same fate as those assigned to the rifled gun. 

Small arms fire was growing in intensity on the Union left, and the companies of California troops were beginning to run out of ammunition. Since 

most of the troops on both sides were armed with similar-caliber smoothbore 

muskets, the California troops were able to replenish their ammunition by taking rounds from the cartridge boxes of the Confederate dead. In the center of 

the Confederate line the 8th Virginia Infantry was also low on ammunition, 

with some soldiers having fired their last round. Jenifer sent an urgent request 

to Evans for more ammunition and provisions and asked, if provisions could 

not be had, that a barrel of whiskey be sent to refresh the men. On Jenifer's 

left flank the three companies of dismounted Virginia cavalry shifted farther 

left, toward Captain Duff's position, and Dt4J's company was ordered to fall 

back and join the rest of the 17th Mississippi Infantry on the opposite flank. 

However, before Duff reached his regiment, the order was countermanded, 

and Dt4J's company halted some distance in the rear of the Confederate line 

where it remained for the rest of the battle.40 

Hearing the heavy firing from Edwards' Ferry, Stone believed Baker 

was still advancing toward Leesburg. Stone informed McClellan that 

nearly all of his division was across the river, Baker on the right, Gorman 

on the left, with Baker heavily engaged. 41 

But Baker was not advancing. Instead, he was barely holding his own 

on the bluff. Shortly before 1700, as the intensity of the Confederate fire 

continued to shift to Baker's left, he met with Wi star in the southeast corner of the open field to assess the situation. While standing next to Baker, 

Wi star received his third wound of the day and was carried down the bluff 

and back to the island. Also carried back across the river was 1 st Lt. 

Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., of Company A, 20th Massachusetts Infantry, 

who had been wounded twice.

42 Holmes would survive the battle and the 

war to become a Supreme Court justice. 

39 Ibid . 

•• Ibid., testimony of Colonel Wi star, p. 312; OR, ser. 1, vol. 5, pp. 364, 367, 370 . 

• , OR, ser. I, vol. 5, p. 34. 

42 George A. Bruce, The Twentieth Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteer ltifantlY, 

1861- 1865 (New York: Houghton Mifflin, 1906), p. 59. 

27 
Map 8 

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21 October 1861 

Situation at 1530 

ELEVATION IN METERS 

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200 250 300 350 and Above 

1000 

I 

Feet 
Contemporary depiction of the death of Colonel Baker (Library of Congress) 

While Baker remained in the open watching the action, Companies A 

and H, 42d New York Infantry, arrived on the bluff and were sent into the 

woods on the south side of the field. There, they drove back the Confederate 

skirmishers about fifty yards but were in turn forced to fall back. Although 

the Confederates remained relatively unseen in the woods, their small arms 

fire was taking its toll on anyone standing in the open field. 

About 1700 Baker was struck simultaneously by several bullets and 

killed instantly. A group of men from the California companies rushed forward to recover his body, and it was taken down the bluff and carried back 

across the river. Few of the Union troops were aware of Baker's death, but 

the question arose bliefiy as to who would succeed him in command. 

Colonel Lee, believing he was the senior officer present, claimed command 

and ordered a retreat back across the river. Colonel Cogswell, however, 

claimed seniority to Lee, to which Lee assented. Cogswell refused to order 

a retreat, saying it would be suicide to try and recross the river in the presence of an aggressive enemy. Instead, he preferred they h)' and cut their way 

through to GOlman's command at Edwards' Ferry.41 

4J OR, ser. 1, vol. 5, p. 322. 

29 
In preparation for the breakout, Cogswell ordered the four infantry regiments to form a column of attack in the woods along the southeast comer 

of the field and the 15th and 20th Massachusetts Infantries began shifting 

to the left, behind the 1 st California Infantry and the three companies of the 

42d New York Infantry. As the column was being formed, a few Union 

troops dragged the rifled gun back and attempted to roll it over the bluff, 

but fallen trees blocked the way and it was left in the woods. 

Colonel Hunton, seeing the Massachusetts troops withdrawing from 

his front and the two howitzers left unattended, had his men redistribute 

the few remaining cartridges so that most of the men would have one 

round. After having his men fix bayonets, Hunton ordered his command 

forward and the Virginians charged across the open field. (Map 9) Two 

companies of the 20th Massachusetts Infantry rushed out to try and save 

the two mountain howitzers but were driven back "by a perfect shower of 

bullets," and the guns were captured. 44 

While Cogswell moved to the head of the column in the woods, an 

individual appeared on horseback in the field on the right of the three 

companies of the 42d New York Infantry. Colonel Devens later testified 

that the individual, whom he did not know, rode a gray horse and waved 

his hat at the New Yorkers, "as an officer would who was calling the 

troops to come on."45 Breaking column, some of the New Yorkers 

charged onto the field and the 15th Massachusetts Infantry, thinking an 

order had been given to charge, also started forward. However, Devens 

and another officer rushed in front of the regiment and brought it to a halt. 

While Devens was attempting to put his men back in column, the New 

Yorkers tumbled back in disorder through the 15th's ranks, and both regiments fell back to the edge of the bluff. Cogswell tried to reorganize his 

scattered column for another attempt but with no success. 

After the charge of the 8th Virginia Infantry, Colonel Hunton informed 

Colonel Featherston that his ammunition was exhausted. Featherston then 

ordered the 17th and 18th Mississippi Infantries to advance, without firing, 

until they were close to the Union line, then fire and charge. Shouting, 

"Charge, Mississippians, charge! Drive them into the Potomac or into eternity," Featherston led the two regiments forward.46 

Cogswell now realized all was lost and ordered Devens to retreat 

down the bluff. But Devens refused to accept the verbal order to retreat 

unless Cogswell repeated it in front of a witness. The order was then 

44 Ibid., p. 367. Quote from Bruce, The Twentieth Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteer 

Infantry, pp. 51- 52. 

45 RJCCW, testimony of Colonel Devens, p. 410. 

46 OR, ser. 1, vol. 5, p. 361. 

30 
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Retreat of Federal troops from Ball's Bluff into the Potomac River (Library of 

Congress) 

repeated in the presence of Maj. John W. Kimball, 15th Massachusetts 

Infantry, and Devens ordered his men to retreat. News of retreat spread 

quickly and caused chaos throughout most of the Union ranks as all of the 

Union troops scrambled over the bluffs and onto the riverbank. (Map 10) 

Men began climbing, jumping, or tumbling down to the plateau below. 

Some were injured or even killed when they fell down the steep slope. 

After reaching the riverbank Devens tried to establish a skitmish line to 

fire back up the bluff but soon advised his men that it would be every man 

for himself and that they should throw their weapons into the river and 

escape the best they could. Devens tossed his sword into the water and 

with the help of a couple others, managed to float to the island on a large 

tree branch.

47 

As the Union soldiers crowded on the riverbank in the darkness the 

large flatboat arrived, carrying Companies E and K of the 42d New York 

Infanhy. Cogswell ordered the fresh troops and a few of the 20th 

Massachusetts Infantry to move halfway back up the trail to try and hold 

off the Confederates and cover the retreat across the river. The boat was 

then loaded with wounded and unwounded alike and shoved off but was 

47 RJCCW, testimony of Colonel Devens, pp. 410- 11 . 

32 
Smartls Mill-<:,/ 

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BALL'S BLUFF 

21 

October 1861 

Situation at 1800 

ELEVATION IN M ETERS 

200 250 300 350 and Above 

I 

Feet 

1000 

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so overcrowded it quickly tipped over and sank, Those who did not 

drown managed to return to the Virginia shore or swam to the island, As 

this was the only large boat then available on the Virginia side of the 

island, Companies B, D, F, G, and I of the 42d New York Infantry, who 

were still on the island and unable to cross, watched helplessly as disaster unfolded on the opposite shore,48 While the Confederates fired from 

the top of the bluff, the three smaller boats plied the river, laboriously carrying small groups back to the island, until they were riddled with bullets 

and sank. 

Officers of the 20th Massachusetts Infantry assisted 54-year-old 

Colonel Lee down the riverbank, where Lee, a seriously wounded Major 

Revere, and several other officers and enlisted men tried to escape upriver. When they tried to make a raft by tying fence rails together with their 

sword belts, it quickly fell apart, They continued upstream, where a portion of Jenifer's cavahy captured them,49 

Back at the riverbank below the bluff, Capt. William Bartlett of the 

20th Massachusetts Infantty shouted to those around him that if they 

couldn't swim to follow him upstream, About twenty men from various 

regiments followed and in the dark managed to reach Smart's Mill. 

Avoiding Confederate cavahy, they found a small sunken skiff, raised it, 

and crossed over to the island, five men at a time, 50 

In the dark the Confederates continued to fire down from the bluff 

into the mass of refugees trapped below, On Harrison's Island, men 

tried to make rafts of whatever material was at hand and set them 

adrift, hoping they might float across to the Virginia shore, Capt. 

Timothy H, O'Meara, Company E, 42d New York Infantry, swam to 

the island and tried to find another boat but was unable to locate one, 

He then swam back to the Virginia shore where he was captured with 

his company, Capt. Alois Babo and 2d Lt. Reinhold Wesselhoeft, both 

of the 20th Massachusetts Infantry, tried to assist each other in swimming the river but were both swept away in the swift current. 

Wesselhoeft's body was found thirteen days later, twenty miles downstream,51 While the Union troops huddled on the riverbank, part of the 

18th Mississippi Infantry worked its way down the ravine on the southern side of the field and opened fire on the men along the shore, 

Cogswell quickly organized a squad of about a dozen men who were 

" OR, ser. I, vol. 5, p. 324. 

4. Bruce, Th e Twentieth Regilllent of Massachusetts Volunteer lil/ant/y, p. 54. 

5. Ibid., pp. 56- 57. 

" RJCCW, testimony of Colonel Hinks, p. 436; OR, ser. I, vol. 5, p. 325; Bruce, The 

Twentieth Regilllent of Massachusetts Volunteer Infant/y, p. 55. 

34 
still armed and moved to the mouth of the ravine to stop this fire, but 

he and the group were surrounded and captured. 

About 1830 a courier brought Stone the news of Baker's death. Stone 

quickly forwarded the news to McClellan and then rode toward the 

island. All along the towpath lay water-soaked fugitives who had managed to swim over, each with a story of the defeat. Stone also passed the 

body of Colonel Baker being brought to Edwards' Ferry and stopped 

briefly to pay his respects. Opposite the island sporadic firing was still 

going on, and Stone was told that everyone in Baker's wing had been 

killed or captured. Stone sent an order to Col. Edward W. Hinks of the 

19th Massachusetts Infantry, whose regiment was then crossing onto the 

island, to secure all wounded and fugitives as soon as possible and to hold 

the island at all hazards until the wounded had been removed. 52 Then 

Stone, fearing that the victorious Confederates would now turn on 

Gorman's troops at Edwards' Ferry, rode down the towpath to order 

Gorman to withdraw to the Maryland shore. 

By 2000 most of the Union forces still on the riverbank below Ball's 

Bluff had surrendered, although the firing continued intermittently into 

the night. Some soldiers, however, hid in the dark and throughout the 

night and the next morning were either captured or made attempts to 

swim to the island. At 2130 Stone alerted McClellan that he was trying 

to prevent further disaster and warned that any advance from Dranesville 

must be made cautiously. Stone also informed McClellan that Gorman's 

forces on the Virginia shore were being cautiously withdrawn. 

McClellan, concerned lest Gorman's forces would be withdrawing in the 

face of an aggressive enemy, ordered Stone to hold the Virginia shore at 

Edwards' Ferry at all hazards. In Washington President Lincoln had 

been anxiously listening to reports of the battle. At 2200, after learning 

of the death of his friend Baker and the Union defeat, Lincoln sent a 

message to Stone asking for particulars of the battle. Stone responded 

that "It is impossible to give full particulars of what is yet inexplicable 

to me."53 Later, McClellan ordered General Banks to lUsh his division to 

Stone's support. 

Still believing McCall was at Dranesville, Stone sent a message to 

McClellan suggesting that reinforcements be sent up to Goose Creek. It 

is only then that he learned that McCall had not been at Dranesville all 

day. 54 

" RJCCW, testimony of General Stone, p. 487. 

lJ OR, ser. I, vol. 5, p. 34. Quote from Ibid., vol. 5 I, pt. 1, p. 498. 

" RJCCW, testimony of General Stone, pp. 488- 89. 

35 
ArtillelY.firing in support of Union troops on the Virginia side of the Potomac 

River at Edwards' Feny, 22 October 1861 (LibrG/y of Congress) 

About 0330, 22 October, two of General Banks' brigades arrived at 

Edwards' Ferry and began to cross the river to reinforce Stone's command. As the day dawned cold and rainy, a Union burial pmty under a 

flag of truce crossed at Harrison's Island to bury the Union dead. By 

evening the group had buried fOlty-seven bodies, two-thirds of those 

found on the battlefield. By noon of that same day Banks' two brigades 

had crossed the river and had a brief skinnish before the Confederates 

withdrew. In the aftemoon General McClellan arrived at Poolesville. He 

decided the Union position on Harrison's Island was not a favorable one 

but waited until dark to order any withdrawal. McClellan then ordered all 

Union troops withdrawn from the island to the Maryland shore. When the 

last troops reached the Maryland shore, the remaining guns of the 1 st 

Rhode Island Light ArtillelY fired a salvo at the bluff, a "compliment to 

the rebel commander."55 

The weather cleared on 23 October and at Edwards' Feny the 

Confederates, realizing that Stone had been reinforced, withdrew to Fort 

Evans. During the day McClellan arrived at Edwards' Ferry to take personal command, and that evening (1915) he ordered all of Stone's and 

Banks' forces on the Virginia side of the river at Edwards' Ferry to withdraw. By 0400 the next day all Union troops had retumed to the Mmyland 

shore, which, as McClellan wrote to his wife a few days later, "they 

should never have left."56 

" OR, ser.I , Yo I. 5, p.3 13 . 

56 Stephen W. Sears, ed., The Civil War Papers of George B. McClellan, Selected 

Correspondence, J 860- 1 865 (New York: Ticknor & Fields, 1989), p. III . 

36 
Retreat of Un ion/orees to the Mwyland shore at Edwards' Feny, night 0[23- 24 

October 1861 (Library of Congress) 

Summary 

What had staIied out as a surprise attack on a small, unguarded 

Confederate camp had turned into a military disaster. The opposing 

forces at Ball's Bluff were evenly matched, about 1,700 men on each 

side, but Union casualties were over 900 killed, wounded, and missing. 

Confederate casualties were comparatively light, about 150 killed, 

wounded, and missing. 57 The North was still smaliing from the previous 

defeat at the Battle of First Bull Run, and the perceived military incompetence at Ball's Bluff and the death of a popular U.S. senator created an 

additional public outcry. 

Within two months of the Battle of Ball's Bluff, the Joint 

Committee on the Conduct of the War was established to investigate 

both battles. Concerning Ball's Bluff, General Stone soon became the 

focus of Northerners who wanted to see someone punished, and he was 

called before the committee. Stone testified that the purpose of his operation on 21 October was solely to destroy the supposed Confederate 

camp. He had not planned to fight a battle that day but allowed most of 

his troops to cross into Virginia because he thought the Confederates 

were withdrawing. If the advance of McCall's division to Dranesville 

had the effect of forcing the Confederates out of Leesburg "we had 

nothing to do but to occupy it."58 Stone told the congressmen that had 

57 OR, ser. 1, vol. 5, pp. 308, 353. 

" Quote from RJCCW, testimony of General Stone, p. 269, and see also p. 491. 

37 
he known that McCall's division was not at Dranesville on 21 October, 

he would have immediately withdrawn all of his forces from Virginia. 

Stone was so sure that McCall was operating on his left flank that he 

had warned his artillery at Edwards' Ferry to be careful they did not fire 

on friends "whom I expected to see coming up the other side of Goose 

Creek." And when McClellan sent Stone a message asking for information about a good road from Darnesville to Edwards' Ferry 

(McClellan's message actually meant Darnestown, Maryland), Stone 

assumed that the message was in error and that McClellan had actually 

meant Dranesville, Virginia. 59 

Stone placed the blame for the defeat squarely with Colonel Baker. 

Stone said he had placed Baker in command of the troops at Harrison's 

Island with discretionalY orders as to whether to send more troops across 

the river or to withdraw those already there. Baker was not to fight if the 

Confederates were in superior force. Stone said, "The whole story after 

that is, that Colonel Baker chose to bring on a battle."60 

General McClellan, after hearing Stone's version of events, publicly 

exonerated Stone of any wrongdoing, issuing a circular to the Army saying that "the disaster was caused by errors committed by the immediate 

Commander-not Genl Stone." McClellan also wrote to his wife that "the 

man directly to blame for the affair was Col. Baker who was killed- he 

was in command, disregarded entirely the instmctions he had received 

from Stone, and violated all military mles and precautions."61 

But the Northern press and the radical Republicans on the joint committee needed a living scapegoat. During lengthy hearings on Ball's 

Bluff, accusations were made that General Stone had returned mnaway 

slaves to their masters, that he might be disloyal, and that he lacked military competence. In February 1862 he was arrested and held for six 

months in Fort Lafayette, New York, without formal charges ever being 

placed against him. After his release Stone was returned to duty but 

served in various commands as only a staff officer and military clerk. He 

resigned from the Army in September 1864. 

After the Battle of Ball's Bluff, the Union and Confederate Armies 

went into winter quarters, and it would not be until the spring of 1862 that 

either would resume military operations. The Confederate Army would 

withdraw from Northern Virginia south to take positions behind the 

Rappahannock River, followed by the Union Army sailing down the 

Potomac River to Fort Monroe, Virginia, to threaten Richmond from the 

59 Quote from Ibid., p. 490, and see also pp. 489, 491. 

60 Ibid., p. 268. 

61 Sears, The Civil War Papers o/GeOige B. McClellall, p. 111. 

38 
east. Concern for the upper Potomac fords would diminish until 

September 1862, when the Confederate Army would cross the Potomac 

near Leesburg to begin the Maryland campaign. 

39 
FURTHER READINGS 

Irwin, Lieutenant Colonel Richard B. "Ball's Bluff and the Arrest of 

General Stone." In Battles and Leaders of the Civil War, edited by 

Clarence C. Buel and Robert U. Johnson. Vol. 2, pp. 123- 34. New 

York: CentUlY Co., 1884, 1887, 1888. 

Patch, Major General Joseph D. The Battle of Ball's Bluff. Leesburg, Va.: 

Potomac Press, 1958. It includes Northern and Southern newspaper 

accounts of the battle. 

U.S. Congress. Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War. The Battle of 

Ball's Bluff. Millwood, N.Y.: Kraus Reprint Co., 1977. This contains 

the sworn testimonies of principal pmiicipants, pp. 253-510, from the 

Report of the Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War. 

U.S. War Department. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the 

Official Records of the Union and Confedel'Clte Armies. Washington, 

D. C.: GovenU11ent Printing Office, 1893. Vols. 5 and 51 in ser. 1 contain documents and repOlis concerning Ball's Bluff. 

40 
CHRONOLOGY 

(ALL times are approximate and are based on those given in the after 

action reports by unit commanders or in testimony before the Joint 

Congressional Committee on the Conduct of the War.) 

19 October 1861 

General Joseph E. Johnston withdraws the Confederate Army of the Potomac 

from the vicinity of Washington and establishes a defensive position near 

Centreville, Virginia. Johnston's 7th Brigade, commanded by Co!. Nathan G. 

Evans, remains near Leesburg to guard crossing sites on the Potomac River. 

Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan orders Brig. Gen. George A. McCall's 

division of the Union Army of the Potomac to march from its camp at 

Langley, Virginia, to Dranesville on a reconnaissance. General 

McClellan hopes that McCall 's movement will cause Colonel Evans' 

brigade to withdraw from the Leesburg area. 

1800: General McCall's division arrives at Dranesville. 

2400: Evans is alelied to McCall's advance. Instead of abandoning 

Leesburg, Evans moves his brigade to a defensive position south of the 

town along Goose Creek. 

20 October 1861 

McClellan is informed by a Union signal station on Sugar Loaf Mountain 

that the Confederates appear to have moved away from Leesburg. 

llO0: McClellan infOlms Brig. Gen. Charles P. Stone at Poolesville, 

M31yland, of McCall's movement to Dranesville and suggests a "slight 

demonsh-ation" by General Stone's division might cause the Confederates to 

abandon Leesburg, if they have not already done so. 

1200: Stone orders the 42d New York Infantly to march to Comad's 

Ferry and await orders. 

41 
1300: Stone moves a pOltion of Brig. Gen. Willis A. Gorman's brigade to 

Edwards' Feny, along with the 7th Michigan Infantry, two companies of 

the 3d New York Cavalry, and one company of the Putnam Rangers. To 

give the Confederates the impression the Union Army is crossing into 

Virginia, two companies of the 1st Minnesota Infantty are sent across the 

river, supported by attillery fire. 

During the demonstration at Edwards' Ferry, Stone orders a small scouting patty to cross the river at Ball's Bluff to scout toward Leesburg. 

By evening, Stone's demonstration at Edwards' Ferry ends, and the 

Minnesota troops withdraw to the Maryland shore. 

2200: The scouting party returns from Ball's Bluff and repOlts the discovelY of an unguarded Confederate camp of about thirty tents about a 

mile from the river. 

2300: Stone orders Col. Charles P. Devens, 15th Massachusetts Infantty, 

to take five of his companies and attack the Confederate camp at daylight. 

Two companies of the 20th Massachusetts Infantry will also cross the 

river to protect Devens' return. 

2400: Colonel Devens and five companies, along with Col. William R. 

Lee with two companies of the 20th Massachusetts Infantty, begin crossing the Potomac River from Hanison' s Island to Ball's Bluff. Lt. Col. 

George H. Ward, with five companies of the 15th Massachusetts Infantry, 

and Maj. Paul Revere, with five companies of the 20th Massachusetts 

Infantry, remain on the Malyland shore as support. 

Lt. Col. Isaac J. Wi star, commanding the 1 st California Infantry, is 

ordered to move his regiment to Conrad's Ferry as possible support for 

Devens' attack. 

21 October 1861 

0400: Devens and Lee complete crossing their troops to the Virginia 

shore. 

0600: While Lee and his two companies remain at the bluff, Devens and 

his five companies march toward the site of the supposed Confederate 

camp. Devens soon discovers the repOit of the camp was in enor. 

42 
Responding to orders from Stone, GOlman moves the 2d New York State 

Militia, 1st Mitmesota Infanny, and 3d New York Cavally to Edwards' Feny. 

0700: After a Sh01t reconnaissance toward Leesburg, Devens sends 1 st Lt. 

Church Howe to Stone to repOlt that there is no Confederate camp and to 

say that Devens will remain on the Virginia shore and await further orders. 

The 1st California Infantly arrives at Conrad's Feny. 

To dive1t attention from Devens' movement, Stone sends a detachment of 

the 3d New York Cavahy and two companies of the 1st Minnesota 

Infantry across the river at Edwards' Feny. 

0730: Confederate pickets from Company K, 17th Mississippi Infantry, 

fire on Lee's pickets of Company I, 20th Massachusetts Infantry. 

0800: Company K, 17th Mississippi Infantry, skirmishes with Company 

H, 15th Massachusetts Infantry, near the Jackson house. Lt. Col. Walter 

H. Jenijer, with four companies of Virginia cavalry, arrives, and Devens 

withdraws his men east of the Jackson house. 

At Edwards' Feny the detachment of the 3d New York Cavahy rides 

inland about a mile and briefly skirmishes with the 13th Mississippi 

Infantry before rerurning to the fen)'. 

0830: Devens withdraws his five companies to Ball's Bluff. 

McCall's division completes its reconnaissance at Dranesville and begins 

the rerum march to its camp at Langley. 

Lieutenant Howe informs Stone that Devens had found no Confederate 

camp and was remaining on the Virginia shore to await orders. 

Stone orders Colonel Ward, with the remaining five companies of the 

15th Massachusetts Infantly, to cross from Harrison's Island and march 

to Smmt's Mill. This is to SUppOlt Devens' command if it is forced to fall 

back in that direction. 

Stone also orders a detachment of about ten cavalrymen to repOlt to 

Devens for the purpose of scouting. 

0900: Devens and his five companies rerum to the vicinity of the Jackson 

house. 

43 
Jenifer and his cavalry are ordered to Fort Evans. 

Lee sends a note to Major Revere that Devens has been engaged in a skirmish and that "we are detennined to fight. " Revere begins crossing his 

five companies of the 20th Massachusetts Infantry and two mountain 

howitzers from the island to the bluff. 

At Conrad's Ferry, Wistar receives orders from Stone that, if heavy firing 

is heard from across the river, he is to cross with his regiment and suppOli Devens and Lee. Having heard the firing from Devens' earlier morning skirmish, Wistar moves his regiment closer to Harrison's Island. 

0915: Howe returns from Stone's headquarters and repOlis to Devens that 

he is to remain where he is, that Ward's five companies of the 15th 

Massachusetts Infantry are marching to Smati's Mill, and that a detachment of cavalry will soon join Devens. Devens says he would rather have 

Ward's companies join him near the Jackson house, then sends Howe 

back to Stone with news of the morning skirmish. 

0930: Jenifer returns to the scene of the morning skitmish, along with 

three companies of Virginia cavalry, and joins Company K, 17th 

Mississippi Infantry. They are joined by one company of the 13th 

Mississippi Infantry and two companies of the 18th Mississippi Infantry. 

0945: Unaware of the morning skirmish near the Jackson house, Stone 

informs McClellan that Devens has discovered no Confederates near 

Leesburg and that the detachment of the 3d New York Cavalry has skirmished with Confederates near Edwards' Ferry. 

On the way back to Stone's headquatiers at Edwards' Ferry, Howe 

encounters Ward and tells him of the morning skirmish and of Devens' 

desire that Ward join him instead of marching to Smati's Mill. Ward tells 

Howe to inform Stone that Ward will join Devens' command. 

Stone orders Gorman to continue crossing his troops at Edwards' Ferry. 

1000: Evans orders the 8th Virginia Infantry to Ball's Bluff. 

Col. Edward D. Baker, commanding the California brigade, arrives at 

Stone's headquatiers and is given command of all troops in the vicinity 

of Harrison's Island. 

1030: Colonel Baker leaves Stone's headquatiers for Harrison's Island. 

44 
Howe meets Baker on the canal towpath and informs him of the morning 

skirmish and of Ward's marching to Devens' assistance. 

Baker sends orders for the 1 st California Infantry to cross the river and 

support Devens and Lee. 

1045: Howe informs Stone of the morning skirmish and of the fact that 

Ward is marching to join Devens instead of going to Smart's Mill. 

1100: Ward's five companies of the 15th Massachusetts Infantty join 

Devens' five companies near the Jackson house. 

1110: Stone informs McClellan that "The enemy have been engaged 

opposite Harrison's Island; our men behaving admirably." According to 

McClellan, this is his first intimation that Stone's activities are more than 

a reconnaissance. McClellan orders McCall to remain at Dranesville if he 

is still there and, if not, to hold his division in readiness to march to 

Stone's support. McClellan also orders Maj. Gen. Nathaniel P. Banks, 

commanding a division at Darnestown, M31yland, to be prepared to 

march to Harrison's Island. 

The cavalry detachment crosses the river into Virginia and, without 

repOliing to Devens as ordered, returns to the Malyland shore. 

Jenifer's cavalry and infantry begin skirmishing with Devens' command. 

1130: The 1st California Infantry begins crossing onto Harrison's Island. 

Revere 's five companies of the 20th Massachusetts Infantty, along with 

two mountain howitzers, cross from Harrison's Island to Ball's Bluff. 

1150: Stone sends a message to Baker estimating Confederate strength at 

4,000. Baker is to push them as far as Leesburg if possible. When the 

Confederates fall back, Gorman's brigade at Edwards' Feny will strike 

their right flank. 

1200: Howe reports to Devens that Baker will cross the river and take 

command. Three times during the next two hours Devens sends Howe 

back to the bluff to locate Baker and to hurry up the reinforcements. 

Baker crosses onto Han-ison's Island and assists in the crossing of the 1st 

California Infantry. 

45 
Baker orders the 42d New York Infantry at Conrad's Ferry to march to 

Harrison's Island and cross over. Two guns of Battery B, 1st Rhode 

Island Light Artillery, then with the New York regiment, are ordered to 

accompany the infantry. 

The 8th Virginia Infantry arrives near the Jackson house and falls in on 

the right of Jenijer's Mississippi companies. 

McClellan sends a message to Stone asking the estimated strength of the 

Confederate force currently engaged opposite Harrison's Island and also 

what size force would be necessary to capture Leesburg. McClellan states 

that he may require Stone to occupy Leesburg today and will suppOli 

Stone from the other side of the river at Darnestown. Stone responds by 

saying he believes the enemy strength is about 4,000 but thinks his command can occupy Leesburg today. 

1300: McCall's division arrives back at its camp at Langley. 

Col. Milton Cogswell and the 42d New York Infantry begin to cross onto 

Harrison's Island. Cogswell delivers Stone's 1150 order to Baker, who 

responds that the advance will begin when Baker feels his command is 

strong enough. 

Two rifled guns of Battery B, 1st Rhode Island Light Aliillery, cross to 

Harrison's Island. 

1400: Baker crosses to Ball's Bluff to take command. 

After four companies of the 1 st California Infantry have crossed to the 

Virginia side of the river, Wistar crosses over. 

With no reinforcements arriving, and to prevent his command's being cut 

off, Devens withdraws the 15th Massachusetts Infantry toward the bluff. 

Jenijer's command and the 8th Virginia Infantry follow in pursuit. 

1420: Stone informs McClellan that there is heavy firing opposite 

Harrison's Island, but Baker is advancing. 

1430: Baker places the 15th Massachusetts Infantry on the Union right flank. 

Cogswell and one company of the 42d New York Infanhy cross the river 

to the Virginia shore, along with one rifled gun of the Rhode Island battely. 

46 
Baker orders two companies of the 1 st California Infantry to advance as 

skirmishers. However, the two companies are attacked by the 8th 

Virginia InJantlY and driven back. 

1500: The 18th Mississippi InJanfly arrives on the right of Jenifer's command and charges the two mountain howitzers. Col. Erasmus Burt, the 

regimental commander, is mortally wounded, and the regiment withdraws. 

The rifled gun is hauled up the bluff and placed in the open field, near the 

location of the present-day national cemetelY. 

1530: The 17th Mississippi InJantl'y arrives and takes position between 

the 8th Virginia InJantly and the 18th Mississippi Infantry. 

1600: Stone informs McClellan that all of Baker's and Gorman's forces 

are across the river, with Baker's command heavily engaged. 

McClellan orders Banks to send one brigade to Poolesville, Maryland, to 

support troops at Harrison's Island and the other two brigades to Seneca, 

MaIyland, to support Stone if necessaly. 

Wi star is seriously wounded and carried from the battlefield. 

1700: Companies A and H, 42d New York Infantry, arrive on the bluff 

and make a brief attack against the Confederate right. 

Baker is killed. 

Cogswell assumes command and orders all Union forces on the bluff to 

forn1 a colu11111 of attack, faced to the left. An attempt is to be made to 

break out toward Edwards' Ferry. 

1730: A charge by the 8th Virginia Infantry captures the two mountain 

howitzers. Out of ammunition, the Virginians halt in the open field. 

Union troops make an unsuccessful attempt to push the rifled gun over 

the bluff. 

An unidentified mounted officer appears in the field, on the right of 

Cogswell's column. Apparently thinking the officer is ordering them to 

charge, a portion of the 42d New York Infanhy break column and charge 

47 
into the open field. The Confederates drive them back through the 15th 

Massachusetts Infantry, and both units fall back toward the bluff. 

Unable to get his attacking column in motion, Cogswell orders a general 

retreat to the riverbank. 

The 17th and 18th Mississippi Infantries attack Cogswell's retreating 

troops and drive them down the bluff. 

1800: As the Union troops crowd on the riverbank below the bluff, 

Companies E and K, 42d New York Infanhy, arrive on the Virginia shore. 

Cogswell orders them halfway up the bluff to attempt to hold off the 

Confederate attack while Union h'oops on the riverbank try to cross the river 

to the island. However, the last remaining boat is swamped, and many of the 

Union troops still on the riverbank attempt to swim to the island. 

Devens swims to Harrison's Island. 

Cogswell is captured on the riverbank. 

Lee and several others attempt to escape upriver toward Smart's Mill but 

are captured by Virginia cavalry. 

1830: Stone is informed of Baker's death. He sends the news to McClellan, then 

rides upriver to a point opposite H31Tison's Island, where he gives orders to the 

19th Massachusetts Infantry to secme the island and care for the wounded. 

Stone returns to Edwards' Feny where he informs McClellan of the 

defeat and of his intention to withdraw the Union forces at Edwards' 

Ferry to the Maryland shore. 

2200: McClellan orders Stone to hold his forces on the Virginia shore at 

Edwards' Feny while reinforcements are sent. McClellan sends Brig. 

Gen. Frederick W. Lander, in Washington, D.C., to Edwards' Feny to 

rejoin his command. 

2245: McClellan orders Banks' two brigades at Seneca to march to Edwards' 

Feny and cross as many men as possible to the Virginia shore before daylight. 

2330: Stone suggests that McClellan send up reinforcements to Goose 

Creek. It is only then that Stone learns that McCall has not been at 

Dranesville all day. 

48 
22 October 1861 

0330: Banks and his two brigades arrive at Edwards' Ferry and begin 

to cross the river to reinforce Stone's command. Later, Banks reports 

to McClellan that Stone himself is still on the Maryland shore. 

Sometime later that morning, under a flag of truce, a Union burial pmty 

crosses from Harrison's Island to Ball's Bluff to bury the Union dead. 

General Lander alTives from Washington and crosses to the Virginia 

shore at Edwards' Ferry. 

1200: Banks' two brigades at Edwards' Ferry complete their crossing to 

the Virginia shore. 

1600: Confederates skirmish briefly with Union troops near Edwards' 

Ferry. General Lander is seriously wounded. 

McClellan arrives at Poolesville. After dark McClellan orders all Union 

troops on Harrison's Island withdrawn to the Maryland shore. 

23 October 1861 

In response to an order from General McClellan, Stone crosses to the 

Virginia shore at Edwards' Ferry. 

McClellan makes a personal reconnaissance of the Edwards' Ferry area 

and decides the Union position on the Virginia shore is not a favorable 

one. However, he waits until dark to order a withdrawal. 

1915: McClellan orders Stone's and Banks' forces to begin withdrawing 

to the Maryland shore. 

24 October 1861 

0400: The withdrawal of all Union forces from the Virginia side of 

Edwards' Ferry is completed. 

49 
ORDER OF BATTLE, OCTOBER 1861 

Stone's Division, Army of the Potomac, USA 

(Brig. Gen. Charles P. Stone) 

1 st Brigade (Brig. Gen. Willis A. GOlman) 

2d New Yark State Militia (later redesignated 82d New York Infanny) 

1 st Minnesota Infantry 

15th Massachusetts Infantry 

34th New York Infantry 

42d New York Infanny (also known as the Tammany Regiment) 

2d Brigade (Brig. Gen. Frederick W. Lander) 

19th Massachusetts Infanny 

20th Massachusetts Infantty (also known as the Harvard Regiment) 

7th Michigan Infantry 

1 st Company, Massachusetts Sharpshooters (also known as the 

Andrew Sharpshooters) 

3d Brigade (Col. Edward D. Baker) 

1 st Califomia Infantry (later redesignated 71 st Pennsylvania Infantry) 

2d Califomia Infanny (later redesignated 69th Pemlsylvania Infanny) 

3d California Infantry (later redesignated 72d PelIDsylvania Infanny) 

4th Califomia Infanny (later redesignated 1 06th Pennsylvania Infanny) 

Cavalry 

3d New York Cavahy (six companies) 

Putnam Rangers (District of Columbia volunteers, later redesignated Company L, 1st Malyland Cavahy) 

ArtillelY 

Battery I, 1st United States Artillery 

Battety B, 1 st Rhode Island Light Artillery 

Battety K, 9th New York State Militia (later redesignated 6th 

Independent Battery, New York Light Atiillety) 

50 
7th Brigade, First Corps, Army of the Potomac, CSA 

(Col. Nathan G . .!Jvalls) 

13th Mississippi Infantly 

17th Mississippi Infantry 

18th Mississippi Infantry 

8th Virginia Infantry 

Cavalry (Lt. Col. Walter H. Jenifel·) 

Companies B, C, and E, 4th Virginia Cavalry 

Company K, 6th Virginia Cavaby 

ArtillelY 

1 sf Company, Richmond HOYvitzers 

51 
CASUALTIES 

Estimates of numbers engaged in Civil War battles vary, and statistics on killed, wounded, captured, and missing are incomplete. 

Participants attempted to fill gaps as they wrote their official repolts, and 

historians have tried to refine the data. The repolts of casualties at Ball's 

Bluff shown in the Official Records are celtainly inaccurate. They do not 

show numbers of dead whose bodies were not immediately located, nor 

do they show the number of wounded who later died, or the missing who 

retumed to duty or who were later determined to be captured. Although 

Confederate casualty figures appear to be fairly accurate, the Union figures are not. The day after the battle a Union burial party reported interring forty-seven bodies, leaving about twenty-five unburied. In the days 

following the battle another twenty bodies were reported washed up on 

the banks of the Potomac between Ball's Bluff and Washington. 

Counting those soldiers listed as missing and never accounted for, the 

number of Union dead might be as high as two hundred. 

UNION CASUALTI ES AT BALL'S BLUFF 

Unit Killed Wounded Missing Aggregate 

Dfcrs Men Dfcrs Men DfcrsMen 

15th Massachusetts Infantty 2 12 4 57 8 219 302 

20th Massachusetts Infantty 2 13 6 38 6 129 194 

42d New Yark Infantty ... . .... 3 4 0 6 6 114 133 

1st California Infantty" ........ 3 10 3 37 6 222 28 1 

9th New York State Militiab .... 0 0 0 0 0 1 

BattelY B, 1 st Rhode Island 

Artillety . .... . ........... 0 0 0 5 0 4 9 

Battety I, 1st U.S. AttillelY ..... 0 0 0 0 0 

Total ..... . ..... . .... .. . 10 39 15 143 26 688 

Grand Total .... . ......... 49 158 714 92 1 

"later redesignated 7 1st Pennsylvania Infantry 

bLater redesignated 6th Independent Battery, New York Light Attillery 

SOllrce: U.S. War Department, The War of the Rebelliol/: A Compilatiol/ of the 

Official Records of the UI/ioll al/d COl/federate Armies (Washington, D.C.: Government 

Printing Office, 1893) (hereafter cited as OR), ser. 1, vol. 5, p. 308. 

52 
CONFEDERATE CASUALTIES AT BALL'S BLUFF 

Unit 

13111 Mississippi IIIJanll)1 

17th Mississippi InJanll)) 

1 8tll Mississippi InJanilY 

8tll Virgillia lnjanfly .. 

Killed 

Dfers Men 

· . 1 3 

· . 2 0 

· . 0 22 

. .. 0 8 

Tota l ...... . . .. .. . . ... 3 33 

Grand Total . .. .. .. . . . . 36 

Source : OR, ser. I, vol. 5, p. 353 . 

Wounded 

Dfers Men 

0 2 

I 8 

7 56 

4 39 

12 lOS 

117 

53 

Missing Aggregate 

Djers Men 

0 I 7 

0 0 II 

0 0 85 

I 0 52 

2 ISS 
ORGANIZATION 

The infantry regiment was the basic administrative and tactical unit 

of Civil War annies. Regimental headquarters consisted of a colonel, 

lieutenant colonel, major, adjutant, quartermaster, surgeon (with rank of 

major), two assistant surgeons, a chaplain, sergeant major, qUa11ennaster 

sergeant, commissary sergeant, hospital steward, and two principal musicians. Each company was staffed by a captain, a first lieutenant, a second 

lieutenant, a first sergeant, four sergeants, eight corporals, two musicians, 

and one wagoner. 

The authorized strength of a Civil War infantty regiment was about 

1,000 officers and men, arranged in ten companies plus a headquarters 

and (for the first half of the war at least) a band. Discharges for physical 

disability, disease, special assignments (bakers, hospital nurses, or wagoners), courts-martial, and battle injuries all combined to reduce effective 

combat strength. Before too long a typical regiment might be reduced to 

less than 500 troops. 

Brigades were made up of two or more regiments, with four regiments being most common. Union brigades averaged 1,000 to 1,500 

infanttymen, while a Confederate brigade averaged 1,500 to 1,800. Union 

brigades were designated by a number within their division, and each 

Confederate brigade was designated by the name of a current or former 

conunander. 

Divisions were formed of two or more brigades. Union divisions contained 2,500 to 4,000 infantrymen, while the Confederate infantry division was somewhat larger, containing 5,000 to 6,000 men. 

A corps was formed of two or more divisions. Two or more corps 

constituted an army, the largest operational organization. 

In the Eastern Theater in the fall of 1861 the principal adversaries 

were the Union Army of the Potomac and the Confederate Army of 

the Potomac (renamed the Army of Northern Virginia in June 1862). 

The Union Army was organized into eleven infantry divisions. In 

March 1862 these divisions would be reorganized into five corps of 

three to four divisions each. Union artillery was organized into batteries of four to six guns each, and two or more batteries assigned to 

each division. An artillery reserve contained eight batteries. Union 

cavalry was generally organized into regiments and assigned to a 

division. A separate cavalry command included three regiments and 

two additional companies. The total strength of the Union Army of 

54 
the Potomac in October 1861 was approximately 152,000 men, 

including a division stationed in Baltimore. 

In October 1861 the Confederate Army of the Potomac consisted of 

two infantry corps, organized into a total of fifteen brigades. Each brigade 

contained from two to five regiments. Atiillery was organized into a 

corps of approximately six batteries, while the cavalry was organized into 

a single brigade, with independent companies operating with some 

infantry brigades. The total strength of the Confederate Army of the 

Potomac in October 1861 was approximately 40,000 men. 

55 
TACTICS 

The tactical legacy of the eighteenth century had emphasized closeorder formations of soldiers trained to maneuver in concert and fire by 

volleys. These "linear" tactics stressed the tactical offensive. Assault 

troops advanced in line, two ranks deep, with cadenced steps, stopping to 

fire volleys on command and finally rushing the last few yards to pierce 

the enemy line with a bayonet charge. 

These tactics were adequate for troops armed with single-shot, muzzle-loading smoothbore muskets with an effective range of about eighty 

yards. The close-order formation was therefore necessary to concentrate 

the firepower of these inaccurate weapons. Bayonet charges might then 

succeed because infantry could rush the last eighty yards before the 

defending infantrymen could reload their muskets after firing a volley. 

The U.S. Army's transition from smoothbore muskets to rifled muskets in the mid-nineteenth century would have two main effects in the 

American Civil War: it would strengthen the tactical defensive and 

increase the number of casualties in the attacking force. With a weapon 

that could cause fatalities out to 1,000 yards, defenders firing rifles could 

decimate infantry formations attacking according to linear tactics. 

Later in the Civil War the widespread use of the rifled musket caused 

infantry assault formations to loosen up somewhat, with individual soldiers seeking available cover and concealment. However, because officers needed to maintain visual and verbal control of their commands during the noise, smoke, and chaos of combat, close-order tactics to some 

degree would continue to the end of the war. 

A typical combat formation of a regiment might be six companies in 

the main line, with two in reserve, and two out in front in extended skirmish order. During battle additional companies might be fed into the skirmish line, or the skirmishers might regroup on the main line. 

Rapid movement of units on roads or cross country was generally 

by formation of a column four men abreast. The speed of such columns 

was prescribed as two miles per hour. Upon reaching the field each regiment was typically formed into a line two ranks deep, the shoulders of 

each man in each rank touching the shoulders of the man on either side. 

The distance between ranks was prescribed as thirteen inches. A regiment of 500 men (250 men in each rank) might have a front of about 

200 yards. Both front and rear ranks were capable of firing, either by 

volley or individual fire. 

56 
SMALL ARMS 

In 1855 the U.S. Anny adopted a .58-caliber rifled musket to replace 

a .69-caliber smoothbore musket. The new infantry weapon was muzzle 

loaded, its rifled barrel taking a hollow-based cylindroconical bullet 

slightly smaller than the bore. The loading procedure required the soldier 

to withdraw a paper cartridge (containing powder and bullet) from his 

cartridge box, tear open one end with his teeth, pour the powder into the 

muzzle, place the bullet in the muzzle, and ram it to the breech using a 

metal ramrod. A copper percussion cap was then placed on a hollow cone 

at the breech. To fire the weapon, the hammer was cocked, and when the 

trigger was pulled the hammer struck the cap and ignited the powder 

charge. Each soldier was expected to be capable of loading and firing 

three aimed shots per minute. Although the maximum range of a rifled 

musket might be over 1,000 yards, actual fields of fire were often very 

ShOli, the emphasis of musketry fire relying on volume at close range 

rather than accuracy at long. 

The basic ammunition load for each infantry soldier was 40 rounds in 

the catiridge box. When more action was expected, 20 additional rounds 

were issued to each soldier, who placed them in his uniform pockets or 

knapsack. In addition, 100 rounds per man were held in the brigade or 

division trains and 100 rounds in the corps trains. 

At the beginning ofthe war a shOliage of rifled muskets on both sides 

forced the Northern and Southern governments to issue the older smoothbore weapons or purchase weapons from European nations. At the Battle 

of Ball's Bluff the regiments on both sides were anned mostly with 

smoothbore weapons, with a few companies armed with rifles. As the war 

progressed more soldiers were armed with rifles, although even late in the 

war some troops on both sides still carried smoothbores. 

Both single- and multiple-shot handguns were generally carried by 

officers. Although the types of handguns used by both sides were innumerable, two of the most common were six-shot revolvers produced by 

Colt and Remington, both in .36- and .44-caliber. 

The Union cavalry was initially armed with sabers and handguns, but 

soon added breech-loading carbines. In addition to Sharps and Spencer 

carbines, dozens of other types of breech-loaders, from .52- to .56-caliber, were issued. Confederate cavalrymen might be armed with a wide 

variety of handguns, shotguns, muzzle-loading carbines, or captured 

Federal weapons. 

57 
TYPICAL CIVIL WAR SMALL ARMS 

Weapon 

U.S. rifled musket, muzzleEffective Range 

(in yards) 

loaded, .58-caliber . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 400- 600 

English Enfield rifled musket, 

muzzle-loaded, .577-caliber 

Smoothbore musket, 

muzzle-loaded, .69-caliber 

400- 600 

100- 200 

Theoretical 

Rate a/Fire 

(in rounds/minute) 

3 

3 

3 

Source: MS, Ernest F. Fisher, Jr. , Weapons and Equipment Evolution and lis Influence Upon 

the Organization and Tactics in the American Army, 1775- 1963, Office of the Chief of Military 

History, 1963, fil e 2- 3.7, AB.Z, U.S. Army Center of Military History (CMH), Washington, D.C. 

58 
ARTILLERY 

Civil War field artillelY was generally organized into batteries of four 

to six guns. Regulations prescribed a captain as battery commander, while 

lieutenants commanded two-gun "sections." Each gun made up a platoon, 

under a sergeant ("chief of the piece") with eight crewmen and six drivers. 

For transport, each gun was attached to a two-wheeled cart, known as 

a limber, and drawn by a six-horse team. The limber chest carried thirty 

to fifty rounds of ammunition, depending on the type of guns in the battelY. In addition to the limbers, each gun had at least one caisson, also 

drawn by a six-horse team. The caisson carried additional ammunition in 

its two chests, as well as a spare wheel and tools. A horse-drawn forge 

and a battery wagon with tools accompanied each battery. A battery at 

regulation strength, including all officers, noncommissioned officers, 

buglers, horse holders, and other specialized functions, might exceed 100 

officers and men. With spare horses included, a typical six-gun battery 

might have about 100 to 150 horses. 

A battelY could unlimber and fire an initial volley in about one 

minute, and each gun could continue firing two aimed shots a minute. A 

battelY could "limber up" in about three minutes. Firing was by "direct 

fire," that is, fire in which the target is in view of the gun. The prescribed 

distance between guns was 14 yards from hub to hub. Therefore, a sixgun battery would represent a normal front of about 100 yards. Depth of 

the battery position, from the gun muzzle, passing the limber, to the rear 

of the caisson, was prescribed as 47 yards. In practice these measurements might be altered by terrain. 

During firing, cannoneers took their positions as in the diagram 

below. At the conunand "conunence firing," the gunner ordered "load." 

While the gunner sighted the piece, Number 1 sponged the bore, Number 

o 8 

® 

® o 

59 
5 received a round from Number 7 at the limber and carried the round to 

Number 2, who placed it in the bore. Number 1 rammed the round to the 

breech while Number 3 placed a thumb over the vent to prevent premature detonation of the charge. When the gun was loaded and sighted, 

Number 3 inserted a vent pick in the vent and punctured the caltridge bag. 

Number 4 attached a lanyard to a friction primer and inselted the primer 

in the vent. At the command "fire," Number 4 yanked the lanyard. 

Number 6 cut fuzes for exploding shells (if needed). The process was 

repeated until the command was given to cease firing. 

TYPICAL CiVIL WAR F IELD ARTILLERY 

Weapon 

6-pdr 

smoothbore fie ld gun 

Tube 

Composition 

3.67 in. dia. bore . . . . . . . . . . . . .. bronze 

12-pdr 

smoothbore fi e ld howitzer 

4.62 in. dia. bore . . . . . . . . . . . . .. bronze 

12-pdr 

smoothbore mountain howitzer 

4.62 in. di a. bore . . . . . . . . . . . . .. bronze 

10-pdr 

Parrott rifle 

2.9 in. dia. bore 

3-inch 

ordnance rifl e 

3.0 in. dia. bore 

12-pdr 

James rifle 

iron 

iron 

3.67 in. dia. bore . . . . . . . . . . . . . . bronze 

Tube 

Length 

(in inches) 

60 

59 

33 

78 

73 

69 

Effective Range 

at 5° Elevation 

(in yards) 

1,523 

1,680 

1,005 

1,950 

1,835 

1,700 

Nole: Cannon were generall y identifi ed by the weight of the ir solid iron round shot a lthough 

some, like the 3-inch ordnance rifle, used the di ameter of the bore for identification. 

So urces: Hen ry L. Abbolt, Siege ArlillelY ill Ihe Call1paiglls Agaillsi Richlll olld Wilh No les 

all Ihe 15-illell GUll , Professiona l Pape rs 14 (Washington , D.C.: Government Printing Office, 

1867); Alfred Mordecai, ArlillelY /o r Ih e Ulliled Siaies Lalld Service as Devised alld Arrallged 

by Ih e Ordllall ce Board. Ill eludillg Drawillgs alld Tables o/Dilllellsiolls o/Ihe Ordllallce(orlh e 

Lall d Service o/ Ih e Ulliled Siales, 1841. (Washington, D.C.: J. & G . S. Gideon, 1849); 

IlIslm clioll for Field Arlillely. Prepared by a Board of Arlillery Officers. (Phil adelphi a, Pa .: J. 

B. Lippincott, 1863). 

60 
Artillery Projectiles 

Four basic types of projectiles were employed by Civil War field 

artillery: solid shot, shells, case shot, and canister. 

Shot Bolt 

Solid Projectiles 

Round (spherical) projectiles of solid iron for smoothbores were 

commonly called cannonballs or shot. When elongated for rifled 

weapons, the projectile was known as a bolt. Solid projectiles were used 

against opposing batteries, wagons, buildings, etc., as well as enemy personnel. While shot could ricochet across open ground against advancing 

infantry or cavalry, bolts tended to bUly themselves upon impact with the 

ground and therefore were not used a great deal by field artillely. 

Spherical shell Rifled shell 

Shell 

The shell, whether spherical or conical, was a hollow iron projectile 

filled with a black powder bursting charge. It was designed to break into 

several ragged fragments. Spherical shells were exploded by fuzes set 

into an opening in the shell, which ignited the shell near the intended target. The time of detonation was detennined by adjusting the length of the 

fuze. Rifled shells were detonated by similar timed fuzes or by a percussion fuze detonating the shell upon impact. 

61 
Spherical case shot Rifled case shot 

Case Shot 

Case shot, or "shrapnel," was developed in the late eighteenth centUlY 

by an English artillety officer named Reruy Shrapnel. The projectile had a 

thinner wall than a shell and was filled with a number of small lead or iron 

balls (27 for a 12-pounder). A timed fuze ignited a small bursting charge 

inside the shell, which fragmented the casing and scattered the contents in 

the air. Case shot was intended to burst from 50 to 75 yards short of the target, the fhgments being carried forward by the velocity of the shot. 

Canister 

Canister 

Canister consisted of a tin cylinder in which was packed a number of 

iron or lead balls. Upon discharge the cylinder split open and the smaller 

projectiles fanned out. Canister was an extremely effective antipersonnel 

weapon, with an effective range of 400 yards. In emergencies double 

loads of canister could be used at ranges less than 200 yards, using a single propelling charge. 

62 
LOGISTICS 

Bureau System 

Bureau chiefs and heads of staff depatiments were responsible for 

various aspects of the Army's administration and logistics and reported 

directly to the Secretary of War. The division of responsibility and 

authority over them ofthe Secretary of War, the assistant secretaries, and 

the General in Chief was never spelled out. Therefore the supply departments functioned independently and without effective coordination 

throughout most of the Civil War, although the situation improved after 

Ulysses S. Grant took command in the spring of 1864. 

Logistical suppOli was entrusted to the heads of four supply departments in Washington. The Quartermaster General was responsible for 

clothing and equipment, forage, animals, transportation, and housing; the 

CommissalY General for rations; the Chief of Ordnance for weapons, 

ammunition, and miscellaneous related equipment; and the Surgeon 

General for medical supplies, evacuation, treatment, and hospitalization 

of the wounded. 

For other suppOli there were the Adjutant General, the Inspector 

General, the Paymaster General, the Judge Advocate General, the Chief 

of Engineers, and the Chief of Topographical Engineers. 

The militaty depatiment was the basic organizational unit for administrative and logistical purposes, and the commander of each department controlled the support in that area with no intervening level between his departmental headquatiers and the bureau chiefs in Washington. There were six 

depaliments when the war started (East, West, Texas, New Mexico, Utah, 

and Pacific). Later on, boundaries changed and several geographical 

depatiments were grouped together as a militaty "division" headquarters. 

Anny depots were located in major cities: Boston, Massachusetts; New 

York; Baltimore, Maryland; Washington, D.C.; Cincinnati, Ohio; 

Louisville, Kentucky; St. Louis, Missouri; Chicago, Illinois; New Orleans, 

Louisiana; and San Francisco, California. Philadelphia, Pelllsylvania, was 

the chief depot and manufacturing center for clothing. Advance and temporary supply bases were established as needed to SUppOli active operations. Until 1864 most depot commanders were authorized the rank of captain who, despite the low rank and meager pay, had tremendous resources 

of men, money, and materiel under their control. There were a few exceptions, notably Col. Daniel H. Rucker at the Washington Quatiennaster 

63 
Depot and Col. George D. Ramsay at the Washington Arsenal. The primary 

function of the depots was to procure supplies and prepare them for use in 

the field by repacking, assembling, or other similar tasks. 

Procurement was decentralized. Purchases were made on the market 

by low-bid contract in the major cities and producing areas by depot officers. Flour and some other commodities were procured closer to the 

troops when possible. Cattle were contracted for at specific points, and 

major beef depots were maintained at Washington (on the grounds of the 

unfinished Washington Monument); Alexandria, Virginia; and 

Louisville. The Subsistence Department developed a highly effective system of moving cattle on the hoof to the immediate rear of the armies in 

the field to be slaughtered by brigade butchers and issued to the troops the 

day before consumption. The Confederate Army used a similar system 

with depots at Richmond, Virginia; Staunton, Virginia; Raleigh, NOl1h 

Carolina; Atlanta, Georgia; Columbus, Georgia; Huntsville, Alabama; 

Montgomery, Alabama; Jackson, Mississippi; Little Rock, Arkansas; 

Alexandria, Louisiana; and San Antonio, Texas. 

Supply Operations 

Most of the unit's logistical needs were handled at the regimental level. 

The regimental quartermaster was normally a line lieutenant designated by 

the regimental commander. His duties included submitting requisitions for 

all quartelmaster supplies and transport; accounting for regimental property including tents, camp equipment, extra clothing, wagons, forage, and 

animals; and issuing supplies and managing the regimental trains. The regimental commissmy officer, also designated from the line, requisitioned, 

accounted for, and issued rations. The regimental ordnance officer had similar duties regarding an11S and ammunition and managed the movement of 

the unit ammunition train. 

In theolY, logistical staff positions above the regimental level were 

filled by a fully qualified officer of the supply department concerned. 

However, experienced officers were in perpetual ShOl1 supply, and many 

authorized positions were filled by officers and noncommissioned officers from line units or were left vacant, the duties thus being performed 

by someone in addition to his own. This problem existed in both armies, 

where inexperience and ignorance of logistical principles and procedures 

generally reduced levels of suppOl1. 

The Soldier's Load 

The Union soldier carried about 45 pounds: musket and bayonet (14 

pounds), 60 rounds of ammunition, 3 to 8 days' rations, canteen, blanket 

or overcoat, shelter half, ground sheet, mess gear (cup, knife, fork, spoon, 

64 
and skillet), and personal items (sewing kit, razor, letters, Bible, etc.). 

Confederates usually had less. 

Annual Clothing Issue 

The Union infantly allowance consisted of 2 caps, 1 hat, 2 dress 

coats, 3 pairs of trousers, 3 flannel shilis, 3 flannel drawers, 4 pairs of 

stockings, and 4 pairs of shoes. Atiillelymen and cavalrymen were issued 

boots instead of shoes. The allowance equaled $42. 

Officially, the Confederate soldier was almost equally well clothed, 

but the Southern quatiermaster was seldom able to supply the required 

items. Soldiers wore whatever came to hand, the home-dyed butternut 

jackets and trousers being characteristic items. Shortages of shoes were a 

constant problem. 

Rations 

The daily individual ration for a Union soldier consisted of20 ounces 

of fresh or salt beef or 12 ounces of pork or bacon; and 1 pound of hard 

bread or 18 ounces of flour or 20 of cornmeal. Also, 1 gill of whiskey per 

day was issued in cases of excessive fatigue or severe exposure. 

In addition to the daily individual ration, the following were issued to 

every 100 men: 15 pounds of beans or peas; 10 pounds of rice or hominy; 

10 pounds of green coffee or l.5 pounds of tea; 15 pounds of sugar; 4 

quarts of vinegar; 3.75 pounds of salt; 4 ounces of pepper; 30 pounds of 

potatoes; and, when practicable, 1 quart of molasses. 

Desiccated potatoes or mixed vegetables, a dehydrated concoction 

referred to by soldiers as "desecrated vegetables," could be substituted for 

beans, peas, rice, hominy, or fresh potatoes. 

Basically, the Confederates got the same ration composition as Union 

soldiers but often in less quantity. Much of the meat and coffee that was 

issued was captured or obtained from sources other than the commissary 

depaliment. 

Wagons 

An Army wagon, drawn by four horses over good roads, could carry 

2,800 pow1ds. A good six-mule team, in the best season of the year, could 

haul 4,000 pounds. In practice, wagons seldom hauled such loads because 

of poor roads. 

The number of wagons authorized for the Union Army in August 

1862 was as follows: 

corps headquarters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 

brigade or division headquatiers .. ............ 3 

infantly regiment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 6 

battety of light artillelY or squadron of cavahy 3 

65 
Forage 

The forage ration for horses was 14 pounds of hay and 12 pounds of 

oats, corn, or barley. For mules, the daily ration was 14 pounds of hay and 

9 pounds of oats, corn, or barley. 

Tents 

In the field the Union Anny utilized a variety of canvas tents. The 

wall tent measured approximately 7 feet high, 10 feet wide, and 12 feet 

deep, and was issued to officers above company level. A typical hospital 

tent might be 14 feet long, 14 feet wide, and 11 feet high. Shelter tents 

were issued to company level officers and enlisted men. They consisted 

of two sections that buttoned together to form what is now often referred 

to as a "pup" tent. Each enlisted man received a shelter tent half and buttoned it together with that of a sleeping mate. 

The number and kind of tents prescribed for the Union infantry in the 

field were as follows: 

COlps headquatters (admin) ................ . 

division and brigade headquatters (admin) .... . 

COlpS, division, or brigade cOimnander ....... . 

every two officers of the staff ............. . 

regimental colonel and field and staff officers .. 

other officers of the regimental staff ......... . 

company officer ........................ . 

evety enlisted man ...................... . 

every officer's servant ....... .. ........... . 

Baggage 

1 hospital 

1 wall 

1 wall 

1 wall 

1 wall each 

1 wall per 2 officers 

1 shelter 

1 shelter half 

1 shelter half 

Enlisted men of both armies were required to cany their own baggage. A Union order of September 1862 limited officers to blankets, one 

small valise or carpet bag, and a mess kit. Enlisted men carried their 

rations and personal belongings in a waterproofed canvas knapsack or 

haversack attached to a strap slung over one shoulder. 

Sources: Capt. Walwot1h Jenkins, Book of Referellcefor Quartermasters (Louisville, 

Ky .: John P. Morton, 1865); U.S . War Department, The War of the Rebellioll: A 

Compilatioll of the Official Records of the Ullioll alld COllfederate Armies (Washington, 

D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1893); Revised Ullited States Army Regulatiolls of 

/86/ (Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1863); El1la Risch, Quartermaster 

Support of the Army: A Histol)' of the COIPS, 1775- 1939 (Washington, D.C.: Government 

Printing Office, 1962). 

66 
SELECTED BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES 

Union Officers 

Charles P. Stone 

1824-1887, 11assachusetts 

US11A 1845 

After graduating from the U.S. 

11ilitary Academy at West Point, 

Stone served as an ordnance officer with 11aj. Gen. Winfield 

Scott's army in 11exico. There, he 

was brevetted first lieutenant and 

captain. After the war he spent five 

years as chief of ordnance of the 

Pacific Department. In 1856 Stone 

resigned from the Army and was 

employed by the 11exican government as a surveyor. With the outbreak of war in 1861, Stone 

returned to Washington and as 

inspector general of the District of 

Columbia militia secured the capiCharles P. Stone (Massachusetts 

CommandelY Military Order of the 

Loyal Legion and u.s. Army Military 

History Institute) 

tal for the arrival of President-elect Abraham Lincoln. Stone was 

appointed a colonel of the 14th U.S. Regulars in 11ay and a brigadier 

general of volunteers in August. He commanded a brigade in the 

Shenandoah Valley during the First Bull Run campaign and afterward 

commanded a division, the Corps of Observation, guarding the fords on 

the upper Potomac. In October 1861 he sent a pOltion of his command to 

attack a suspected Confederate camp near Leesburg, Virginia, and it was 

soundly defeated at the ensuing Battle of Ball's Bluff. Stone bore the 

blUnt of public and congressional criticism. In FeblUary 1862 he was 

arrested in the middle of the night, without charges being preferred, and 

confined for 189 days. Stone was released without explanation. It was 

not until 1863 that he was given another assignment, in the Depaltment 

of the Gulf. But in April 1864 the Secretary of War ordered Stone mustered out of his commission, and Stone was without a command. He 

finally resigned from the Army in September of the same year. After the 

war he served thirteen years as chief of staff in the Egyptian Army, and 

67 
later he retumed to the United States, where he served as an engineer on 

the foundation for the Statue of Liberty. 

Edward D. Baker 

1811- 1861 , England 

At the age of four Baker and 

his family left England to come to 

America, alTiving at Philadelphia. 

He later moved to Illinois, where 

he was admitted to the bar in 1830. 

Five years later he became 

acquainted with Abraham Lincoln 

and soon became involved in local 

politics, being elected to the U.S. 

Congress in 1837, and the U.S. 

Senate in 1840. In 1844, while living in Springfield, he defeated 

Lincoln for the nomination for the 

U.S. congressional seat and was 

elected. The two remained close 

friends, however, with Lincoln 

naming one of his sons Edward 

Edward D. Baker (Massachusetts 

Commandery Military Order of the 

Loyal Legion and u.s. Army Military 

HistOlY Institute) 

Baker Lincoln. During the Mexican War, Baker briefly dropped out of 

politics and served as a colonel of the 4th Illinois Volunteers. He retumed 

to Springfield in 1848, but, rather than run against Lincoln again for nomination to the U.S. Congress, Baker moved to Galena, where he was nominated and elected to Congress. In 1852, after failing to receive a cabinet 

appointment under President Franklin Pierce, Baker moved to Califomia, 

where he was admitted to the state bar. In 1860 he moved again, this time 

to Oregon, where he was elected to the U.S. Senate. In May 1861 he was 

authorized by the Secretary of War to organize an infantty regiment to be 

taken as part of the quota from Califomia. Recruiting mostly in 

Philadelphia, Baker raised the 1 st Califomia Infantry and served as its 

colonel. A few months later he was assigned command of a brigade in 

General Stone's division, guarding fords along the Potomac River north 

of Washington. On 21 October 1861 , Baker was killed at the Battle of 

Ball's Bluff. 

Charles P. Devens 

1820- 1891 , Massachusetts 

Devens graduated from Harvard University in 1838 and Harvard Law 

School in 1840 and was admitted to the Massachusetts bar. He later 

68 
served as a state senator, U.S. marshal, and state militia officer. With 

the outbreak of war Devens was 

mustered into Federal service as a 

major of the 3d Battalion of 

Massachusetts Rifles, a ninety-day 

regiment. Just before the Battle of 

First Bull Run the unit's enlistment 

expired, and the men mustered out. 

Devens was then commissioned a 

colonel of the 15th Massachusetts 

Infantry. In October 1861 his unit 

participated in the Battle of Ball's 

Bluff, where he was forced to swim 

the Potomac River to escape capture. He was promoted to brigadier 

general in April 1862 and assigned 

command of a brigade of the IV 

Corps, Army of the Potomac, from 

Charles P. Devens (Massachusetts 

Commandery Military Order of the 

Loyal Legion and u.s. Army Militmy 

History Institute) 

the Peninsula campaign to the Battle of Fredericksburg. In May 1863 at 

Chancellorsville Devens commanded a division of the XI Corps, where 

he was wounded and his division vittually destroyed by Lt. Gen. Thomas 

J. Jackson's flank attack. Retuming to duty, Devens commanded a division in the Army of the James during 1864 and 1865 and after the 

Confederate surrender at Appomattox commanded the District of 

Charleston, South Carolina. In 1867 he was appointed a judge of the 

superior court and in 1873 a justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Court. 

Four years later Devens was appointed U.S. Attomey General under 

President Rutherford B. Hayes, after he had tumed down the position of 

Secretary of War. 

William R. Lee 

1804- 1891 , Massachusetts 

Lee was a classmate of Robert E. Lee in the West Point class of 1829 

but dropped out prior to the completion of his studies. He served for a 

time as a civil engineer and railroad superintendent and in July 1861 was 

appointed a colonel of the 20th Massachusetts Infantry. He was captured 

at the Battle of Ball's Bluff in October and with others was held as a 

hostage for the good treatment of the captured crew of the Confederate 

privateer Savannah. He was exchanged in April 1862 and rejoined his 

regiment. At the Battle of Nelson's Farm in June 1862, he was severely 

injured when his horse fell on him. Nevertheless, he participated in the 

69 
William R. Lee (Massachusetts 

CommandefY Military Order of the 

Loyal Legion and u.s. Army Militmy 

Histmy Institute) 

Isaac J Wistar 

1827- 1905, Pennsylvania 

After graduating from 

Haverford College, Wi star studied 

law and opened a practice in 

Philadelphia. In 1853 he became a 

law partner of Edward D. Baker. In 

1861 Wistar assisted Baker in raising the 1 st California Infantry and 

was appointed a lieutenant colonel. . 

After Baker, who had been the regiment's colonel, was assigned command of the brigade, Wi star commanded the 1 st California Infantry 

at the Battle of Ball's Bluff in 

Peninsula campaign and the Battle 

of Antietam. At Antietam, even 

though he was the senior colonel 

present in his brigade, he refused to 

accept temporary command of the 

brigade when the commanding 

officer was wounded. His regiment 

served at the Battle of 

Fredericksburg on 13 December 

1862. Two days later Lee was 

assigned command of the 3d 

Brigade in the II Corps, but he 

immediately offered his resignation from the Army, which was 

accepted on 17 December 1862. 

October 1861. There, he was Isaac J Wistar (Catherine Vanderslice 

wounded three times, his right mm Collection, u.s. Army Military Histmy 

being completely disabled, and was Institute) 

carried from the field. In November 1861 , while convalescing, he was 

appointed colonel of the regiment. Although his ann was still disabled, 

Wi star returned to duty with the regiment in time to participate in the Battle 

of Antietam in September, where he was wounded again, in his left ann. In 

70 
March 1863 he was promoted to brigadier general and in May assigned a 

brigade in Brig. Gen. George W. Getty's division stationed at Suffolk, 

Virginia. In May 1864 he was briefly in command of a brigade of the XVIII 

Corps, Almy of the James, but was soon relieved. He seems to have held 

no other command, until he resigned in September 1864. After the war he 

practiced law, became prominent in the coal business, and at one time was 

president of the American Philosophical Society and Academy of Natural 

Sciences. In 1892 he founded the Wistar Institute in Philadelphia, the first 

independent medical research facility in the United States. 

Milton Cogswell 

1825- 1882, Indiana 

USMA 1849 

After graduating from the U.S. 

Military Academy in 1849 

Cogswell was assigned to the 8th 

U.S. Infantry and served at 

Sackett's Harbor, New York, until 

1850, when he was transferred to 

frontier duty in Texas. A year later 

he was assigned to the Military 

Academy, first as an assistant professor of mathematics and later as 

assistant professor of infantty tactics. In 1855 Cogswell served on 

frontier duty in New Mexico. In Milton Cogswell (Civil War Library & 

May 1861 he was promoted to cap- Museum, Military Order of the Loyal 

tain and shortly afterward appoint- Legion of the U~ited States [MOLed a colonel of volunteers in com- LUS), Phlladelp/ua, Pa.) 

mand of the 42d New York Infantry. At the Battle of Ball's Bluff on 21 

October, Cogswell was captured and remained a prisoner of war until 

exchanged in September 1862. Assigned a colonel of volunteers ofthe 2d 

New York Heavy Artillery the following month, he resigned his volunteer commission in April 1863. During the final years of the war 

Cogswell served generally in various administrative posts in New York. 

After the war he served in North and South Carolina as an acting judge 

advocate general; assistant commissaty of musters; assistant commissioner of the Freedmen's Bureau; provisional mayor of Charleston, South 

Carolina; in the Bureau of Civil Affairs; military commander of 

Columbia, South Carolina; and military commander of Charleston, South 

Carolina. Beginning in 1869 he served with the 21 st Infantry in Arizona, 

until his retirement in 1871. 

71 
Confederate Officers 

Nathan G. Evans 

1824- 1868, South Carolina 

USMA 1848 

After graduation from the U.S. 

Military Academy, Evans served on 

the westem frontier with the dragoons and cavalry, before resigning 

in 1861 to enter Confederate service. He was commissioned a colonel 

and commanded a small brigade at 

the Battle of First Bull Run, where it 

was said his command went far 

toward saving the day for the South. 

During the thick of the fight, he was 

everywhere, closely followed by an 

aide carrying a jug of Evans' 

favorite whiskey. His brigade later 

was assigned to guard the upper 

fords of the Potomac, above 

Nathan G. Evans (Massachusetts 

CommandelY Militmy Order of the 

Loyal Legion and u.s. Army Militmy 

History Institute) 

Washington. In October 1861 a Union force crossed the river near 

Leesburg and at the Battle of Ball's Bluff Evans' command drove the 

enemy into the Potomac River, inflicting great loss. Evans was promoted to 

brigadier general to be effective the day of the battle. Evans' brigade participated in the battles of South Mountain and Antietam in September 1862 

and was assigned to General Joseph E. Johnston's army during the 

Vicksburg campaign as well as campaigns in North Carolina. His passion 

for alcoholic beverages led to constant difficulties with his superiors, and 

he was subsequently tried for drunkenness and acquitted and later for disobedience of orders and also acquitted. General P. G. T. Beauregard considered Evans incompetent and had him removed from command for a 

time. After the war Evans became a high school principal in Alabama, 

where he died in 1868. 

EppaHunton 

1822- 1908, Virginia 

After graduating from the New Baltimore Academy, Hunton taught 

school for three years, then studied law and was admitted to the bar in 

1843. He became prominent as an officer in the Virginia militia and as a 

commonwealth's attomey. With the outbreak of war in 1861 Hunton was 

commissioned a colonel of the 8th Virginia Infantry, which participated 

72 
in the Battle of First Bull Run in 

July. In October his regiment was 

part of Evans' brigade near 

Leesburg, where he led his command against a Union force at 

Ball's Bluff, driving it into the 

Potomac River. Afterward, Hunton 

held brigade command in Lt. Gen. 

James Longstreet's division, Maj. 

Gen. George Pickett's division, 

and the Depaltment of Richmond, 

being promoted to brigadier general in August 1863. After service in 

the defenses of Richmond, he 

rejoined Pickett's division and 

fought at Cold Harbor and in the 

Richmond and Petersburg siege 

lines. In March 1865 his command 

fought a delaying action at Five 

Eppa Hunton (Massachusetts CommandelY Military Order of the Loyal 

Legion and U.S. Army Military 

HistOlY Institute) 

Forks and again the following month at Sayler's Creek, where he was 

captured. After the war Hunton resumed his fonner law practice and 

became involved in politics. From 1873 to 1881 he served in the U.S. 

Congress and in the U.S. Senate from 1892 to 1895. 

Walter H. Jenifer 

1823- 1878, Maryland 

Jenifer, the son of a fOlmer member of Congress and minister to 

Austria, entered the U.S. Military Academy in 1841 (along with Charles 

P. Stone) but withdrew two years later. In 1847 Jenifer was commissioned a lieutenant of infantly, transferred two months later to the 3d 

Dragoons, and in 1855 was assigned to the 2d Cavalry, serving with 

Nathan G. Evans. While serving with the 2d Cavalry, Jenifer patented a 

cavalry saddle that would be used in substantial numbers by Confederate 

and some Union cavahy during the Civil War. In February 1861, while 

he was stationed in Texas, that state seceded from the Union and officers 

of the 2d Cavalry were offered positions in the Confederate Anny. Jenifer 

declined the offer, although he was sympathetic to the Southern cause. 

Instead, he planned to offer his services to his home state of Maryland, if 

it seceded. Maryland did not secede, but in April Jenifer resigned his U.S. 

commission and unsuccessfully attempted to organize a company of 

Maryland cavahy for Confederate service. By July 1861 Jenifer had been 

commissioned a lieutenant colonel in the Confederacy and commanded 

73 
several companies of Virginia cavalry in Brig. Gen. Richard S. Ewell's 

brigade at the Battle of First Bull Run. Afterward, lenifer was assigned to 

Col. Nathan G. Evans' brigade near Leesburg, where in October 1861 his 

cavalry companies participated in the Battle of Ball's Bluff. In early 1862 

lenifer, now a colonel, was assigned to command the 8th Virginia 

Cavalry but was relieved of command when the regiment was reOl'ganized shortly thereafter. Throughout the remainder of the war, he served 

mostly in the Department of the Gulf as inspector of cavalry and a cavalry commander. After the war 1enifer was one of fifty former Union and 

Confederate officers to accept commissions and serve in the Egyptian 

Army (including Brig. Gen. Charles P. Stone). lenifer was commissioned 

a colonel in the Egyptian Army in 1870, agreeing to fight for Egypt in any 

war except one against the United States. Two years later, his health 

affected by his foreign service, lenifer returned to the United States and 

began operating a horse farm in Maryland. With the assistance of the 

khedive of Egypt, lenifer imported and raised Arabian horses in 

Baltimore, Maryland, winning top awards at local fairs before his death 

in 1878. 

74