TheRed1
Console Conservationist
I have read that Aug. 27, 1862 was probably the best documented day in the entire history of the of the Confederate Army. This was the day that Jackson's Corp captured the enormous Union supply depot at Manassas Junction, Va. For those tattered and hungry men it was a day they would never forget - an orgy of the finest food and other supplies that the Federal government and the independent sutlers could provide. This was followed by a huge bonfire comprised of anything they couldn't carry with them. Every soldier involved who ever wrote about his wartime experiences inevitably spent several pages recounting their perspective of this wild scene.
In the middle of all this revelry occurred several uncoordinated Union attempts to drive off what was assumed to be merely a cavalry raid. The most imminent threat to Jackson's position astride the Union supply line came from a brigade of New Jersey troops commanded by Gen. George W. Taylor. He was sent out from Alexandria by train but had to march his men the last mile or two because of a train wreck from the night before which blocked the tracks. His orders were to hold the railroad bridge over Bull Run and prevent it from being destroyed. He decided instead to advance 3 of his 4 regiments beyond the bridge in an ill-advised attempt to drive off the supposed cavalry raiders at Manassas Junction.
Gen. Taylor's soldiers headed straight toward the middle of a sizable portion of the Confederate Army which included cavalry and artillery. The three New Jersey brigades advanced, completely unsupported, in tidy rows -- oblivious to their peril. Jackson himself is said to have ridden out in front of his lines with a handkerchief and pleaded for them to surrender. His answer was a bullet sent whizzing past his head. With that the Confederates opened with cannister and devastating volleys of musketry. Taylor's men fell back in good order until they were driven down into a steep ravine. At this point, with Confederate cavalry threatening to cut off their retreat and exposed to deadly fire as they clambered up the opposite side of the ravine, retreat became rout.
Even with the timely arrival of two additional regiments under the command of Gen. E. P. Scammon, the panicked New Jersey troops continued to flee back across the railroad bridge and down the tracks toward Alexandria. It was at this point, while trying to rally his men at the railroad bridge, that Gen. Taylor was mortally wounded. Gen. Scammon's two Ohio regiments valiantly held the Fairfax County side of the railroad crossing for several hours while most of the routed New Jersey brigade made their way down the tracks to safety. Eventually, despite a very strong hilltop position with previously constructed trenches commanding the railroad bridge, the Confederates worked their way across Bull Run above and below the Union position and compelled Gen. Scammon to retire.
With a little over 200 men killed and wounded and a similar number captured or missing, it was a small affair when compared with the battle that would begin the next day, Aug. 28, 1862 -- The Battle of Second Manassas.
I've always thought of this as MY battle since I became fascinated with the area and immersed myself in its history. I have boxes of research that I began back in the early 1980s. I once thought I might write a book of some sort but that has yet to happen. A few other authors have covered the material as part of works with larger scopes but there is only one, unpublished account devoted exclusively to the battle (not mine). Perhaps that is all that is warrented.
So today, on the 150th anniversary, I thought I would hike down along the Bull Run from the nearby Hemlock Overlook Park up to the RR bridge to tour this mostly unknown battlefield. I figured that certainly, in an area as steeped in Civil War history as Northern Virginia, there would be at least a few other history nerds doing the same thing -- but no. I didn't see another soul the entire morning. I was half expecting to run into a few die-hard reenactors in period dress -- again, no. Not even any ghosts.
It was a beautiful morning so it was really odd that I didn't encounter any other hikers. The only activity, other than the cicadas and other sundry wildlife, was a couple of trains. I walked along the trenches, looking among the pebbles exposed by last night's heavy rains for twisted lead. I was hoping to take a photo of something actually from the battle. In the vicinity are a number of Civil War era trenches, graves and even a few large earthen forts. But I found nothing I could directly connect to Aug. 27, 1862.
In the middle of all this revelry occurred several uncoordinated Union attempts to drive off what was assumed to be merely a cavalry raid. The most imminent threat to Jackson's position astride the Union supply line came from a brigade of New Jersey troops commanded by Gen. George W. Taylor. He was sent out from Alexandria by train but had to march his men the last mile or two because of a train wreck from the night before which blocked the tracks. His orders were to hold the railroad bridge over Bull Run and prevent it from being destroyed. He decided instead to advance 3 of his 4 regiments beyond the bridge in an ill-advised attempt to drive off the supposed cavalry raiders at Manassas Junction.
Gen. Taylor's soldiers headed straight toward the middle of a sizable portion of the Confederate Army which included cavalry and artillery. The three New Jersey brigades advanced, completely unsupported, in tidy rows -- oblivious to their peril. Jackson himself is said to have ridden out in front of his lines with a handkerchief and pleaded for them to surrender. His answer was a bullet sent whizzing past his head. With that the Confederates opened with cannister and devastating volleys of musketry. Taylor's men fell back in good order until they were driven down into a steep ravine. At this point, with Confederate cavalry threatening to cut off their retreat and exposed to deadly fire as they clambered up the opposite side of the ravine, retreat became rout.
Even with the timely arrival of two additional regiments under the command of Gen. E. P. Scammon, the panicked New Jersey troops continued to flee back across the railroad bridge and down the tracks toward Alexandria. It was at this point, while trying to rally his men at the railroad bridge, that Gen. Taylor was mortally wounded. Gen. Scammon's two Ohio regiments valiantly held the Fairfax County side of the railroad crossing for several hours while most of the routed New Jersey brigade made their way down the tracks to safety. Eventually, despite a very strong hilltop position with previously constructed trenches commanding the railroad bridge, the Confederates worked their way across Bull Run above and below the Union position and compelled Gen. Scammon to retire.
With a little over 200 men killed and wounded and a similar number captured or missing, it was a small affair when compared with the battle that would begin the next day, Aug. 28, 1862 -- The Battle of Second Manassas.
I've always thought of this as MY battle since I became fascinated with the area and immersed myself in its history. I have boxes of research that I began back in the early 1980s. I once thought I might write a book of some sort but that has yet to happen. A few other authors have covered the material as part of works with larger scopes but there is only one, unpublished account devoted exclusively to the battle (not mine). Perhaps that is all that is warrented.
So today, on the 150th anniversary, I thought I would hike down along the Bull Run from the nearby Hemlock Overlook Park up to the RR bridge to tour this mostly unknown battlefield. I figured that certainly, in an area as steeped in Civil War history as Northern Virginia, there would be at least a few other history nerds doing the same thing -- but no. I didn't see another soul the entire morning. I was half expecting to run into a few die-hard reenactors in period dress -- again, no. Not even any ghosts.
It was a beautiful morning so it was really odd that I didn't encounter any other hikers. The only activity, other than the cicadas and other sundry wildlife, was a couple of trains. I walked along the trenches, looking among the pebbles exposed by last night's heavy rains for twisted lead. I was hoping to take a photo of something actually from the battle. In the vicinity are a number of Civil War era trenches, graves and even a few large earthen forts. But I found nothing I could directly connect to Aug. 27, 1862.
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