From the Battle of Pickett’s Mill: The Extreme Right of the Confederate Line

A veteran of Pat Cleburne’s Division, Stan Harley of Govan’s Arkansas Brigade, recalled the Battle of Pickett’s Mill years later: “I was a member of Company C, Sixth and Seventh Arkansas Regiments (consolidated), and were in that fight from start to finish. I was among those sent forward in the morning to drive in their skirmishers and ascertain if their works were occupied. We succeeded and found them empty, but that there was a large force to our right maneuvering to flank our position. My regiment at that time was the extreme right infantry of the army. The cavalry joined our right. We fought the Yankees as they advanced, and kept their skirmishers at bay until their main line would advance, then we would fall back and take another position, with similar results. This continued until we reached our line of works, which we had let in the morning. It was then about three o’clock.

“Soon after we reached our works, Granbury’s Brigade of Texans passed in the rear of our line at double quick and took the place of the cavalry immediately on our right, which Gen. Wheeler says was that of Gen. Humes. The fight commenced at once with great fury, and continued for about three hours, or until dark. The enemy made repeated assaults on Granbury’s brigade and the right half of the Sixth and Seventh Arkansas Regiments, but were repulsed each time with heavy loss. During the fight they overlapped Granbury’s Texans on the right, and the Eighth and Nineteenth Arkansas Regiment (consolidated) was taken out of line on the left and placed on Granbury’s right in open field, and it lost, in very short time, ninety killed and wounded. As to what infantry troops were farther to the right of the Eighth and Nineteenth Arkansas Regiments I don’t know . . . . The enemy had been repulsed at every point, and had fallen back into a deep ravine in front of Granbury and the regiments of Govan’s Brigade, from which they were driven after dark by a front attack by Granbury’s Brigade and a left flank attack by a heavy skirmish line from the Fifth Arkansas of Govan’s Brigade. The battery just to the left of the Sixth and Seventh Arkansas Regiments and their left wing contributed largely to the successful repulse of every attack that was made upon Granbury and the right wing of the Sixth and Seventh Arkansas by an enfilading fire that was kept up during the engagement.”