Showing results for "Voices from the Maryland Campaign"

Voices of the Maryland Campaign: September 12, 1862

George B. McClellan’s short marches stood in stark contrast to his plans for September 12. Armed with information of the Confederate abandonment of Frederick, he ordered his troops to converge closer to the hub city of central Maryland. Jesse Reno’s Ninth Corps in the lead sparred across the Monocacy River with Wade Hampton’s cavalry and […]

Read more...

Voices of the Maryland Campaign: September 11, 1862

The Union Army’s prize this day was the summit of Sugarloaf Mountain, a high, isolated peak south of Frederick that presented its occupiers with a commanding view of the surrounding country, and of the enemy’s movements. Unfortunately for the Federals, by the time Stuart’s cavalry gave up the position, the Confederate infantry already shielded itself […]

Read more...

Voices of the Maryland Campaign: September 10, 1862

Sounds of tramping feet and creaking wheels alerted the citizens of Frederick before the sun rose on September 10 that the picture of the campaign was changing. By peeking out their windows, one could clearly discern thousands of Confederate soldiers making their way out of the city, heading west to an unknown destination. For many […]

Read more...

Voices of the Maryland Campaign: September 9, 1862

The pace of the campaign began to pick up on September 9. Robert E. Lee, hopeful that the Federal garrisons in the lower Shenandoah Valley, realized that he would have to nudge them away from his supply line. Accordingly, Lee dictated and distributed Special Order No. 191 to his subordinate commanders. The bold plan outlined […]

Read more...

Voices of the Maryland Campaign: September 8, 1862

The Army of the Potomac continued spreading out along the roads of western Maryland, fanning out in several different columns to protect Baltimore, Washington, and the Potomac River crossings. George B. McClellan believed correctly that despite the “vague and conflicting” reports he received that the Confederate force in Maryland was at Frederick. Robert E. Lee […]

Read more...

Voices of the Maryland Campaign–September 7, 1862

The gathering Confederate army resting along the Monocacy River outside of Frederick used Sunday, September 7 to relax peacefully in their new camps, preparing for the next campaign. Robert E. Lee believed his army safely ensconced in western Maryland, with no threat from the enemy in sight. “As far as I can learn, the enemy […]

Read more...

Voices of the Maryland Campaign: September 6, 1862

By the end of September 6, the rest of the Army of Northern Virginia waded across the Potomac River, marching towards Frederick. While the tail end of Lee’s army remained, for the moment, near the Potomac shore, its vanguard under “Stonewall” Jackson arrived on the outskirts of Frederick, pitched its tents, and settled in for […]

Read more...

Voices of the Maryland Campaign: September 5, 1862

While Confederate soldiers under “Stonewall” Jackson’s command poured across the Potomac River, Federal forces inside Washington’s fortifications continued to sort themselves out. President Lincoln met Ambrose Burnside this morning, offering him command of the army tasked with marching into Maryland and expelling the Rebels from the state. Burnside declined, and Lincoln and Henry Halleck informed […]

Read more...

Voices of the Maryland Campaign: September 4, 1862

On Thursday, September 4, 1862, the Maryland Campaign began in earnest. Confederate soldiers of Daniel Harvey Hill’s command rolled up their pant legs and plunged into the cold and waist deep waters of the Potomac River. Col. John Gordon’s 6th Alabama Infantry was one of the first units to go, and the lawyer-turned-soldier could not […]

Read more...