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Chapter 49: close of the Valley campaign.
After the return from
Cedar Creek, the main body of my troops remained in their camp for the rest of the month without disturbance, but on the 26th of October the enemy's cavalry attacked
Lomax at
Millford and after sharp fighting was repulsed.
Having heard that
Sheridan was preparing to send troops to
Grant, and that the Manassas Gap Railroad was being repaired, I moved down the
Valley again on the 10th of November.
I had received no reinforcements except about 250 cavalry under
General Cosby from
Breckenridge's department in
Southwestern Virginia, some returned convalescents and several hundred conscripts who had been on details which had been revoked.
On the 11th, on our approach to
Cedar Creek, it was found that the enemy had fallen back towards
Winchester, after having fortified and occupied a position on
Hupp's Hill subsequently to the
battle of Cedar Creek.
Colonel Payne drove a small body of cavalry through
Middletown to
Newtown and I followed him and took position south of the latter place and in view of it.
Sheridan's main force was found posted north of
Newtown in a position which he was engaged in fortifying.
I remained in front of him during the 11th and 12th,
Rosser being on my left flank on the
Back Road, and
Lomax on my right between the
Valley Pike and the
Front Royal road, with one brigade (
McCausland's) at
Cedarville on the latter road.
Rosser had some skirmishing with the enemy's cavalry on the 11th, and on the 12th two divisions advanced against him, and after a heavy fight the enemy was repulsed and some prisoners captured.
Colonel Payne, who was operating immediately in my front, likewise had a sharp engagement with a portion of the enemy's cavalry and defended it. When
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Rosser was heavily engaged,
Lomax was ordered to his assistance, with a part of his command, and during his absence, late in the afternoon,
Powell's division of the enemy's cavalry attacked
McCausland at
Cedarville, and after a severe fight drove him back across the river with the loss of two pieces of artillery.
At the time of this affair, a blustering wind was blowing and the firing could not be heard; and nothing was known of
McCausland's misfortune until after we commenced retiring that night.
In these cavalry fights, three valuable officers were killed, namely:
Lieutenant Colonel Marshall of
Rosser's brigade,
Colonel Radford of
McCausland's brigade, and
Captain Harvie of
McCausland's staff.
Discovering that the enemy continued to fortify his position, and showed no disposition to come out of his lines with his infantry, and not being willing to attack him in his entrenchments, after the reverses I had met with, I determined to retire, as we were beyond the reach of supplies.
After dark on the 12th, we moved to
Fisher's Hill, and next day returned in the direction of
New Market, where we arrived on the 14th, no effort at pursuit being made.
I discovered by this movement that no troops had been sent to
Grant, and that the project of repairing the Manassas Gap Railroad had been abandoned.
Shortly after our return to
New Market,
Kershaw's division was returned to
General Lee, and
Cosby's cavalry to
Breckenridge.
On the 22nd of November two divisions of the enemy's cavalry advanced to
Mount Jackson, after having driven in our cavalry pickets.
A part of it crossed over the river into Meem's Bottom at the foot of
Rude's Hill, but was driven back by a portion of my infantry, and the whole retreated, being pursued by
Wickham's brigade, under
Colonel Munford, to
Woodstock.
On the 27th,
Rosser crossed
Great North Mountain into
Hardy County, with his own and
Payne's brigade,
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and, about the 29th, surprised and captured the fortified post at
New Creek, on the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad.
At this place, two regiments of cavalry with their arms and colors were captured and eight pieces of artillery and a very large amount of ordnance, quartermaster and commissary stores fell into our hands.
The prisoners, numbering 800, four pieces of artillery, and some wagons and horses, were brought off, the other guns, which were heavy siege pieces, being spiked, and their carriages and a greater part of the stores destroyed.
Rosser also brought off several hundred cattle and a large number of sheep from
Hampshire and
Hardy counties.
This expedition closed the material operations of the campaign of 1864 in the Shenandoah Valley, and, at that time, the enemy held precisely the same portion of that valley which he held before the opening of the campaign in the spring, and no more, and the headquarters of his troops were at the same place, to wit:
Winchester.
There was this difference, however: at the beginning of the campaign, he held it with comparatively a small force, and, at the close, he was compelled to employ three corps of infantry, and one of cavalry, for that purpose, and to guard the approaches to
Washington,
Maryland and
Pennsylvania.
When I was detached from
General Lee's army,
Hunter was advancing on
Lynchburg, 170 miles south of
Winchester, with a very considerable force, and threatening all of
General Lee's communications with a very serious danger.
By a rapid movement, my force had been thrown to
Lynchburg, just in time to arrest
Hunter's march into that place, and he had been driven back and forced to escape into the mountains of
Western Virginia, with a loss of ten pieces of artillery and subsequent terrible suffering to his troops.
Maryland and
Pennsylvania had been invaded,
Washington threatened and thrown into a state of frantic alarm, and
Grant had been compelled to detach two corps of infantry and two divisions of cavalry from his army.
Five or six thousand prisoners had been
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captured from the enemy and sent to
Richmond, and according to a published statement by
Sheridan, his army had lost 13,831, in killed and wounded, after he took command of it. Heavy losses had been inflicted on that army by my command, before
Sheridan went to the
Valley, and the whole loss could not have been far from double my entire force.
The enemy moreover had been deprived of the use of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad, and the
Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, for three months.
It is true that I had lost many valuable officers and men, and about 60 pieces of artillery, counting those lost by
Ramseur and
McCausland, and not deducting the 19 pieces captured from the enemy; but I think I may safely state that the fall of
Lynchburg with its foundries and factories, and the consequent destruction of
General Lee's communications, would have rendered necessary the evacuation of
Richmond, and that, therefore, the fall of the latter place had been prevented; and by my subsequent operations,
Grant's operations against
General Lee's army had been materially impeded, and for some time substantially suspended.
My loss in killed, wounded and prisoners, at
Winchester and
Fisher's Hill, had been less than 4,000, and at
Cedar Creek, about 3,000, but the enemy has claimed as prisoners several thousand more than my entire loss.
I know that a number of prisoners fell into the enemy's hands who did not belong to my command: such as cavalrymen on details to get fresh horses, soldiers on leave of absence, conscripts on special details, citizens not in the service, men employed in getting supplies for the departments, and stragglers and deserters from other commands.
My army during the entire campaign had been self-sustaining so far as provisions and forage were concerned, and a considerable number of beef cattle had been sent to
General Lee's army; and when the difficulties under which I labored are considered, I think I may confidently assert that I had done as well as it was possible for me to do.
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Shortly after
Rosser's return from the
New Creek expedition,
Colonel Munford was sent with
Wickham's brigade to the counties of
Hardy and
Pendleton, to procure forage for his horses, and, cold weather having now set in so as to prevent material operations in the field, the three divisions of the 2nd corps were sent, in succession, to
General Lee,--
Wharton's division, the cavalry, and most of the artillery being retained with me.
On the 16th of December, I broke up the camp at
New Market, and moved back towards
Staunton, for the purpose of establishing my troops on or near Central Railroad-
Lomax's cavalry, except one brigade left to watch the
Luray Valley, having previously moved across the
Blue Ridge so as to be able to procure forage.
Cavalry pickets were left in front of
New Market, and telegraphic communications kept up with that place, from which there was communication with the lower Valley, by means of signal stations on the northern end of
Massanutten Mountain, and at Ashby's Gap in the
Blue Ridge, which overlooked the enemy's camps and the surrounding country.
The troops had barely arrived at their new camps when information was received that the enemy's cavalry was in motion.
On the 19th,
Custer's division moved from
Winchester towards
Staunton, and, at the same time, two other divisions of cavalry, under
Torbert or
Merrit, moved across by
Front Royal and
Chester Gap towards
Gordonsville.
This information having been sent me by signal and telegraph,
Wharton's division was moved on the 20th, through a hailstorm, towards
Harrisonburg, and
Rosser ordered to the front with all the cavalry he could collect.
Custer's division reached
Lacy's Spring, nine miles north of
Harrisonburg, on the evening of the 20th, and next morning before day,
Rosser, with about 600 men of his own and
Payne's brigades, attacked it in camp, and drove it back down the
Valley in some confusion.
Lomax had been advised of the movement towards
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Gordonsville, and as soon as
Custer was disposed of,
Wharton's division was moved back, and on the 23rd a portion of it was run on the railroad to
Charlottesville,
Munford, who had now returned from across the great
North Mountain, being ordered to the same place.
On my arrival at
Charlottesville on the 23rd, I found that the enemy's two divisions of cavalry, which had crossed the
Blue Ridge, had been held in check near
Gordonsville by
Lomax, until the arrival of a brigade of infantry from
Richmond, when they retired precipitately.
I returned to the
Valley and established my headquarters at
Staunton-
Wharton's division and the artillery being encamped east of that place, and
Rosser's cavalry west of it; and thus closed the operations of 1864 with me.