Horace Greeley, The American Conflict: A History of the Great Rebellion in the United States of America, 1860-65: its Causes, Incidents, and Results: Intended to exhibit especially its moral and political phases with the drift and progress of American opinion respecting human slavery from 1776 to the close of the War for the Union. Volume II.

[409] our movement commenced, it began to storm, and continued to rain for seventeen successive days, swelling the mountain rills to torrents, and gullying the roads so badly that one division was three days in marching 21 miles, though unopposed and making the utmost exertions.

Our army moved on tree main roads: the 14th corps, Gen. Thomas, in the center, toward Manchester; the 21st, Gen. Crittenden, on our left, toward McMinnville; the 20th, Gen. A. D. McCook, directly on Shelbyville; Gen. Gordon Granger's reserve division supporting both the 14th and 20th. Crittenden's movement was to be made last, with one brigade of cavalry under Turchin; all the rest, under Stanley, was thrown out on our right.

Every movement directed, though impeded and somewhat delayed by the nearly impassable state of the roads, was successfully made. Liberty gap, in McCook's front, was carried by a vigorous advance of Johnson's division; while Hoover's gap, in Thomas's front, was surprised by Wilder's mounted brigade of Reynolds's division, and held against heavy odds till Reynolds could bring up his entire division and secure it. On the 27th, Rosecrans had his headquarters in Manchester, with Thomas's corps around him; Sheridan, with the right division of McCook's corps, arriving next morning, and the rest of that corps during the 29th. The enemy, deceived and overpowered, had been forced back, with little more than smart, persistent skirmishing, to Fairfield. Manchester itself had been surprised by Wilder on the morning of that day.

Granger had started¹ from Triune, on our extreme right, moving by Rover and Middleton, pushing back the enemy, by lively skirmishes at either place, to Christiana, on the road from Murfreesboroa to Shelbyville, where he was joined by Stanley; advancing² thence on Guy's gap, covering Shelbyville, which was at first firmly held by the enemy; but, after two hours skirmishing, they suddenly fell back, as though they had been covering a retreat. Granger at once directed Stanley to advance his cavalry and clear the gap, which was quickly done; the Rebels making all speed for seven miles to their rifle-pits, barely three miles north of Shelbyville, where two well-posted guns checked the pursuit. But Granger, now satisfied that the enemy must be evacuating, ordered a fresh cavalry charge, before which the foe again gave way, and were chased to within a short mile of the town, where three guns were planted so as to sweep all the approaches, formidably backed by infantry. It was now 6 P. M., and, Granger having his infantry well up, Stanley again charged, and in half an hour Shelbyville was ours, with three excellent brass guns, more than 500 prisoners, 3,000 sacks of corn, &c., &c. Wheeler escaped by swimming Duck river; but the 1st Confederate cavalry, which had formed to stop our charge to enable him to do so, were mainly killed or taken.

Our army now rested a little, while reconnoissances were made to ascertain the position of the enemy, and Wilder was sent to strike tile railroad in Bragg's rear near Decherd, burn Elk river bridge, and do whatever