Ball's Bluff, battle at.
In October, 1861, a National force, commanded by
Gen. Charles P. Stone, was encamped between Edward's and Conrad's ferries, on
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the
Maryland side of the upper Potomac, while the left wing of the Confederate army, under
General Evans, lay at
Leesburg, in Virginia.
Misinformation had caused a belief that the
Confederates had left
Leesburg at a little past the middle of October, when
General McClellan ordered
General McCall, who commanded the advance of the right of the
National forces in
Virginia, to move forward and occupy Drainesville.
At the same time he ordered
General Stone to co-operate with
General McCall, which he did by
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Map of Ball's Bluff. |
making a feint of crossing the river at the two ferries above named on the afternoon of Sunday, Oct. 20.
At the same time part of a Massachusetts regiment, under
Colonel Devens (see
Devens, Charles), was ordered to take post upon
Harrison's Island, in the
Potomac, abreast of Ball's Bluff.
Devens went to the island with four companies in flat-boats taken from the
Chesapeake and Ohio canal.
About 3,000 men, under
Col. Edward D. Baker.
q. v.), of the national Senate, acting as brigadier-general, were held in readiness as a reserve in case of a battle.
With that reserve was a fine body of Pennsylvanians known as the “1st California Regiment.”
These movements of the Nationals caused an opposing one on the part of the
Confederates, who had watched their antagonists with keen vigilance at a point of concealment not far off, Misinformed as to the position of the confederates and supposing
McCall to be near enough to give aid if necessary,
Stone, on the morning of the 21st, ordered some
Massachusetts troops under
Colonels Lee and
Devens to cross to the
Virginia shore from
Harrison's Island to reconnoitre.
They did not find the fore in the neighborhood.
General Evans, unperceived, lay not far off; and riflemen and cavalry were hovering near and waiting a favorable opportunity to strike
Devens, who, leaving a part of
Lee's command near the
Bluff.
had advanced to near
Leesburg.
After a skirmish, in which he lost one man killed and nine wounded, he fell back towards the
Bluff.
While halting in an open field, he received orders from
Stone to remain there until support could be sent him. His entire force consisted of only 600 men. They were very soon attacked by the
Confederates.
It was a little past noon.
Pressed by overwhelming numbers,
Devens fell back to avoid being flanked.
Meanwhile
Colonel Baker had been pressing forward from Conrad's Ferry to the relief of the assailed troops.
Ranking
Devens, he had been ordered to
Harrison's Island, with discretionary powers to reinforce the party on the
Virginia main or to withdraw all the troops to the
Maryland side of the river.
He concluded to go forward, supposing the forces of
McCall and others to be near.
He was ignorant of the fact that
General McClellan had ordered
McCall to fall back from Drainesville.
On reaching the field of conflict,
Baker took the chief command of all the forces on the
Bluff, about 1,700 strong.
Very soon afterwards, while he was in the thickest of the fight encouraging his men, a, bullet pierced his brain and he fell dead.
The battle had lasted two hours. His troops.
unsupported by others, were crushed by superior numbers.
Pressed back to the verge of the
Bluff, which there rises more than 100 feet above the river, they fought desperately for a while at twilight, for they had no means for crossing the swollen flood.
They were soon overpowered.
Some had been pushed down the declivity.
Many were made prisoners, and many perished in trying to escape by swimming in the dark.
Some were shot in the water, and others were drowned.
A flat-boat laden with the wounded was riddled with bullets and sank.
In this affair the Nationals lost, in killed, wounded, and prisoners, fully 1,000 men. The Confederates lost 153 killed. The number of their wounded is unknown.
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