Comte de Paris, History of the Civil War in America. Vol. 4.
Henry Coppee , LL.D., Ed.

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[93] the banks of the Chickamauga. Walker, who has the shortest road to travel, arrives, toward ten o'clock in the morning, about a mile and a quarter from Alexander's Bridge. Wilder's brigade defends with energy the approaches to the bridge against the assaults made by Walthall's brigade. Liddell, who commands the First division of the Southern corps, is obliged, in order to reach the river, to move forward Govan's brigade: he has lost much time and nearly one hundred men. The Federals, after having torn up the flooring of the bridge, so well cover with troops the steep shore of the left bank that Liddell cannot cross the Chickamauga, which is very deep at this point. Walker, being thus checked, causes his columns to deflect toward the right, and at last finds, about two miles farther down, the fording-place named Byron's Ford, which is not occupied by the enemy. Walthall crosses the river and advances some twelve or fourteen hundred yards in the direction of Gordon's Mills, but soon the darkness of approaching night causes him to halt. Coming behind him, Govan passes over after sunset, and Gist's division crosses only at midnight. No enemy troubles Walker, because Hood covers him completely.

Buckner, camped on the Gordon's Mills and La Fayette road, has followed Walker's long column, and the latter, having been halted at Alexander's Bridge before Buckner had time to debouch on the left in the Tedford's Ford road, he is constrained to await the close of the battle ere he can resume his march. He finally arrives, skirmishing, toward evening, on the Chickamauga River. Preston's division occupies, after a slight engagement, Tedford's Ford, and throws Gracie's brigade to the opposite shore. Pending this time, Stewart, striking to the left with his division, has arrived at Dalton's Ford, and Clayton's brigade, which marches in front, clears the ford without having occasion to fire a gun. The rest of the army corps will wait for daybreak before taking its turn to cross.

On the 18th, in the morning, Cheatham's and Hindman's divisions advanced toward Gordon's Mills, the one coming from Rock Spring Church, and the other from the point where the La Fayette road crosses the extremity of Pigeon Mountain, and about midday these divisions had driven Wood's outposts to the