A New Year's Day Retrospect of 1863

Watch television at the end of December or start of January and you are bound to come across a special program or two on the "year in review." Many of us like to look back at the previous twelve months and remember the people, places, and events that made the year unique. Perhaps we are motivated by nostalgia or even a deep-seated sense of history. But whatever the reason, twenty-first century Americans are not alone in reflecting on the past year as they ring in a new one.

"New Year's Day," Harper's Weekly, Jan. 2, 1864 (courtesy of sonofthesouth.net)

On January 1, 1864, the Washington Daily National Republican published "A Retrospect." The paper offered readers a review of Union military gains during 1863:

In taking a retrospect of the past year we find a record of the most brilliant successes yet achieved during the war. If we include Mufreesboro, which commenced by skirmishing on December 29, 1862, and lasted until January 4, 1863, we have among our principal victories Mufreesboro, Vicksburg, Morris Island, Gettysburg, Port Hudson, Chattanooga, Knoxville. History does not furnish a year's victories by the armies of any country in any war that will excel these.

[Braxton] Bragg was completely whipped at Mufreesboro after a week's hard fighting.

At Vicksburg General [Ulysses S.] Grant, by military manoeuvres that have no parallel, captured the rebel stronghold of the Mississippi Valley.

At Port Hudson, the last remaining post on the Mississippi, the navigation of the "Father of Waters" was opened entirely by General [Nathaniel P.] Banks.

At Morris Island General [Quincy] Gillmore astonished the world by his gunnery, captured forts the rebels deemed impregnable, put Charleston under fire, and converted the original city of the rebellion into a purgatory for traitors, where they must live in mortal fear until the town is finally wrapped in ashes.

At Gettysburg the rebels were brought to a stop in their contemplated raid, which was to destroy at one fell swoop Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington. The question of a Northern invasion was settled by this battle, and the future safety of the North secured.

At Chattanooga the invincibility of our armies when rightly handled was established, and the rebels cut off from their most fruitful source of supplies, East Tennessee, the fighting at Knoxville putting a clincher upon this part of the business, and deciding the fate of this most valuable region.

And then may look with satisfaction to the splendid advantages gained by General Banks in Texas; to the demonstrations made by our cavalry, showing that in this arm of the service the rebels no longer excel us.

If we turn to the operations of the navy we behold an equally pleasing record. The blockade has finally been made so nearly perfect that the rebels can no longer depend upon receiving supplies from foreign speculators, and our captures of rebel craft have been very heavy.

Our victories during the year have cost us dearly in the blood of our patriotic countrymen, but this has sanctified our cause and rendered more determined our people in the work of putting down the insurrection. Never will we yield our birthright to traitors, when so many of our kindred have died so nobly in defending it.

The paper closed the retrospect with an excerpt from "To-Day and To-Morrow" by English poet Gerald Massey:

High hopes that burned like stars sublime
 Go down the heaven of Freedom
And true hearts perish in the time
 We bitterliest need them
For never sit we down and say
 There's nothing left but sorrow
We walk the wilderness to-day
 The Promised Land to-morrow

Build up heroic lives, and all
 Be like a sheathen sabre
Ready to flash out at God's call, 
 O chivalry of labor 
Triumph and toil are twins: and aye,
 Joy s[uns] the cloud of sorrow
And 'tis the martyrdom of to-day
 Brings victory to-morrow (emphasis in original editorial).

The Daily National Republican's focus on the military successes of 1863 is not surprising. After all, when compared to a year ago and the disaster at Fredericksburg, the war was going much better for the Union, and people across the country had every reason to look back with pride. Echoing President Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, the newspaper called for a total defeat of the rebellion so that those who died preserving the Union had not died in vain. Within a few months, the pages of the Daily National Republican would carry news of Union advances and high casualties. The war would lead to even more death and destruction during 1864, but "victory to-morrow" would be within reach as the year drew to a close.

**

I'd like to wish everyone a Happy New Year, and thanks for reading in 2013! This past year has been a busy one for the blog and my other Civil War-related pursuits, and 2014 promises to be even busier. The pipeline of posts keeps growing. I also have a couple of speaking engagements later this winter and plan to work with Fairfax County on developing a new Civil War Trails marker. And then there are the multitude of Sesquicentennial activities that will be attracting everyone's attention this year. As always, see you here, and hopefully see you on the battlefield!

Sources

Gerald Massey, The Poetical Works of Gerald Massey (1861); Washington Daily National Republican, Jan. 1, 1864;

The Chain Bridge Defenses During the Maryland Campaign, Part III: Sigel Stays Put and Stands Guard

In the last couple of posts, I've followed the story of the Chain Bridge defenses around Washington in the days prior to Antietam.  During the first week of September 1862, Franz Sigel led his corps from Fairfax Court House to the vicinity of Ft. Ethan Allen.  As Gen. George McClellan moved his army across the Potomac to chase down the Robert E. Lee, he left Sigel's men, along with the corps of Fitz John Porter and Samuel P. Heintzelman, to guard the Virginia side of the river in front of the nation's capital.  By September 7, Sigel's line stretched from Ft. Marcy and Ft. Ethan Allen, near Chain Bridge, to Ft. DeKalb in present-day Arlington.

McClellan Tries to Extract Sigel and Other Reinforcements from Washington's Defenses

Before long, McClellan was asking Washington to send him reinforcements, including men from Sigel's corps and the other commands around the capital.  Generally inclined to overestimate Confederate troop strength, Little Mac was no different this time around.  He believed that Lee had "not less than 120,000 men" near Frederick, Maryland. (OR, 1:19:2, 254.)  In fact, the Army of the Potomac had around a two-to-one advantage over Lee.  (Sears, Landscape, 102.)

On September 10, McClellan wrote to General-in-Chief Henry Halleck:

At the time this army moved from Washington, it was not known what the intentions of the rebels were in placing their forces on this side of the Potomac. It might have been a feint to draw away our troops from Washington, for the purpose of throwing their main army into the city as soon as we were out of the way, or it might have been supposed to be precisely what they are now doing. In view of this uncertain condition of things, I left what I conceived to be a sufficient force to defend the city against any army they could bring against it from the Virginia side of the Potomac.  (OR, 1:19:2, 254.)*

McClellan, however, felt that "[t]his uncertainty . . . exists no longer."  (OR, 1:19:2, 254.)  The immediate danger to the capital had passed.  McClellan informed Halleck of the overwhelming number of Confederates at Frederick and warned that "if we should be defeated the consequences to the country would be disastrous in the extreme."   (OR, 1:19:2, 254.)  Little Mac pleaded for Halleck to send him more men:

Under these circumstances, I would recommend that one or two of the three army corps now on the Potomac, opposite Washington, be at once withdrawn and sent to re-enforce this army . . . . (OR, 1:19:2, 254.) 

The commander perceived little threat to Washington:

If there are any rebel forces remaining on the other side of the Potomac, they must be so few that the troops left in the forts, after the two corps shall have been withdrawn, will be sufficient to check them; and, with the large cavalry force now on that side kept well out in front to give warning of the distant approach of any very large army, a part of this army might be sent back within the entrenchments to assist in repelling an attack.  (OR, 1:19:2, 254.) 

McClellan seemed almost nonchalant about the possible capture of the nation's capital:

But even if Washington should be taken while these armies are confronting each other, this would not, in my judgment, bear comparison with the ruin and disaster which would follow a signal defeat of this army.  If we should be successful in conquering the gigantic rebel army before us, we would have no difficulty in recovering it. On the other hand, should their force prove sufficiently powerful to defeat us, would all the forces now around Washington be sufficient to prevent such a victorious army from carrying the works on this side of the Potomac, after they are uncovered by our army? I think not.  (OR, 1:19:2, 254-55.)** 

From his headquarters near Rockville on September 11, McClellan further urged Halleck:

Please send forward all the troops you can spare from Washington, particularly Porter's, Heintzelman's, Sigel's, and all the other old troops. Please send them to Brookville, via Leesborough.  (OR, 1:19:2, 253.)***

President Lincoln himself responded to McClellan's plea for additional soldiers from the defenses of Washington.  (OR, 1:19:2, 253.)  The President understood that the new recruits streaming into Washington were mixed with the three commands and worried that "[i]f Porter, Heintzelman, and Sigel were sent you, it would sweep everything from the other side of the river. . . ." (OR, 1:19:2, 253.)  Instead, he released only the remainder of Porter's Fifth Corps, which was ordered to cross the Potomac and join the Army of the Potomac in the field.  (OR, 1:19:2, 253, 255.)  Lincoln held out the possibility of future reinforcements: 

I am for sending you all than can be spared, and I hope others can follow Porter very soon.  (OR, 1:19:2, 254.)

In the end, however, Sigel's men would stay put near the Chain Bridge defenses while the Army of the Potomac tracked down and fought Lee.

"General McClellan Entering the Town of Frederick, Maryland--The Popular Welcome," Harper's Weekly, Oct. 4, 1862 (courtesy of sonofthesouth.net).

Sigel's Corps and Everyday Life in Front of Washington

During the Maryland Campaign, Sigel's corps underwent a few organizational changes.  Once McClellan took to the field with the main army, Sigel reported to Gen. Nathaniel Banks, whom McClellan had placed in overall command of Washington's defenses. (OR, 1:19:2, 202, 214.)  Under General Orders No. 129, dated September 12, the War Department officially re-designated the three corps of the former Army of Virginia, and Sigel's First Corps became the Eleventh Corps of the Army of the Potomac.  (OR, 1:19:2, 279.) 

As McClellan battled Lee at South Mountain and Antietam, Sigel's men dealt with the mundane routine of camp life.  Soldiers spent the days drilling or on picket duty.  One regiment, the 27th Pennsylvania, changed camps around Chain Bridge several times throughout September and performed picket duty in Falls Church, a few miles in advance of the defensive line.  Gen. Robert Milroy, a brigade commander in Sigel's corps, used his free time to venture into Washington City and sit for his photograph at Mathew Brady's studio.

Not surprisingly, the presence of thousands of Union soldiers from Sigel's corps had an impact on the surrounding community.  Jospeh Sewell lived in Langley, just down the road from Forts Marcy and Ethan Allen where Sigel's men stood guard.  The farmer, like other locals, was no stranger to the Union Army.  Soldiers from Gen. "Baldy" Smith's division lived on and around Sewell's farm during the first winter of the war and had taken their fair share of crops and timber from him.  In September 1862, troops from Milroy's brigade entered Sewell's property and seized thirty barrels of corn.  They also took around three acres of garden vegetables and potatoes.****  Other civilians in the area likely experienced similar losses at the hands of the Union defenders.

Gen. Robert Milroy, from the Brady National Photographic Art Gallery (courtesy of Library of Congress).  Not long after sitting for his photograph, Milroy was sent with his brigade to western Virginia.

After Antietam: Sigel Advances to Centreville and Fairfax Court House 

As the Maryland Campaign drew to a close, Sigel's men were moved forward from the defenses near Washington.  Concerned about a possible Confederate attempt to reoccupy the railroad junction of Manassas, Banks ordered Sigel to send Gen. Julius Stahel's division to Centreville on September 21.  (OR, 1:19:2, 340-41, 344-45, 351.)   A few days later, on September 25, the remainder of Sigel's corps was dispatched to Fairfax Court House to cover an expedition being made to recapture several railroad engines at Bristoe.  (OR, 1:19:2, 356, 359.)  Banks, anxious about Confederate intentions, ordered that Sigel exercise "[g]reat caution. . . to prevent surprise," keep the cavalry "well to the front and on the alert," and "report frequently the state of affairs."  (OR, 1:19:2, 356.)

Banks originally intended to have Sigel's corps "fall back to its former position" following the expedition.  (OR, 1:19:2, 359.)   Sigel's men, however, remained in and around Fairfax Court House and Centreville to act as a "corps of observation."  (OR, 1:19:2, 425, 428.)  In this new role, Sigel kept an eye on Confederate activity in Northern Virginia, but Banks made sure to tell Sigel that "if menaced by a superior force of the enemy," he was "to fall back to the lines of defense."  (OR, 1:19:2, 425.)

The Eleventh Corps eventually ended up in Stafford Court House for the winter.  Although the soldiers missed the bloody encounter at Antietam, as well as the slaughter at Fredericksburg in December, they would go on to experience their fair share of brutal combat during the remainder of the war.  The soldiers of the Eleventh Corps became a scapegoat for the Union defeat at Chancellorsville, where they earned the derisive nickname of the "Flying Dutchmen."  Their reputation also suffered at Gettysburg.  During the tense days of September 1862, however, the corps served a necessary, yet unheralded role, in guarding the nation's capital as McClellan confronted Lee.

Notes

*Stephen Sears demonstrates that this correspondence was likely sent on September 10, even though the OR indicates that it was sent the next day.  (Sears, McClellan Correspondence, 446.)

**In correspondence dated September 13, Halleck rebuked McClellan:  "[Y]ou attach too little importance to the capital. I assure you that you are wrong. The capture of this place will throw us back six months, if it should not destroy us. Beware of the evils I now point out to you. You saw them when here, but you seem to forget them in the distance. No more troops can be sent from here till we have fresh arrivals from the North."  (OR, 1:19:2, 280-81.)

*** Earlier on September 11, Halleck had even suggested to McClellan that he send forward either Sigel's or Porter's corps when another division that Little Mac had requested was unavailable. As Halleck said, "Why not order forward Porter's corps, or Sigel's?  If the main force of the enemy is in your front, more troops can be spared from here." (OR, 1:19:2, 253.)

****The Southern Claims Commission files indicate that Sewell was not granted compensation for the claims he made concerning the taking of this property by Milroy's men.  The Commission considered that the $150 claim for corn rested solely on Sewell's testimony.  The $300 claim for garden vegetables and potatoes was considered a "depredation."

Sources

Aside from the citations to the Official Records above, the following sources were useful in compiling this post:

Samuel P. Bates, History of Pennsylvania Volunteers, 1861-1865, Vol. I (1869); Stephen D. Engle, Yankee Dutchman: The Life of Franz Sigel (1993); Bradley Gottfried, The Maps of Antietam (2012); Charles V. Mauro, The Civil War in Fairfax County: Civilians and Soldiers (2006); Johnathan A. Noyalas, "My Will is Absolute Law": A Biography of Union General Robert H. Milroy (2006); Pennsylvania Daily Telegraph, Sept. 29, 1862; Stephen W. Sears (ed.), The Civil War Papers of George B. McClellan: Selected Correspondence, 1860-1865 (1989); Stephen W. Sears, Landscape Turned Red: The Battle of Antietam (1983); Southern Claims Commission File of Joseph Sewell, available at fold3.com.

Trip to Winchester, Day 2: Cemeteries and Battlefields

A couple weeks ago I wrote about the first half of my weekend escape to Winchester.  Back in May, I spent the greater part of a Saturday afternoon walking the streets of Old Town and visiting a few historic sites, including the famed headquarters of Stonewall Jackson.  I even threw in a little French & Indian War history for good measure.  After a few drinks and an evening stroll through the streets with a fine cigar, I returned to my hotel to recharge and prepare for another full day. 

The Final Resting Places of Winchester

On Sunday my friend Ken, and I started with Winchester's Civil War cemeteries.  We first drove to the Mt. Hebron Cemetery on E. Boscawen Street.  Mt. Hebron was established in 1844 on land adjacent to 18th century Reformed and Lutheran graveyards.  The Stonewall Confederate Cemetery is located within Mt. Hebron on ground that saw action during the Third Battle of Winchester (Sept. 19, 1864).  The cemetery, which was dedicated in 1866, contains the graves of over 2,500 Confederate dead.  Eleven former Confederate states, plus Kentucky and Maryland, have dedicated sections in the cemetery, and several states have erected monuments to their fallen soldiers.   As I walked past the endless rows of headstones, I felt overcome by a sense of sadness and loss. Cemeteries such as this one force us to confront the tragic human cost of the Civil War in a way that just reading about battles cannot do.

A view of Stonewall Confederate Cemetery looking towards the Unknown Soldiers Monument (1879).  Over 800 unknown Confederate soldiers lay buried beneath the monument.

The grave of the Patton Brothers at Stonewall Cemetery.  Col. George S. Patton, grandfather of the famous World War II general of the same name, was mortally wounded at the Third Battle of Winchester on September 19, 1864.  His brother, Col. Waller Tazewell Patton, was mortally wounded at Gettysburg during Pickett's Charge on July 3, 1863.  Other notable burials at the Stonewall Cemetery include Confederate cavalry commander Turner Ashby and Gen. Robert Daniel Johnston of North Carolina.

Ken and I next drove right around the corner to the Winchester National Cemetery, located on National Avenue.  The cemetery sits on land that was used for burials during the Civil War.  It was officially dedicated in 1866, the same year as the Stonewall Cemetery, and was transferred to the U.S. Government in 1870.  The National Cemetery contains the graves of Union soldiers who died in battles and campaigns throughout the region, including Winchester, Front Royal, New Market, Harpers Ferry, and Romney.   Fifteen monuments rise above the plain white headstones.  Most are dedicated to Union regiments who fought in the Shenandoah Valley, including the 12th Connecticut, 38th Massachusetts, 123rd Ohio, and 8th Vermont.  Two monuments, however, commemorate the sacrifices of soldiers from Massachusetts and Pennsylvania, and a third was erected to honor the Sixth Army Corps. 

Looking over Winchester National Cemetery towards the 114th New York Monument.  When I visited, each headstone was decorated with a flag in preparation for Memorial Day.

Bronze soldier atop the Massachusetts Monument at the National Cemetery. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts erected the monument in 1907.

Touring the Battlefields of 1862

Following our visit to the cemeteries, my friend and I turned our attention to the scene of the fighting.  The Winchester area witnessed several key battles between 1862-64.  The focus of my Sesquicentennial-themed trip was the 150th anniversary of Jackson's Valley Campaign, so we stuck to the battlefields from 1862.   At the Visitor Center we picked up a driving tour of the 1862 Winchester battlefields published by the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation.  (Incidentally, I could not find a copy of the brochure on the web prior to my trip.) 

We first visited a few sites associated with the First Battle of Winchester, one of Jackson's key victories in the Valley Campaign.  After defeating the small Federal garrison at Front Royal on May 23,1862, Jackson moved down the Valley (north) in pursuit of the main Union force under Gen. Nathaniel P. Banks.  On May 25, Jackson pounced on Banks' men, who were positioned on the ground south of Winchester. Following a devastating attack against Banks' right flank on Bowers Hill, the Union line collapsed, and the retreating soldiers fled through the streets of Winchester.  Jackson's tired men tried to catch up with Banks, but the Union army managed to cross the Potomac and escape into Maryland.  Jackson soon moved back up the Valley to avoid being caught in a trap by two separate Union commands converging on him from the east and west.  He soundly defeated these armies at the start of June and left the Valley to join Robert E. Lee before Richmond.

Sadly, little remains of the First Winchester battlefield.  Much of the land is blanketed with commercial and residential development.  In fact, the general area where the battle began is now marked by a Sheetz station!  The driving tour is useful for getting a sense of the scope of the engagement and the terrain on which the men fought, but don't expect to see much aside from a historical marker commemorating the battle.

View of Camp Hill along Kent St.  Following an initial morning attack by Confederates under Gen. Isaac Trimble, Union soldiers from Gen. Dudley Donnelly's brigade fell back to Camp Hill.  The 46th Pennsylvania, 5th Connecticut, and 28th New York made a stand here, but ultimately were forced to withdraw.

View towards the crest of Bowers Hill from a residential subdivision along Ramseur Lane (note the manicured lawn).  Gen. Richard Taylor's Louisiana Brigade moved from the southwest and across this area to attack the Union right flank positioned atop the hill.   

Lucky for current and future generations, the Kernstown battlefield is an entirely different story.  The First Battle of Kernstown, fought on March 23, 1862, was the opening shot of Jackson's Valley Campaign and marked Jackson's only defeat as an independent commander.  Erroneously believing that he outnumbered his opponent, Jackson launched an attack on the Union line around Kernstown.  After a failed attempt to flank the Federal artillery on Pritchard's Hill, the action shifted westward to Sandy Ridge.  Jackson's men were no match for the large Union force under Col. Nathan Kimball.   The Confederates began to run out of ammunition, and before long, Kimball forced Jackson from the field.  Although a tactical loss, Jackson's attack at Kernstown spooked the Federal authorities in Washington, who redirected troops to the Valley and retained Gen. Irvin McDowell's corps around the capital.  This shift of resources deprived Gen. George McClellan of men for his move on Richmond by way of the Peninsula.

Our first stop was the Rose Hill farm, which is run by the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley.  The property was the scene of the fight along Sandy Ridge.  Unfortunately, the site was closed, and we were unable to do the walking tour.  Instead, we took a look at the the farm from the road and read the Civil War Trails marker at the entrance.  I will need to get back to Rose Hill someday to do the site justice.  (Perhaps as a detour during my battlefields of 1864 tour?)

View of the William W. Glass farm, or Rose Hill, from the entrance to the Museum of the Shenandoah site.  The engagement along Sandy Ridge took place to the east of the house.  After a desperate two-hour fight, the Confederate line faltered.  The Stonewall Brigade under Gen. Richard Garnett left the field first, followed by Col. Samuel Fulkerson's brigade.  Jackson, furious that Garnett had withdrawn without explicit permission, relieved Garnett of command and pressed charges against him.  Garnett was later killed at Gettysburg. 

Our next stop is a true gem and well worth a visit if you do nothing else in the Winchester area.  The Kernstown Battlefield encompasses Pritchard's Hill and the surrounding property, including the 1854 Pritchard House.  The site is a true preservation success story.  Through efforts led by the Kernstown Battlefield Association (KBA), the property was spared from developers' bulldozers in the early 2000s.  Aside from the First Battle of Kernstown, the site was also the scene of fighting during the Second Battle of Winchester (June 13-15, 1863) and the Second Battle of Kernstown (July 24, 1864).

Ken and I stopped at the Visitor Center.  Although a bit outdated in style, the small collection of exhibits does a thorough job of helping visitors make sense of the various engagements that took place on the Pritchard farmland.   We also had the good fortune of dropping by on a day when the KBA was offering docent-led tours of the Pritchard House.  The outside of the Pritchard House is largely restored, but the inside is still a work in progress. Our guide, Sue Golden, took us through the rooms of the home and provided valuable insights into the sad history of the Pritchard family during and after the war. 

The Pritchard House, built in 1854.  Samuel Pritchard and his family took shelter in the house's basement each time the armies fought on their property.  The house also served as a hospital following the battles.  Union Gen. Philip Sheridan's cavalry chief, Alfred Torbert, used the Pritchard House as headquarters in 1864.  Like many families in the Valley, the war devastated the Pritchard's business and property.  After the war, Mr. Pritchard filed a claim with the Southern Claims Commission for over $5,000 in damages, but the Commission rejected his claim on the grounds that Pritchard had been disloyal to the Union.

Looking up to the top of Pritchard's Hill from the walking path.  Federal guns occupied this high ground during the First and Second Battles of Kernstown and the Second Battle of Winchester.

Ken and I next hiked across the battlefield in the mid-day sun.  The Walking Trail Guide (available in the Visitor Center) and informative historical markers helped to make the tour a true learning experience.  And of course, nothing beats walking over the very terrain where the fighting occurred.  Standing atop Pritchard's Hill, I could surely see why Jackson's men fared so badly against the Federal artillery placed there.

Looking out towards the site of the Confederate advance towards Pritchard's Hill during the First Battle of Kernstown. Fulkerson led the 37th and 23rd Virginia in a movement to flank the Federal batteries atop the hill. The 33rd Virginia, part of Garnett's brigade, followed. The artillery fire became so hot that the regiments turned to the west and took refuge in woods on Sandy Ridge.  The historical marker explains the action that took place here.

Stone fence along Pritchard's Lane.  Union Col. James Mulligan's troops made a last-ditch stand against Jubal Early's Confederates at this spot during the Second Battle of Kernstown.  Mulligan was mortally wounded and later died in the Pritchard House.

Ken and I spent about two hours exploring the battlefield.  When all was said and done, the trip to the Kernstown Battlefield was a highlight of the Winchester weekend and was the perfect end to a perfect Civil War weekend.  My friend and I returned to McLean, comparing impressions from the last couple days. Winchester is well worth a trip, whether you live in the DC area or elsewhere.  And because I concentrated on 1862 this time around, I couldn't be happier that I have every reason to get back to the Winchester area within the next couple of years.

Information and Sources
Aside from the links provided above, the following sites are useful for planning a trip to Winchester's 1862 battlefields:

1) Shenandoah at War by the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation.

2)  The Kernstown Battlefield site by the KBA.

The Visitor Center at Kernstown Battlefield also sells First and Second Battles of Kernstown: Pritchard-Grim Farm.  This booklet provides a good overview of the two engagements and features pieces by well-known historians Gary Ecelbarger and Scott Patchen.