Sep 14 1862 (Sunday)

George Washington Morgan holds a council of war. His division of the Army of the Ohio has held Cumberland Gap since June but, cut off by the advance of Kirby Smith into Kentucky, is now down to "about three weeks supplies for...[the] entire command"

HEADQUARTERS CUMBERLAND GAP, September 14, 1862. - A council of war, convened by Brigadier-General Morgan, commanding the United States forces at Cumberland Gap assembled at these headquarters at 11 a.m. to-day....The proceedings were opened by General Morgan, stating in detail the information in his possession relative to the positions and numbers of the Union and rebel forces in Virginia, Kentucky, and Tennessee, and as to the probabilities of succor both in force and supplies reaching this post, and of the condition of the force as to supplies of food, clothing, and ammunition. General Morgan stated that the council was convened to consider the question of remaining here or evacuating the position, and that he should be governed, as far as that question was concerned, by the decision of the council. After a free interchange of opinion it was agreed unanimously that in view of all the circumstances of the case the position should be evacuated. GEORGE W. MORGAN, Brigadier-General, Commanding, JAMES G. SPEARS, Brigadier-General, Commanding -First Brigade, A. BAIRD, Brigadier-General, Commanding Second Brigade, S. P. CARTER, Brigadier-General, Commanding Third Brigade, WILLIAM P. CRAIGHILL, First Lieut. of Engineers, Recorder of the Council.

Without consulting his commander Braxton Bragg, James Chalmers decides to march to the Green River and attack the Union outpost guarding the Louisville and Nashville Railroad bridge. After unsuccessfully attacking the Federal entrenchments for four hours, Chalmers demands that the forces led by John T. Wilder surrender. Wilder calls Chalmers' bluff and the Confederates are forced into an embarrassing retreat.

To this demand and these arguments Colonel Wilder returned the following answer: Brig. Gen. JAMES R. CHALMERS, Commanding First Brigade, Right Wing, Army of the Mississippi: Your note demanding the unconditional surrender of my forces has been received. Thank you for your compliments. If you wish to avoid further bloodshed keep out of the range of my guns. As to re-enforcements, they are now entering my works. I think I can defend my position against your entire force; at least I shall try to do so. J. T. WILDER, Colonel Seventeenth Indiana Volunteers, Comdg. U. S. Forces at Green River.

At Harper's Ferry, Colonel Dixon Miles receives a message from George McClellan indicating that help is on the way. "You may count on our making every effort to relieve you." "Little Mac" also urges the worried commander to "hold out to the last extremity." "Stonewall" Jackson, commanding the forces besieging Miles, spends the day putting batteries in place and arranging his troops for a final assault.

SPECIAL ORDERS No. . HEADQUARTERS VALLEY DISTRICT, September 14, 1862. To-day Major-General McLaws will attack so as to sweep with his artillery the ground occupied by the enemy, take his batteries in reverse, and otherwise operate against him, as circumstances may justify. Brigadier-General Walker will take in reverse the battery on the turnpike, and also sweep with his artillery the ground occupied by the enemy, and silence the battery on the island in the Shenandoah should he find a battery there. Maj. Gen. A.P. Hill will move along the left bank of the Shenandoah, and thus turn the enemy's left flank and enter Harper's Ferry. Brigadier-General Lawton will move along the turnpike for the purpose of supporting General Hill and otherwise operating against the enemy on the left of General Hill. Brigadier-General Jones will, with one of his brigades and a battery of artillery, make a demonstration against the enemy's right; the remaining part of his division will constitute the reserve and move along the turnpike. By order of Major-General Jackson: WM. L. JACKSON, Acting Assistant Adjutant-General.

At the end of the day, Jackson sends a message to Robert E. Lee indicating that he expects Harper's Ferry to fall in the morning. In the embattled village, Colonel Benjamin Franklin Davis, commanding 1,300 cavalrymen trapped in the artillery battle, persuades Miles to allow his troopers to make a break for it. The road Davis plans to use runs between Elk Mountain and Sharpsburg and is the same road that John Brown used when he advanced on Harper's Ferry in 1859.

Report of Lieut. Henry M. Binney, Tenth Maine Infantry, aide-de-camp of operations at Harper's Ferry. - HARPER'S FERRY. - Brig. Gen. JULIUS WHITE, Commanding Troops at Harper's Ferry. - GENERAL: Sunday, September 14, 1862.--Our cavalry...hold a consultation at Colonel Miles' quarters, and Colonel Miles issues an order for them to cross the pontoon bridge, and take Sharpsburg road and cut their way out to our army....Colonel Miles again expresses much anxiety, and fears if the enemy opens again in the morning he cannot hold out. No information can be obtained as to the whereabouts of army. Several attempts of Colonel Miles to open a communication had failed, and we hear of no effort being made to send us assistance. Several regimental officers advise him to surrender or evacuate. His reply was, "My last order from headquarters was to hold on at all hazards, and I shall hold on until my last shell is expended. O, where is McClellan and his army?" &c. Three full divisions are now in our front; we are entirely surrounded. Rebels in front are all under General Jackson and A. P. Hill....Colonel Miles, aware that a desperate struggle must take place by daybreak in the morning...decides to remove the heavy artillery to Bolivar Heights and fight it out there, and determined to hold out as long as possible, in hopes that assistance may arrive....Respectfully submitted. HENRY M. BINNEY, Lieutenant and Aide-de-Camp.

After spending most of yesterday basking in the glow of discovering Lee's lost orders, George McClellan plans to move his army across South Mountain to be in a position to strike at Lee's exposed army which is, according to Special Orders #191, gathering at Boonesboro. The terrain of South Mountain is "irregular, marked by ravines and hollows and rounded peaks." The Federal route through Turner's Gap is blocked by the 5,000 man division led by Daniel Harvey Hill. It is this small force which must hold back the bulk of the Union army if Lee's army is to be saved. After a day of savage fighting, John Gibbon's Iron Brigade, wearing their distinctive black felt hats, is selected for a final assault on the Confederate position. As they struggle to maneuver into battle line, Gibbon's men hear taunts from the Georgia boys facing them: "Oh you damn black hats, we gave you hell at Bull Run!" One of Gibbon's men responds: "You thieving scoundrels, no McDowell after you now!"

Report of Col. Solomon Meredith, Nineteenth Indiana Infantry. - HEADQUARTERS GIBBON'S BRIGADE, Camp near Sharpsburg, Md., September 20, 1862. - Lieut. FRANK A. HASKELL, Acting Assistant Adjutant-General. - DEAR SIR: The Nineteenth gave a shout, and pressed for-ward---continued a steady step forward, cheering all the time. It was a most magnificent sight to see the boys of the Nineteenth going forward, crowding the enemy, cheering all the time. After driving the enemy about three-quarters of a mile, I discovered a stone fence in-front, which the enemy had fallen back to. At that point they were annoying us very much. I then ordered Captain Clark, Company G, to wheel his company to the left, and move by the right flank until he could command the line of battle lying directly behind the stone fence. They then opened a flank fire upon the enemy, causing them to retreat precipitately, which gave us an opportunity of pouring upon them a raking fire as they retreated....The Second Wisconsin came to our support promptly as soon as the firing became general, and stood by the Nineteenth until the enemy fled over the mountain. After the firing ceased in front, we discovered the enemy, who was concealed behind a stone fence on the right of the pike, in front of the Seventh Wisconsin, annoying them by a deadly fire behind their breastworks. Colonel Fairchild, commanding Second Wisconsin, wheeled the left wing of his regiment, and opened an enfilading fire upon the enemy....I then took forward my regiment and...continued an enfilading fire upon the enemy, who soon fell back from their strong position, the Wisconsin and Indiana boys giving three hearty cheers as the fate of the day was thus decided....Very respectfully, your obedient servant, S. MEREDITH, Colonel Nineteenth Indiana Volunteers.

D.H. Hill's rugged resistance is aided by the ineptitude and slowness of the Union general commanding on the field, Ambrose Burnside. Although he watches the ongoing battle intently from a knoll only a few miles away, George McClellan is content to let his generals manage the affairs on the battlefield. After Gibbon's assault peters out, the fighting fades as darkness prevails. Lee and James Longstreet ride up to confer with Hill and it is agreed that they must withdraw before daylight. As McClellan wires Washington to declare that he has won "a glorious victory," Robert E. Lee knows that what he has gained is even more valuable--time to concentrate the scattered Army of Northern Virginia.

Report of Maj. Gen. Daniel H. Hill, C. S. Army, commanding division. - HEADQUARTERS DIVISION, ------,1862. - Gen. R. H. CHILTON, Assistant Adjutant-General. - GENERAL: Should the truth ever be known, the battle of South Mountain, as far as my division was concerned, will be regarded as one of the most remarkable and creditable of the war....The division numbered less than 5,000 men the morning of September 14, and had five roads to guard, extending over a space of as many miles. This small force successfully resisted, without support, for eight hours, the whole Yankee army, and, when its supports were beaten; still held the roads, so that our retreat was effected without the loss of a gun, a wagon, or an ambulance....Had Longstreet's division been with mine at daylight in the morning, the Yankees would have been disastrously repulsed; but they had gained important positions before the arrival of re-enforcements. These additional troops came up, after a long, hurried, and exhausting march, to defend localities of which they were ignorant, and to fight a foe flushed with partial success, and already holding key-points to further advance. Had our forces never been separated...the Yankees would not have even the shadow of consolation for the loss of Harper's Ferry....Respectfully submitted D. H. HILL, Major-General.

Casualties for the day: Union 1,813 Confederate 2,685

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Sep 15 1862 (Monday)

After Chalmers' debacle at Munfordville, Braxton Bragg is compelled to deal with the stubborn Yankees at the L&N Railroad bridge. For Bragg, the stain of defeat cannot be left to fester within his army. Accordingly, he orders his army to move out at 10 A.M. "to-ward Munfordville, by the Louisville turnpike."

HDQRS. SECOND BRIGADE, RESERVE DIVISION, RIGHT WING ARMY OF THE MISSISSIPPI, Cave City, Ky., September 15, 1862. - Major HUGER, A. A. G., Res. Div,, Right Wing Army of the Miss. - MAJOR: The information upon which I made the attack deceived me completely as to the number of the enemy, the strength of their works, and the possibility of their being re-enforced....Their works were extensive and complete and mounted with heavier guns than I had....I fear that I may have incurred censure at headquarters by my action in this matter, but with the information in my possession I felt that it was my duty to make the attempt and I could only believe that the result would be successful....I am, major, very respectfully, your obedient servant, JAMES R. CHALMERS, Brigadier-General.

At dawn, "Stonewall" Jackson unleashes the batteries that he had so painstakingly placed on Maryland and Loudon Heights. Shortly afterwards his own guns on Bolivar Heights join in the cannonade. The Confederate artillery fire is brutal and efficient and shortly before 8 A.M., a white flag is flying over Harper's Ferry. Jackson quickly sends a dispatch to General Lee: "Through God's blessing, Harper's Ferry and its garrison are to be surrendered...[my] forces can move...this evening....To what point shall they move?"

Report of Lieut. Henry M. Binney, Tenth Maine Infantry, aide-de-camp. - HARPER'S FERRY. - Brig. Gen. JULIUS WHITE, Commanding Troops at Harper's Ferry. - GENERAL: Colonel Miles...remarked, "Well...we have done our duty, but where can McClellan be...? Immediately after a shell passed us, striking and exploding immediately behind us, piece of which tore the flesh entirely from his left calf, and a small piece cutting his right calf slightly....Colonel Miles remarked on his death-bed, "He had done his duty; he was an old soldier and willing to die." It was a fit end for an old soldier. He had nothing to lose, he said, but he only regretted he could not live to do justice to the gentlemen so closely connected with him....He said he could not understand why the Government was so slow in sending him assistance. He had held the position against an army of 40,000 for five days and a half, two and a half of which were constantly engaged in a heavy artillery duel. He thought the army must know of his situation, and the tremendous cannonading must have been heard by McClellan....Respectfully submitted. HENRY M. BINNEY, Lieutenant and Aide-de-Camp.

B.F. Davis' cavalry successfully evade the Confederate forces surrounding Harper's Ferry. On their trek they come upon a Rebel wagon train and, after dispersing the cavalry escorts, bring the wagons with them to Greencastle, Pennsylvania.

HARRISBURG, PA., September 15, 1862. - Hon. E. M. STANTON, Secretary of War: United States cavalry, from Harper's Ferry, has arrived at Greencastle, under command of Colonel Davis, Eighth New York....They left Harper's Ferry at 9 o'clock last evening, and cut their way through. One mile out from Williamsport they captured Longstreet's ordnance train, comprising 40 wagons; also brought in 40 prisoners. Fighting has been going on for two days at Harper's Ferry....Colonel Davis says he thinks Colonel Miles will surrender this morning....A. G. CURTIN, Governor of Pennsylvania.

The reports coming in to George McClellan's headquarters are unanimous in their exaltation. Joe Hooker reports: "Lee said publicly last night that they must admit they had been shockingly whipped." George Armstrong Custer, still attached to McClellan's staff, tells "Little Mac": "Lee reports he lost 15,000 men yesterday." Finally having achieved a victory over the redoubtable Robert E. Lee, McClellan cannot help sharing the news with his old commander, the seventy-six year old Winfield Scott.

CAMP NEAR BOONSBOROUGH, MD., September 15, 1862. - Lieut. Gen. WINFIELD SCOTT, West Point: We attacked a large force of the enemy yesterday, occupying a strong mountain pass, 4 miles west of Middletown. Our troops, old and new regiments, behaved most valiantly and gained a signal victory. R.E. Lee in command. The rebels routed, and retreating in disorder this morning. We are pursuing closely and taking many prisoners. GEO. B. McCLELLAN, Major-general.

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Sep 16 1862 (Tuesday)

John Pope reaches his new headquarters at St. Paul, Minnesota. Pope, eager to redeem his shattered reputation, has big plans for dealing with the rebellious Indians in his new jurisdiction.

SAINT PAUL, MINN., September 16, 1862--5.30 p.m. - Major-General HALLECK: From all indications and information we are likely to have a general Indian war all along the frontier, unless immediate steps are taken to put a stop to it. I have requested the Governors of Iowa and Wisconsin not to send any troops from their States for the present without advising me about it....You have no idea of the terrible destruction already done and of the panic everywhere in Wisconsin and Minnesota. Unless very prompt steps are taken these States will be half depopulated before the winter begins. Already populations have been totally abandoned with everything in them. Crops are all left standing, and the whole population are fleeing to the river....Time is everything here, and I must take unusual means to hasten matters. Please send me regular surgeon. JNO. POPE, Major-General.

Governor Samuel Kirkwood of Iowa wants his Iowa troops commanded by Iowan officers. Halleck denies Kirkwood's request telling the western governor that such a system "would utterly ruin the service."

EXECUTIVE OFFICE, IOWA, Iowa City, September 16, 1862. - Hon. E. M. STANTON, Secretary of War, Washington, D. C.: - SIR: I feel compelled to insist upon the brigading of our troops in that State and placing them under command of brigadier-generals from this State....Our regiments scattered among Missouri troops are under control of Missouri officers. They are assigned to the most laborious and least desirable service; they have, in their opinion, less opportunity for distinction and less chance for a fair representation of what they may do....This cannot continue with advantage to the service in my judgment....Cannot my request be granted, that our troops in Missouri be placed under command of Iowa brigadiers? Cannot this State have a few more brigadiers? If not, why not? Very respectfully, your obedient servant, SAMUEL J. KIRKWOOD.

When Braxton Bragg brings his army back to Munfordville, he faces a new Union commander. Cyrus Dunham, who had brought in much needed reinforcements, outranks John Wilder and finds himself facing an even greater threat than Wilder had. In a panic Dunham wired Louisville for instructions and is ordered to return the command to Wilder. Equally perplexed, Wilder crosses the lines under a flag of truce and seeks out Confederate General Simon Bolivar Buckner. "I came to find out what I ought to do." Buckner gives Wilder a tour of the Confederate lines, and after viewing the strength arrayed against him, Wilder knows he has no choice. "It seems to be, General Buckner, that I ought to surrender."

HEADQUARTERS UNITED STATES FORCES, Munfordville, Ky., September 16, 1862. - General BRAXTON BRAGG, Commanding C. S. Forces near Munfordville, Ky.: - SIR: At a consultation of officers of this command, held since dark this evening, it is agreed upon that if satisfactory evidence is given them of your ability to make good your assertions of largely superior numbers, so as to make the defense of this position a useless waste of human life, we will treat as to terms of an honorable surrender. I am, sir, very respectfully, yours, &c., J. T. WILDER, Colonel, Commanding.

William Wing Loring has been advancing his army up the Kanawha Valley. He pauses his army in Charleston, West Virginia, "until our supply train reaches us" and reports to Richmond on the "magnificent crop of growing corn" that only lacks "sufficient labor to supply the whole Confederacy." Loring also issues a proclamation to the people of West Virginia, the third proclamation by a Confederate commander invading a Union state in the last two weeks.

To the People of Western Virginia: The army of the Confederate States has come among you to expel the enemy, to rescue the people from the despotism of the counterfeit State government imposed on you by Northern bayonets, and to restore the country once more to its natural allegiance to the State. We fight for peace and the possession of our own territory....When the liberal policy of the Confederate Government shall be introduced and made known to the people...the commanding general expects the people heartily to sustain it...as a deliverance from their task-masters and usurpers....Your country has been reclaimed for you from the enemy by soldiers, many of whom are from distant parts of the State and the Confederacy, and you will prove unworthy to possess so beautiful and fruitful a land if you do not now rise to retain and defend it....By command of Major-General Loring: H. FITZHUGH, Chief of Staff.

Robert E. Lee decides to pull his army back to Sharpsburg. He forms his line of battle behind the Antietam Creek and orders James Longstreet to spread out his infantry along a wide front. Not knowing what has caused the usually defensive minded McClellan to take the offensive so suddenly, "Stonewall" Jackson remarks: "I thought I knew McClellan, but this movement of his puzzles men."

HEADQUARTERS, Sharpsburg, Md., September 16, 1862. - His Excellency President DAVIS. - Mr. PRESIDENT: Learning...that Crampton's Gap had been forced...I determined to withdraw Longstreet and D. H. Hill from their positions and retire to the vicinity of Sharpsburg, where the army could be more easily united....The enemy did not pass through the gap until about 8 o'clock of the morning after the battle, and their advance reached a position in front of us about 2 p.m....I am, with high respect, your obedient servant, R. E. LEE, General.

Despite the recent victory, all is not well in the Army of the Potomac. Although Sharpsburg is only eight miles from Turner's Gap, it takes his army most of the day to catch the retreating Confederate army. "Little Mac" singles out his longtime friend Ambrose Burnside as being responsible for the dilatory nature of the advance.

HEADQUARTERS ARMY OF THE POTOMAC, September 16, 1862. - Major-General BURNSIDE, Commanding Ninth Corps, &c.: - GENERAL: The general commanding has learned that, although your corps was ordered to be in a designated position at 12 m. to-day, at or near sunset only one division and four batteries had reached the ground intended for your troops. The general has also been advised that there was a delay of some four hours in the movement of your command yesterday. I am instructed to call upon you for explanations of these failures on your part to comply with the orders given you, and to add, in view of the important military operations now at hand, the commanding general cannot lightly regard such marked departure from the tenor of his instructions. I am, general, very respectfully, your obedient servant, ----- -------, Lieutenant-Colonel, Aide-de-Camp, and Actg. Asst. Adjt. Gen.

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Sep 17 1862 (Wednesday)

At six o'clock in the morning, John Wilder bows to the inevitable. "With all the honors of war, drums beating and colors flying," his men march out. It is Braxton Bragg's first victory as an army commander and now "after an admirably devised and executed movement of more than 600 miles." Bragg has his army "exactly where he [wants] it--squarely across the enemy's line of communication."

HEADQUARTERS DEPARTMENT NO. 2, Munfordville, Ky., September 17, 1862. - The ADJUTANT-GENERAL C. S. ARMY. - SIR: My position must be exceedingly embarrassing to Buell and his army. They dare not attack me, and yet no other escape seems to be open to them....The men are much jaded and somewhat destitute, but cheerful and confident without a murmur. We move soon on a combined expedition with General Smith. Very respectfully, your obedient servant, BRAXTON BRAGG, General Commanding.

Three days after his council of war, George Morgan marches his men away from Cumberland Gap. HEADQUARTERS UNITED STATES FORCES, Greenupsburg, Ky. - Maj. Gen. HORATIO G. WRIGHT, Cincinnati, Ohio. - GENERAL: On the night of the 17th of September...with Bragg and Marshall on my flanks, and Kirby Smith in my rear, my command marched from Cumberland Gap mid the explosion of mines and magazines and lighted by the blaze of the store-houses of the commissary and quartermaster. The sight was grand....I have brought away all the guns but four 30-pounders, which were destroyed by knocking off the trunnions....With high respect, GEORGE W. MORGAN, Brigadier-General, Commanding. Facing each other "across the Antietam's shallow valley" it is clear to all that a big fight is going to occur. "Fighting Joe" Hooker has his corps advancing at first light. His objective, less than a mile away, is a small hill just east of the Hagerstown turnpike. When he runs into Confederate defenders in a cornfield in his immediate front, the battle begins.

Reports of Maj. Gen. Joseph Hooker, U.S. Army, commanding First Army Corps. - HEADQUARTERS FIRST CORPS, ARMY OF THE POTOMAC, Washington, D.C. - Brig. Gen. S. WILLIAMS, Assistant Adjutant-General, Army of the Potomac. - GENERAL: At daylight we were fully prepared to renew our march, which lay through orchards, corn-fields, and over plowed ground, skirted on either side by forests, the cleared space between which averaging not more than 400 or 500 yards in width, the field and the object in view narrowing my front to quite a limited degree....My object was to gain the high ground nearly three-quarters of a mile in advance of me....We had not proceeded far before I discovered that a heavy force of the enemy had taken possession of a corn-field in my immediate front, and from the sun's rays falling on their bayonets projecting above the corn could see that the field was filled with the enemy, with arms in their hands, standing apparently at "support arms." Instructions were immediately given for the assemblage of all of my spare batteries, near at hand...and to open with canister at once....Every stalk of corn in the northern and greater part of the field was cut as closely as could have been done with a knife, and the slain lay in rows precisely as they had stood in their ranks a few moments before. It was never my fortune to witness a more bloody, dismal battle-field. Those that escaped fled in the opposite direction from our advance, and sought refuge behind the trees, fences, and stone ledges nearly on a line with the Dunker Church, &c., as there was no resisting this torrent of death-dealing missives....My command followed the fugitives closely until we had passed the corn-field a quarter of a mile or more....[HOOKER.]

At 7 a.m., John Bell Hood's division, interrupted while trying to cook their first hot meal in days, launches a vicious counterattack that hits Hooker's line "like a scythe."

Report of Brig. Gen. John B. Hood, C. S. Army, commanding division - DIVISION HEADQUARTERS, Maj. G. MOXLEY SORREL, Assistant Adjutant General. - SIR: I at once marched out on the field in line of battle and soon became engaged with an immense force of the enemy....It was here that I witnessed the most terrible clash of arms, by far, that has occurred during the war. The two little giant brigades of this division wrestled with this mighty force, losing hundreds of their gallant officers and men but driving the enemy from his position and forcing him to abandon his guns on our left. The battle raged with the greatest fury until about 9 o'clock, the enemy being driven from 400 to 500 yards. Fighting, as we were, at right angles with the general line of battle...caused the enemy to pour in a heavy fire upon the rear and right flank of Colonel Law's brigade, rendering it necessary to move the division to the left and rear into the woods near the Saint Mumma church, which we continued to hold until 10 a.m....I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, J. B. HOOD, Brigadier-General, Commanding Division.

At 10 a.m., Hooker is wounded. "I was removed from my saddle in the act of falling out of it from loss of blood." Hooker's disability puts Edwin "Old Bull Head" Sumner in command of the attack; a situation that McClellan has striven mightily to avoid. On the Peninsula, McClellan described Sumner as "even a greater fool than I had supposed."

To General McCLELLAN: We have just heard from the front. General Hooker is wounded. General Sumner is in command. PIERCE AND BARRETT.

The Sumner-led attacks near the Dunker Church fail due, in equal measure, to Sumner's ineffectiveness and the stout resistance of the Confederate defenders. While Sumner is away, William "Old Blinky" French's division reaches the field alone and without orders. When French marches his troops across the fields of the Mumma farm they smash into D.H. Hill's men entrenched in an old sunken wagon road. As the fighting in the center of the battlefield becomes more intense, French is reinforced by Israel Richardson's division, with the hard fighting Irish Brigade in the lead.

Report of Brig. Gen. Thomas Francis Meagher, U. S. Army, commanding Second Brigade. - HDQRS. (IRISH BRIG.) 2D BRIG., SUMNER'S CORPS, HANCOCK'S DIVISION, ARMY OF THE POTOMAC, In Camp on Bolivar Heights, Va. - Captain HANCOCK, Assistant Adjutant-General, Division Headquarters. - CAPTAIN: On coming into this close and fatal contact with the enemy, the officers and men of the brigade waved their swords and hats and gave the heartiest cheers for their general, George B. McClellan, and the Army of the Potomac. Never were men in higher spirits....My orders were, that, after the first and second volleys delivered in line of battle by the brigade, the brigade should charge with fixed bayonets on the enemy....I permitted them to deliver their five or six volleys, and then personally ordered them to charge upon the rebel columns....It was my design...to push the enemy on both their fronts as they displayed themselves to us, and, relying on the impetuosity and recklessness of Irish soldiers in a charge, felt confident that before such a charge the rebel column would give way and be dispersed. Advancing on the right and left obliquely from the center, the brigade poured in an effective and powerful fire upon the column....Despite a fire of musketry, which literally cut lanes through our approaching line, the brigade advanced under my personal command within 30 paces of the enemy, and at this point...the regiment halted....The charge of bayonets I had ordered on the left was arrested, and thus the brigade, instead of advancing and dispersing the column with the bayonet, stood and delivered its fire, persistently and effectually maintaining every inch of the ground they occupied....I have the honor to be, captain, yours truly and respectfully, THOMAS FRANCIS MEAGHER, Brigadier-General, Commanding the Irish Brigade.

The sunken road is becoming more and more crowded with desperately firing Confederate defenders. In the midst of the growing confusion, Colonel J. N. Lightfoot misinterprets orders given to him by Robert Rodes and calls out: "Sixth Alabama, about face; forward march." This order passes down the line until all five of Rodes' regiments abandon the road. Union Colonel Francis Barlow is quick to take advantage of this terrible mistake.

Report of Col. Francis C. Barlow, commanding Sixty-first and fourth New York Infantry - GENERAL HOSPITAL, Keedysville, Md. - Capt. GEORGE H. CALDWELL, Capt. and Asst. Adjt. Gen., Caldwell's Brigade. - CAPTAIN: My regiments at once advanced over the crest of the hill, and bravely engaged the enemy and fired destructively. With the assistance of the fire of the regiments on our right and left, we broke the enemy on our front, who fled in disorder through a corn-field, suffering severely from the fire of our and the Irish Brigade. The portion of the enemy's line which was not broken then remained lying in a deep road, well protected from a fire in their front. Our position giving us peculiar advantages for attacking in flank this part of the enemy's line, my regiments advanced and obtained an enfilading fire upon the enemy in the aforesaid road. Seeing the uselessness of further resistance, the enemy, in accordance with our demands, threw down their arms, came in large numbers, and surrendered. Upward of 300 prisoners thus taken by my regiments were sent to the rear....I was wounded in the groin by a ball from a spherical-case shot and know nothing of what subsequently occurred....I have the honor to be, captain, your very obedient servant, FRANCIS C. BARLOW, Colonel 61st N.Y. Vols., and Comdg. 64th N. Y. Vols.

With the center of the line in tatters, D.H. Hill scrambles to rally his scattered infantry. James Longstreet orders his staff to man the guns of the Washington Artillery and "Old Pete" himself directs the fire.

Report of Maj. Gen. Daniel H. Hill, C. S. Army, commanding division - HEADQUARTERS DIVISION, ------,1862. - Gen. R. H. CHILTON, Assistant Adjutant-General. - GENERAL: The Yankees began to pour in through the gap made by the retreat of Rodes....There were no troops near, to hold the center, except a few hundred rallied from various brigades....They had now got within a few hundred yards of the hill which commanded Sharpsburg and our rear. Affairs looked very critical. I found a battery concealed in a corn-field, and ordered it to move out and open upon the Yankee columns....A caisson exploded, but the battery unlimbered, and with grape and canister drove the Yankees back. I was now satisfied that the Yankees were so demoralized that a single regiment of fresh men could drive the whole of them in our front across the Antietam. I got up about 200 men, who said they were willing to advance to the attack if I would lead them. We met, however, with a warm reception, and the little command was broken and dispersed....The Yankees were completely deceived by the boldness, and induced to believe that there was a large force in our center. They made no further attempt to pierce our center....Respectfully submitted. D. H. HILL, Major-General.

In the best of times Ambrose Burnside is only a mediocre commander, but when he is in a funk his performance can by abysmal. Burnside has been demoted from commanding a wing of the Army of the Potomac and has lost the confidence of his long time confidant George McClellan. The underlying cause for this can be found at "Little Mac's" headquarters in the person of Fitz-John Porter. Porter, facing court martial charges for his behavior at Second Bull Run, blames Burnsides for his troubles as "Old Burn" has forwarded several of his dispatches "belittling John Pope" to Washington where they were read by Henry Halleck, Edwin Stanton, and President Lincoln. Now, Porter has convinced McClellan that Burnside's "often expressed modest view of his military ability [is]...the truth of the matter."

Reports of. Maj. Gen. Ambrose E. Burnside, U. S. Army, commanding right wing, Army of the Potomac. - HEADQUARTERS RIGHT WING, ARMY OF THE POTOMAC, Near Antietam Bridge. - Brig. Gen. S. WILLIAMS, Adjutant-General. - GENERAL: At 10 o'clock I received an order from the general commanding to make the attack. I directed...General Crook's brigade to make the assault....From General Crook's position it was found to be almost impossible to carry the bridge, and General Sturgis was ordered to make a detail from his division for that purpose. He immediately sent forward the Second Maryland and the Sixth New Hampshire, which regiments made several successive attacks in the most gallant style, but were driven back by the galling fire of the enemy....General Sturgis, by a judicious posting of these two regiments in rear of a spur which fronted the bridge, succeeded in protecting them from the enemy's fire until they reached the crest of the spur, at which point they commenced their charge and carried the bridge at the point of the bayonet at about 1 o'clock, the whole division following immediately. The regiments separated at the head of the bridge to the right and left, and moved up the steep bank crowning the heights immediately beyond. Our loss at this place was fearful, the enemy being posted in rifle-pits and behind barricades, within easy musket range of our men, and almost entirely concealed and covered from our shots....I have the honor to be, very respectfully, your obedient servant, A. E. BURNSIDE, Major-General, Comdg. Right Wing, Army of the Potomac.

The Confederate right flank guarding the Rohrbach Bridge has long since been stripped to the bone. The commanding general, Robert Toombs has only 500 brave Georgians to defend the bridge. It is almost one o'clock before these rugged defenders run out of ammunition and are forced to withdraw in the face of yet another Union assault.

Report of Brig. Gen. Robert Toombs, C. S. Army, commanding division (temporary) - WASHINGTON, GA. - Brig. Gen. D R. JONES. - GENERAL: At between 9 and 10 o'clock the enemy made his first attempt to carry the bridge by a rapid assault, and was repulsed with great slaughter, and at irregular intervals, up to about 1 o'clock, made four other attempts of the same kind, all of which were gallantly met and successfully repulsed by the Twentieth and Second Georgia....Not being able to get any reinforcements...and seeing that the enemy was moving upon them...and my two regiments having been constantly engaged from early in the morning up to 1 o'clock with a vastly superior force of the enemy...I deemed it my duty...to withdraw my command....Though the bridge and upper ford were thus left open to the enemy, he moved with such extreme caution and slowness that he lost nearly two hours in crossing and getting into action on our side of the river....I am, very respectfully, your obedient servant, R. TOOMBS.

It takes Burnsides two hours to cross his command over the bridge and resupply his men with much needed ammunition. With orders from McClellan to press the attack, "Old Burn" pushes his men towards the Harper's Ferry Road. The blue coated attackers, as thick "as Pharaoh's locusts," advance and break through the thin gray line protecting the Confederate right flank. Robert E. Lee joins his officers in attempting to rally the "broken and disorganized commands."

Report of Col. Edward Harland, Eighth Connecticut Infantry, commanding Second Brigade, Third Division HEADQUARTERS SECOND BRIGADE, RODMAN'S DIVISION, Mouth of Antietam Creek, Md., September 22, 1862. - Capt. CHARLES T. GARDNER, Assistant Adjutant-General. - CAPTAIN: When the order was given...the Eighth Regiment Connecticut Volunteers...started promptly. The Sixteenth Regiment Connecticut Volunteers and the Fourth Regiment Rhode Island Volunteers...apparently did not hear my order....This delay on the left placed the Eighth Regiment Connecticut Volunteers considerably in the advance of the rest of the brigade....I turned to see if they were advancing, and saw some infantry belonging to the enemy advancing upon our left flank. Knowing that if they were not checked it would be impossible to hold this part of the field, without waiting for orders, I put the Spurs to my horse to hasten the arrival of the Sixteenth Regiment....The right of the enemy's lines, which was concealed in the edge of the corn-field, opened fire. Our men returned the fire and advanced, but were forced to fall back. Colonel Beach rallied them and returned to the attack, but they were again driven back, this time out of the cornfield, beyond the fence. Here they were again rallied, but as it was impossible to see the enemy, and the men were under fire for the first time, they could not be held....Very respectfully, your obedient servant, EDWARD HARLAND, Colonel, Comdg. Second Brig., Third Div, Ninth Army Corps.

In a repeat of his performance at Cedar Mountain, A. P. Hill leads his Light Division to the rescue. After overseeing the surrender at Harper's Ferry, Hill has pushed his men on a killing seventeen mile march, in less than eight hours, and crashes into the left flank of the advancing Federals.

Reports of Maj. Gen. Ambrose P. Hill, C. S. Army, commanding Light Division. - HEADQUARTERS LIGHT DIVISION, Camp Gregg, Va. - Lieut. Col. C. J. FAULKNER, Assistant Adjutant-General, Second Army Corps. - COLONEL: At 6.30 a.m., I received an order from General Lee to move to Sharpsburg....My division was put in motion at 7.30 a.m. The head of my column arrived upon the battle-field of Sharpsburg, a distance of 17 miles, at 2.30 o'clock, and, reporting in person to General Lee, he directed me to take position on our right....My troops were rapidly thrown into position, Pender and Brockenbrough on the extreme right, looking to a road which crossed the Antietam near its mouth....My troops were not in a moment too soon. The enemy had already advanced in three lines, had broken through Jones' division, captured McIntosh's battery, and were in the full the of success. With a yell of defiance, Archer charged them, retook McIntosh's guns, and drove them back pell mell. Branch and Gregg, with their old veterans, sternly held their ground, and, pouring in destructive volleys, the of the enemy surged back, and, breaking in confusion, passed out of sight....I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, A. P. HILL, Major-General, Commanding Light Division.

Casualties for the day: Union 12,410 Confederates 13,724

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Sep 18 1862 (Thursday)

John Pope tells Colonel Sibley that he is prepared to "bring into the state all the men necessary to put an end to the Indian troubles." Pope wants to push expeditions into "the Indian lands and farms" to "put a final stop to Indian troubles by exterminating or ruining all the Indians engaged in the late outbreak." To man his planned expeditions, Pope detains several newly formed Iowa regiments that have been ordered to St. Louis. Henry Halleck overrules Pope, telling the general: "It is not believed that you will require a very large infantry force against the Indians, as their numbers cannot be very great."

SAINT LOUIS, MO., September 18, 1862. - Major-General HALLECK: General Pope is detaining the Iowa regiments that have been ordered here. I beg of you do not let him take them from me. J. M. SCHOFIELD, Brigadier-General.

Kirby Smith is disappointed in the reaction that Kentucky citizens are giving his 'liberating' army.

HEADQUARTERS ARMY OF KENTUCKY, Lexington, Ky., September 18, 1862. - General BRAXTON BRAGG, Commanding Department No. 2: - I have still some 10,000 stand of arms--the trophies of the Richmond battles. The Kentuckians are slow and backward in rallying to our standard. Their hearts are evidently with us, but their blue-grass and fat-grass are against us....Some steps should be taken toward the organization of a provisional government....I am, sir, respectfully, your obedient servant, E. KIRBY SMITH, Major-General, Commanding.

Sterling Price's advance towards Iuka alarms U.S. Grant. To counter this threat Grant plans on sending the commands of Edward O. Ord and William Rosecrans towards Iuka to trap the Confederate lurking there. Once Ord and Rosecrans are united with "close timing and careful leadership," Price will be caught in a "four-sided trap with no means of escape."

HEADQUARTERS DISTRICT OF WEST TENNESSEE, Burnsville, Miss., September 18, 1862---6.45 p.m. - General ROSECRANS: I sent forward two regiments of infantry, with cavalry, by the road north of the railroad, toward Iuka....In the morning troops will advance from here at 4.30 a.m. An anonymous dispatch, just received, states that Price, Magruder, and Breckinridge have a force of 60,000 between Iuka and Tupelo. This I have no doubt is the understanding of citizens, but I very much doubt their information being correct....Make as rapid an advance as you can and let us do to-morrow all we can....U.S. GRANT, Major-general.

George McClellan wires Henry Halleck informing him of the situation: "The battle of yesterday continued for fourteen hours, and until after dark. We held all we gained....Our losses are heavy, especially in general officers. The battle will probably be renewed today." But the battle is not renewed. Despite holding an overwhelming numerical advantage and having 26,300 fresh troops, "Little Mac" watches and waits for Robert E. Lee's next move. Lee's battered and bruised Army of Northern Virginia, reduced to less than 30,000 fighting men, is incapable of any further attacks and quietly slips away across the Potomac River.

Report of Lieut. Gen. James Longstreet, C. S. Army - HEADQUARTERS, Near Winchester, Va. - Col. R. H. CHILTON, Assistant Adjutant-General. - GENERAL: Our ranks were too much thinned to warrant a renewal of the conflict....The enemy had extended his right so as to rest it upon the Potomac, and thus envelop our left flank. From our position it was impossible to make any move except a direct assault upon some portion of the enemy's line. I therefore took the liberty to address a note to the commanding general, about 2 o'clock in the afternoon, suggesting a withdrawal to the south side of the Potomac. Before my note reached him, however, he rode to my bivouac and expressed the same views. Arrangements to move across the Potomac were completed by dark. My command, moving first, crossed about 2 o'clock in the morning....I remain, sir, most respectfully, your obedient servant, JAMES LONGSTREET, Lieutenant-General, Commanding.

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Sep 19 1862 (Friday)

It has become apparent to Secretary of War George Randolph and Jefferson Davis that the lack of cooperation currently being exhibited by Sterling Price and Earl Van Dorn imperils both of their small commands. Randolph sends a dispatch to Van Dorn expressing his misgivings. "We fear that a serious misunderstanding exists with reference to the movements of Price...and yourself....Cooperation seems to us essential to success and nothing should be allowed to obstruct it." Davis sends a message to Braxton Bragg, reminding the general that, as Departmental Commander, it is his responsibility to ensure cooperation among his subordinates.

RICHMOND, VA., September 19, 1862. - General BRAGG, (Care of General McCown), Knoxville, Tenn.: Telegrams from Tennessee and Mississippi indicate a want of co intelligence and cooperation among the generals of the several columns. No copy of your instructions in regard to operations in Tennessee has been received, and I am at a loss to know how to remedy evils without damaging your plans. If Van Dorn, Price, and Breckinridge each act for himself disaster to all must be the probable result....JEFFERSON DAVIS.

With Bragg's army astride the Green River at Munfordville, Don Carlos Buell knows that he has lost the race to Kentucky.

DRIPPING SPRINGS. - General GILBERT: I learn that the garrison at Munfordville surrendered this morning and that Bragg immediately threw his entire force across the river. The opinion prevails that he will post rapidly for Louisville, expecting to overpower your new troops without difficulty. If that is his purpose I shall be close upon him, and you should be prepared either for that contingency or to come out if he should take a position to oppose me. My expectation is that he will do the latter, either at Green River or at Muldraugh's Hill....I expect to be at Green River early to-morrow....Troops should be concentrated without a moment's delay at Louisville. Cincinnati is not the point of attack. D. C. BUELL, Major-General.

After giving his troops a full day's rest, George McClellan cautiously pushes his men towards the Confederate lines only to find that the Army of Northern Virginia had retreated back into Virginia. Lee's invasion is over.

HEADQUARTERS ARMY OF THE POTOMAC, Sharpsburg September 19, 1862. - Maj. Gen. H. W. HALLECK, Commanding U. S. Army: I have the honor to report that Maryland is entirely freed from the presence of the enemy, who have been driven across the Potomac. No fears now be entertained for the safety of Pennsylvania. I shall at once occupy Harper's Ferry. GEO. B. McCLELLAN, Major-General, Commanding.

The Federal prisoners paroled at Harper's Ferry are marched under guard to Annapolis. Under the existing rules of exchange, these parolees cannot rejoin the army until they are properly exchanged for Confederate prisoners taken in battle. Among the units forlornly marching north is the 126th New York, a unit that has been in the army exactly 21 days, and now bearing the sobriquet "Harper's Ferry Cowards" in honor of their performance on Maryland Heights.

BALTIMORE, MD., September 19, 1862--11.40 p.m. - Hon. E. M. STANTON, Secretary of War: We have about 10,000 prisoners surrendered at Harper's Ferry, and ordered to Annapolis....We require, to keep these men in order, four regiments....Two other regiments ought to be sent there immediately, in consequence of the plundering propensities of the prisoners, of which there are many complaints....JOHN E. WOOL, Major-General.

The longer Sterling Price keeps his army in Iuka, the more worries about being attacked by either Grant or Rosecrans. Early in the morning, Price gets a message from Van Dorn indicating that he has "at last conceded that...Corinth [is] the key to clearing the Federals from northern Mississippi." However, by this time it too late as his cavalry commander, Frank Armstrong, reports that the Yankees are coming on "in considerable force."

Reports of Maj. Gen. William S. Rosecrans, U.S. Army, commanding Army of the Mississippi. - HEADQUARTERS ARMY OF THE MISSISSIPPI, THIRD DIVISION, DISTRICT OF WEST TENNESSEE, Corinth, Miss., September 29, 1862. - Maj. JOHN A. RAWLINS, Assistant Adjutant-General, District of West Tennessee. - MAJOR: The advance drove the enemy's cavalry skirmishers steadily before them until we arrived within 1½ miles of Iuka....Here we found their infantry and a battery, which gave our advance guard a volley....The action opened immediately with grape and canister from the enemy's battery....The enemy's line of infantry now moved forward on the battery, coming up from the woods on our right ....The battle became furious. Our battery poured in a deadly fire upon the enemy's column advancing up the road, while their musketry, concentrated upon it, soon killed or wounded most of our horses....The enemy penetrated the battery, were repulsed; again returned, were again repulsed, and finally bore down upon it with a column of three regiments and this time carried the battery. The cannoneers were many of them bayoneted at their pieces....W. S. ROSECRANS, Major-General.

The planned junction between Ord's forces and those of Rosecrans never takes place as U.S. Grant, assuming that there is no chance that "Old Rosy" will reach Iuka before dark, halts Ord's columns six miles short the town. For some strange reason the sound of the day's battle, only six miles away, fails to carry to Ord's position and Rosecrans is left to face the Confederates alone

Report of Maj. Gen. Sterling Price, C. S. Army, commanding Army of the West. - HEADQUARTERS ARMY OF the WEST, Baldwyn, Miss. - Lieut. Col. GEORGE G. GARNER, Assistant Adjutant-General, Department No. 2. - COLONEL: The line of battle was instantly formed and the fight began, and was waged with a severity which I have never seen surpassed....I directed General Little to bring forward his two other brigades, which were some 2 miles distant. Just there he fell, pierced through the brain with a Minie ball. Meanwhile Hebert's and Martin's brigades carried on the unequal contest not only successfully but gloriously. They drove the enemy from every position a distance of more than 600 yards, capturing 9 pieces of artillery and taking about 50 prisoners. They were finally staid in their triumphant progress by the darkness just as the First and Third Brigades of Little's division reached the field, eager to avenge the death of their friend and commander. The division bivouacked upon the field of battle....I have, colonel, the honor to be, with great respect, yours, &c., STERLING PRICE, Major-General, Commanding.

Casualties for the day: Union 782 Confederates 1,516

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Sep 20 1862 (Saturday)

General Samuel Curtis is named commander of a new military department to be comprised of the states of Kansas, Missouri, and Arkansas.

HEADQUARTERS OF THE ARMY, Washington, September 20, 1862. - Brigadier-General SCHOFIELD, Saint Louis: GENERAL: The friends of Governor Morton, of Ex-Governor Dennison, of Cassius M. Clay, and of Colonel Blair were pulling all kinds of political wires to cut up the West into departments for the benefit of each. I was very much in hopes that some of the generals out there would gain some brilliant victory, so as to cut off these pretensions of outsiders. But unfortunately nothing of the kind has occurred, and the cry is, Why keep in men who accomplish nothing? The only answer I can give is, Why put in men who know nothing of military affairs? Under these circumstances I have been obliged to leave things as much as possible in status quo. I have done everything in my power here to separate military appointments and commands from politics, but really the task is hopeless. The waste of money and demoralization of the Army by having incompetent and corrupt politicians in nearly all military offices, high and low, are working out terrible results. It is utterly disheartening! Oh, the curse of political expediency! It has almost ruined the Army, and if carried out will soon ruin the country....Yours, truly. H.W. HALLECK.

Kirby Smith encourages Braxton Bragg to move to attack Louisville, Kentucky. Such a prestigious victory is sure to spur further enlistments into the Confederate army. However, Bragg decides that Louisville is not his objective and heads his army eastwards to form a junction with Kirby Smith. Bragg's move leaves the road to Louisville open to Don Carlos Buell who swiftly moves his troops towards that city with all possible speed.

HEADQUARTERS ARMY OF KENTUCKY, Lexington, Ky., September 20, 1862. - General BRAXTON BRAGG, Commanding Department No. 2: - GENERAL: Some of my signal corps report to me that on the 18th instant there were but 6,000 of the enemy in Louisville. They were being re-enforced by troops from Cincinnati and had pressed 1,000 negroes to work on the fortifications. I am informed that since the fall of Munfordville they have but little hope of holding the city, and believe that a rapid movement upon it would result in its capture. I am, general, very respectfully, your obedient servant, E. KIRBY SMITH, Major-General, Commanding.

Sterling Price disappoints his victorious army by withdrawing from Iuka. By 8 a.m. he has extricated his army and supply trains from between the forces of Rosecrans and Grant. When "Old Rosy" learns that it was Grant's order that delayed Ord's army his hands shake with rage. Relations between Rosecrans and U.S. Grant will never be the same.

Report of Maj. Gen. Sterling Price, C. S. Army, commanding Army of the West. - HEADQUARTERS ARMY OF the WEST, Baldwyn, Miss. - Lieut. Col. GEORGE G. GARNER, Assistant Adjutant-General, Department No. 2. - COLONEL: Having...that the enemy had by means of the two railroads massed against me a greatly superior force, and knowing that my position was such that a battle would endanger the safety of my trains even if I should be victorious, of which I had but little doubt, I determine to adhere to my original purpose and to make the movement upon which I had already agreed with General Van Dorn. Orders were issued accordingly, and the wagons trains having been put in motion, the troops were withdrawn from the battle-field a little before sunrise, the enemy manifesting no desire to renew the bloody conflict and firing only two or three shots at my cavalry rear guard. Every wagon and all of the valuable stores that we had taken, together with many of the sick and wounded, were safely brought away.....I have, colonel, the honor to be, with great respect, yours, &c., STERLING PRICE, Major-General, Commanding.

Robert E. Lee informs his President that he has withdrawn back into Virginia. Although beaten, Lee still relishes the chance for another opportunity to attack George McClellan's army.

HEADQUARTERS ARMY OF NORTHERN VIRGINIA, September 20, 1862. - His Excellency JEFFERSON DAVIS, Richmond, Va. - SIR: Since my last letter to you...I determined to cross the army to the Virginia side. This was done at night successfully, nothing being left behind, unless it may have been some disabled guns or broken-down wagons....I am now obliged to return to Shepherdstown, with the intention of driving the enemy back if not in position with his whole army; but, if in full force, I think an attack would be inadvisable, and I shall make other dispositions. I am, with high respect, your obedient servant, R. E. LEE, General.

George McClellan is savoring his battlefield victory over Robert E. Lee. Still, he believes that if "Fighting Joe" Hooker hadn't been wounded, devolving command on the field to the woefully inept "Bull" Sumner, he might have attained an even greater victory.

HEADQUARTERS ARMY OF THE POTOMAC, Sharpsburg, September 20, 1862. - Maj. Gen. JOSEPH HOOKER, Commanding Corps: - MY DEAR HOOKER: Had you not been wounded when you were, I believe the result of the battle would have been the entire destruction of the rebel army, for I know that, with you at its head, your corps would have kept on until it gained the main road....I have requested that the brigadier-general's commission rendered vacant by Mansfield's death may be given to you....I am, my dear general, your sincere friend, GEO. B. McCLELLAN, Major-general.

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