Compiled by Jim Hachtel, President
Gen. William T. Sherman Memorial Civil War Roundtable
September 9, 1862 - The large Confederate Army moves through Frederick, Maryland but General Lee worries about the Union garrison at Harper's Ferry, western Virginia, cutting his supply/communication lines. He writes Special Order No.191, ordering General Thomas J. Jackson to move directly back into the Shenandoah Valley and Generals Lafayette Mclaws and John J. Walker, taking a different route, all meeting up and capturing Harper's Ferry. At the same time, General Lee orders General Longstreet to advance toward Hagerstown, Maryland, splitting his army in two.
September 9, 1862 - General Samuel P. Heintzelman takes charge of the Union's defenses south of the Potomac River near Washington, D.C.
September 9, 1862 - Skirmishing at Williamsburg, Virginia continues. The Union has the stronger force in this area.
September 10, 1862 - General Lee fears Union General McClellan will close in on his position before General Longstreet can meet up with the main part of the Army of the Potomac. Lee dispatches General Daniel H. Hill to South Mountain, to delay any advance, as a precaution.
September 10, 1862 - General McClellan discovers that Lee has abandoned Frederick, Maryland and begins to move his Army with caution.
September 10, 1862 - Cincinnati, Ohio prepares for General Edmond Kirby-Smith's raid by posting over 50,000 squirrel hunters, volunteers, and state militia troops.
September 11, 1862 - Governor Andrew G. Curtin calls for 50,000 locals to defend Maryland from the Confederates.
September 11, 1862 - General Lee's Army occupies Hagerstown, Maryland. The Union Army continues to move toward Frederick.
September 11, 1862 - Confederate raiders under General Kirby-Smith capture Maysville, Kentucky, closer to Cincinnati.
September 12, 1862 - Pennsylvania's treasury and State archives are moved from Harrisburg and Philadelphia to New York.
September 12, 1862 - The last Confederate troops in Frederick, Maryland move north as General McClellan's 75,000-man force arrives.
September 12, 1862 - Union General Julius White moves his 2,000 troops from Martindale, Virginia to join the main force at Harper's Ferry. General Jackson approaches Harper's Ferry.
September 12, 1862 - General Kirby-Smith enters Glasgow, Kentucky.
September 13, 1862 - On the campground at Frederick, Maryland, recently abandoned by General Lee's army, Private Barton W. Mitchell of the 27th Indiana finds a copy of General Lee's Special Order No. 191 wrapped around three cigars. His commander, Colonel Robert H. Chilton, dispatches this prize through channels to General McClellan. McClellan realizes that Lee's army is badly dispersed and could be defeated. General McClellan misses the opportunity he has gained by delaying some 16 hours before starting to move in pursuit.
September 13, 1862 - Harper's Ferry is surrounded by a three-pronged Confederate force. General McLaws holds Maryland Heights, General Walker captures Loudoun Heights and General Jackson occupies School House Ridge, cutting off the town. About 23,000 Confederates trap colonel Dixon S. Miles and his 12,000 Union soldiers. General Lee's order to General Jackson is to take the town in two days or abandon the area and rejoin the badly dispersed army.
September 13, 1862 - Union troops at Munfordville, a Missouri brigade under General James R. Chalmers surrounds Kentucky. Colonel John T. Wilder refuses to surrender.
September 14, 1862 - General McClellan plans to catch General Lee's armies before they can regroup. He orders the I and IX Corps to march through Fox and Turner's passes on South Mountain by 9:00 AM. Confederate forces of Gen. D. H. Hill delay them until after 4:00 PM. General Longstreet re-enforces the Confederates while Union forces of General Ambrose E. Burnside and a corps from General Hooker's army joins in. South Mountain is finally cleared at 10:00 PM but an opportunity to capture the Southerners from behind as they besiege Harper's Ferry is lost. Losses run high on both sides.
September 14, 1862 - Harper's Ferry fighting continues with both sides suffering losses and failing to take advantage of strengths. General William B. Franklin over estimates the Confederate force strength and does not attack General McLaws' position, now in Pleasant Valley. This delay lasts overnight and allows the Confederates artillery to bombard Colonel Dixon's garrison into submission with few causalities. The delay also means General Jackson must begin his withdrawal to Sharpsburg.
September 14, 1862 - Colonel Benjamin F. Grimes and his 1,400 Union cavalrymen find an unguarded road and escape from Harper's Ferry. This saves both the 8th New York and the 12th Illinois Cavalries. They capture 97 Confederate supply wagons headed to Maryland during the escape.
September 14, 1862 - General Don C. Buell, commanding the Army of the Ohio, advances to Bowling Green, Kentucky.
September 14, 1862 - Colonel Wilder holds off Confederates at Munfordville, Kentucky by holding two fortified blockhouses. General Chalmers demands surrender and Wilder again refuses.
September 15, 1862 - General Robert E. Lee consolidates his armies near Sharpsburg, Maryland and instructs General Jackson to leave the Shenandoah Valley and join him with all haste.
September 15, 1862 - At Harpers Ferry, the Confederate bombardment continues with Colonel Dixon A. Miles being killed. General Julius White surrenders the Union garrison at Harper's Ferry, western Virginia to General Thomas J. Jackson. This is the largest capitulation by Union forces in the Civil War and the largest number of American's captured until Bataan Peninsula, Philippines in April 1942.
September 15, 1862 - General Braxton Bragg besieges the Union garrison in Munfordville, Kentucky and send two corps, led by Leonidas Polk and William Hardee to surround the town. General Simon B. Buckner, who owns a home in Munfordville, ultimately convinces Bragg that no attack should be carried out.
September 15, 1862 - General Kirby-Smith advances to Covington, Kentucky, opposite Cincinnati, but then retreats to Lexington.
