The Stage is Set - Burkittsville MD
Posted by: 
Don.Morfe
N 39° 24.312 W 077° 38.364
18S E 272743 N 4365067
On the evening of September 13, 1862, Confederate cavalry under Brigadier General Wade Hampton and Colonel Thomas Munford occupied the Crampton’s Gap/Burkittsville vicinity.
Waymark Code: WM136BC
Location: Maryland, United States
Date Posted: 09/26/2020
Views: 1
The Stage is Set-On the evening of September 13, 1862, Confederate cavalry under Brigadier General Wade Hampton and Colonel Thomas Munford occupied the Crampton’s Gap/Burkittsville vicinity. Early on the 14th, Major General J.E.B. Stuart, en route to Harpers Ferry, met with Munford and Hampton. Stuart took Hampton’s cavalry with him, leaving Munford’s 2nd and 12th Virginia Cavalry regiments behind. Late that morning Munford, who had fewer than 300 troopers, spotted a large Federal force approaching his position from the east. A mile south of Munford’s position, at Brownsville Pass, Brigadier General Paul Semmes also watched the long blue columns moving closer. To bolster Munford’s line, he sent Colonel William A. Parham’s brigade, the 6th, 12th, and 16th Virginia Infantry regiments and the Portsmouth Light Artillery, as well as the 10th Georgia Infantry from his own brigade.
Across the valley, the Federal VI Corps, numbering 12,800 men and commanded by Major General William Franklin, slowly made its way toward South Mountain. General George B. McClellan, in a lengthy dispatch, ordered Franklin to drive through Crampton’s Gap, fall on McLaw’s rear at Maryland Heights, and relieve the Harpers Ferry garrison. At noon the 96th Pennsylvania Infantry, at the head of Franklin’s column, turned left into Distillery Lane about a quarter of a mile east of Burkittsville. Sending skirmishers forward, the 96th crossed a fence line into a field behind the town. Within minutes Confederate artillery fire from Brownsville Pass force the Federals back. Confederate skirmishers advanced into the village, but were forced back by Union skirmishers. By the time the rest of the VI Corps arrived, the Confederates had retreated. The Federals stopped and cooked their rations while Franklin pondered his next move.
Order of Battle
Confederate States of America
Maj. Gen. James E.B. Stuart
Col. Munford
2nd 2nd Va. Cav., 12th Va. Cav., Chew’s Battery
Maj. Gen. Richard H. Anderson
Col. William A. Parham
6th Va., 12th Va., 16th Va., Portsmouth Light Arty.
Maj. Gen. Lafayette McLaws
Brig. Gen. Howell Cobb
16th Ga., 24th Ga., Cobb’s Legion, 15th N.C., Troup Light Art.
Brig. Gen. Paul J. Semmes
10th Ga., 53rd Ga.(nc), 15th Va. (nc), 32nd Va (nc), 1st N.C. Art., Richmond (Va.) Fayette Art., Magruder (Va.) Light Arty.
United States of America
Maj. Gen. William B. Franklin, VI Corps
Maj. Gen. Henry W. Slocum
Col. Torbert
1st N.J., 2nd N.J., 3rd N.J., 4th N.J.
Col. Bartlett
5th Me., 16th N.Y., 27th N.Y., 121st N.Y.(nc), 96th Pa.
Brig. Gen. Newton
18th N.Y., 31st N.Y., 32nd N.Y., 95th Pa.
Capt. Upton
Md. Light Arty, Battery A
Mass. Light Arty., 1st Battery (A)
N.J. Light Art., 1st Battery (A)(nc)
2nd U.S. Arty, Battery D (nc)
Maj. Gen. William F. (Baldy) Smith
Brig. Gen. Hancock (nc)
6th Me., 43rd N.Y., 49th Pa., 137th Pa., 5th Wisc.
Brig. Gen. Brooks
2nd Vt., 3rd Vt. (nc), 4th Vt., 5th Vt. (nc), 6th Vt (nc)
Col. Irwin
7th Me., 20th N.Y., 33rd N.Y., 49th N.Y., 77th N.Y.
Capt. Ayres
Md. Light Arty, Battery B
5th U.S. Arty, Battery F
N.Y. Light Arty, 1st Independent Battery
Maj. Gen. Darius N. Couch (nc), 1st Division, IV Corps (arrived after 10 P.M.)
Brig. Gen. Devens
7th Mass., 10th Mass., 36th N.Y., 2nd R.I.
Brig. Gen. Howe
62nd N.Y., 93rd Pa., 98th Pa., 102nd Pa., 139th Pa.
Brig. Gen. Cochrane
65th N.Y., 67th N.Y., 122nd N.Y., 23rd Pa., 61st Pa., 82nd Pa.
(nc) noncombatants
Presented to the people of the United States by Gene and Sharon Dennis of San Diego, California.
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