Battle of Cloyd's Mountain Facts

May 9, 1864

Cloyd's Mountain Battle facts, including dates, location, casualties, leaders, who won, and more interesting facts you might not know. This fact sheet provides a quick overview of the battle and is for kids doing research and students preparing for the AP U.S. History (APUSH) exam.

Portrait of Rutherford B. Hayes

Two future U. S. Presidents, Colonel Rutherford B. Hayes (pictured here) and Major William McKinley were among the Union soldiers who fought at the Battle of Cloyd’s Mountain. [Wikimedia Commons]

Date:

  • May 9, 1864

Location:

  • Pulaski County, Virginia

Principal Union commander(s):

  • Brigadier General George Crook
  • Brigadier General William W. Averill

Principal Confederate commander(s):

  • Brigadier General Albert G. Jenkins

Union forces engaged:

  • Army of West Virginia

Confederate forces engaged:

  • Scattered units guarding rail lines in western Virginia

Number of Union soldiers engaged:

  • Roughly 6,100

Number of Confederate soldiers engaged:

  • Roughly 2,400

Estimated Union casualties:

  • 688 (killed, wounded, captured/missing)

Estimated Confederate casualties:

  • 538 (killed, wounded, captured/missing)

Result:

  • Union victory

Significance:

  • The Union victory at the Battle of Cloyd’s Mountain enabled federal forces to destroy the Virginia & Tennessee Railroad, the last railroad connecting Virginia to Tennessee.
  • Among the Union soldiers who fought at the Battle of Cloyd’s Mountain were two future U. S. Presidents, Colonel Rutherford B. Hayes and Major William McKinley.