Overview
Following the Battle of Antietam on September 17, 1862, Confederate General Robert E. Lee withdrew the Army of Northern Virginia from Maryland. On September 18, his army crossed the Potomac River at Boteler’s Ford. Lee left General William N. Pendleton with about 600 infantrymen and 45 artillery pieces to defend the crossing and protect his rear.
On September 19, Union General George B. McClellan sent General Alfred Pleasonton south to harass Lee’s retreating army. Later that day, General Fitz John Porter’s 5th Corps arrived. Union forces placed about 70 artillery pieces on the Maryland side of the Potomac and bombarded the Confederate positions. At about 5:30 p.m., Porter sent roughly 2,000 soldiers across the ford. They drove the Confederates away from the river and captured four cannons.
During the fighting, Pendleton left the battlefield and found Lee around midnight. He incorrectly reported that Union troops had overrun his command and captured all of his artillery. Alarmed, Lee ordered General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson and General A.P. Hill’s light division to return north.
On September 20, Porter sent four Union brigades across the Potomac. At about 10:00 a.m., they encountered Jackson’s troops. After about two hours of fighting, Porter decided that the Confederates outnumbered his forces and ordered a retreat.
The fighting ended around 2:30 p.m. after Union troops crossed back into Maryland. Jackson and Hill did not pursue because Union artillery protected the crossing. The Confederate victory ended Lee’s Maryland Campaign.
Essential Facts
- Also Known As: Battle of Boteler’s Ford.
- Date: September 19–20, 1862.
- Location: Jefferson County, Virginia (now West Virginia).
- Participants: The United States of America (USA) and the Confederate States of America (CSA).
- USA Commanders: Alfred Pleasonton and Fitz John Porter.
- CSA Commanders: Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson, A.P. Hill, and William N. Pendleton.
- Who Won: The Confederate States of America won the Battle of Shepherdstown.
- Campaign: Maryland Campaign.
- Era: Civil War, July–September, 1862.
Statistics
United States of America
- Casualties: 366 (73 killed, 163 wounded, 132 captured/missing).
- Forces Engaged: 5th Army Corps.
- Troop Strength: Undetermined.
Confederate States of America
- Casualties: 307 (36 killed, 267 wounded, 6 captured/missing).
- Forces Engaged: Two infantry brigades and Hill’s Light Division, Army of Northern Virginia.
- Troop Strength: Undetermined.
Significance
The Battle of Shepherdstown is important to American history because it was the final engagement of General Robert E. Lee’s Maryland Campaign and the largest Civil War battle fought in present-day West Virginia. The Confederate victory discouraged Union forces from pursuing Lee across the Potomac and contributed to his decision to withdraw southward toward Winchester, Virginia. The aftermath also contributed to the end of George B. McClellan’s command of the Army of the Potomac. President Abraham Lincoln remained frustrated by McClellan’s failure to aggressively pursue Lee’s retreating army and relieved him of command on November 5, 1862.
History
Lee Leaves Maryland After the Battle of Antietam
Following the bloodbath at the Battle of Antietam on September 17, 1862, Confederate General Robert E. Lee withdrew the Army of Northern Virginia from Maryland. On September 18, Lee’s army began crossing the Potomac River at Boteler’s Ford (also known as Blackford, Packhorse, or Shepherdstown Ford). By the morning of September 19, the Confederates were safely across. As his army moved south, Lee left behind Brigadier General William N. Pendleton commanding Lewis Armistead’s and Alexander Lawton’s infantry brigades, comprising about 600 soldiers, plus forty-five guns, to serve as a rearguard and hold the ford.
September 19: Pleasonton Pursues Lee
Later that day, Union General George B. McClellan sent Brigadier General Alfred Pleasonton south to harass the retreating Confederates and report on Lee’s activities. McClellan directed Pleasonton not to cross the Potomac “unless you see a splendid opportunity to inflict great damage upon the enemy without loss to yourself.” Pleasonton heeded McClellan’s advice and remained on the Maryland side of the river until Major General Fitz John Porter’s 5th Corps arrived later in the day.
Federals Cross the Potomac River
During the afternoon, the Federals placed about seventy artillery pieces on the north side of the river and began bombarding the Confederates on the other side. The Confederate artillery batteries offered token resistance, but the Federals had them outgunned. At about 5:30 that evening, Porter ordered roughly 2,000 Bluecoats across the ford and forced the Confederates away from the river. During the fight, Pendleton panicked and rode off alone in search of help.
Lee Redeploys Jackson and Hill
Pendleton found Lee around midnight and erroneously reported that Union forces had overrun his command and captured all of his artillery. In fact, the Federals had advanced only as far as the second tree line beyond the river and captured only four Confederate cannons. Alarmed by Pendleton’s report, Lee ordered Major General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson, along with Brigadier General A. P. Hill’s Light Division, to return north and halt the Union advance.
September 20: Federals Retreat
The next morning, September 20, Porter sent four brigades across the Potomac in pursuit of the Confederate rearguard. At around 10 a.m., the Yankees encountered Jackson’s troops returning from the south. The two forces engaged for about two hours before Porter determined that the Confederates outnumbered him, and he ordered his troops to retreat.
Confederates Decimate Pennsylvanians
As most of the Bluecoats scurried back across the river, Colonel Charles Prevost, commanding the 118th Pennsylvania Volunteers, refused to comply with the order because he did not believe that it came through proper channels. By the time Provost verified the order, he was wounded and Hill’s division was subjecting his division to withering fire. To add to their problems, many of Provost’s men, who had never been in combat, discovered that their new English-made muskets were defective and would not fire. The results were predictable. Of the 737 Pennsylvanians who crossed the river, three officers and sixty soldiers were killed, 101 were wounded, and 105 were reported missing.
Jackson and Hill Choose Not to Pursue
The fighting ended at about 2:30 p.m. when the last of the Yankees had crossed the river, back into Maryland. Faced with superior artillery fire on the north side of the Potomac, Jackson and Hill chose not to pursue.
Outcome
In a battle that involved roughly 9,000 soldiers from both sides, the Union suffered over 360 casualties, most of them from the 118th Pennsylvania. The Confederacy lost nearly 300 soldiers, including 30 dead. The combined total of over 600 casualties was enough to make the Battle of Shepherdstown the largest engagement of the Civil War fought in what would become the State of West Virginia.
After the battle, Lee abandoned any plans he may have had to resume his invasion of Maryland. Instead, he withdrew farther south to Winchester, Virginia.
The Battle of Shepherdstown not only ended the Maryland Campaign, but it also led to the end of McClellan’s army career. Apparently satisfied with driving Lee out of Maryland, McClellan did not pursue the retreating Confederate army. His latest show of inertia proved to be his undoing. On November 5, President Abraham Lincoln relieved McClellan of command because of his failure to strike Lee’s retreating army.
Timeline
- 1862, August 28–30 — Confederate forces won the Second Battle of Bull Run, encouraging General Robert E. Lee to launch his Maryland Campaign and invade the North.
- 1862, September 2 — President Abraham Lincoln placed George B. McClellan in command of Washington’s defenses and the troops protecting the capital.
- 1862, September 4 — Robert E. Lee and the Army of Northern Virginia crossed the Potomac River into Maryland.
- 1862, September 9 — Lee prepared Special Order Number 191 and divided his army for operations in Maryland and around Harpers Ferry.
- 1862, September 13 — Union soldiers found a copy of Lee’s Special Order, No. 191, and delivered it to McClellan.
- 1862, September 16 — McClellan reached the area near Sharpsburg and found Lee’s army positioned west of Antietam Creek.
- 1862, September 17 — Union and Confederate forces fought around the Cornfield, West Woods, Sunken Road, and Burnside Bridge.
- 1862, September 18
- Skirmishing continued as soldiers collected the dead and cared for the wounded, and Lee ordered the Army of Northern Virginia to retreat.
- Lee’s army crossed the Potomac River at Boteler’s Ford, while William N. Pendleton remained behind with infantry and artillery to defend the crossing.
- 1862, September 19
- Alfred Pleasonton pursued the retreating Confederates, and Union artillery bombarded Confederate positions across the Potomac.
- Fitz John Porter sent roughly 2,000 Union soldiers across the river, where they drove Confederate troops away from the ford and captured four cannons.
- Pendleton incorrectly reported that Union forces had overrun his command and captured all of his artillery, causing Lee to order Jackson and Hill north.
- 1862, September 20
- Porter sent four Union brigades across the Potomac, where they encountered Jackson’s returning troops at about 10:00 a.m.
- Porter ordered his forces to retreat after determining that the Confederates outnumbered them.
- A.P. Hill’s troops inflicted severe losses on the 118th Pennsylvania Volunteers during the Union retreat.
- The fighting ended around 2:30 p.m. after the remaining Union soldiers crossed the Potomac into Maryland.
AP US History
Definition
Battle of Shepherdstown (1862) — The Battle of Shepherdstown was fought September 19–20, 1862, after General Robert E. Lee withdrew from Maryland following the Battle of Antietam. Union troops crossed the Potomac River and drove back Lee’s rearguard, but a mistaken report from William N. Pendleton caused Lee to send Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson and A.P. Hill north. Hill’s troops inflicted heavy losses on the 118th Pennsylvania before Union forces retreated across the river. The Confederate victory ended the Maryland Campaign.
Alignment
The Battle of Shepherdstown is part of the following AP US History sections:
