Battle of Tom's Brook Facts

October 9, 1864

Key facts about he Battle of Tom's Brook.

Portrait of Alfred Torbert

On the morning of October 9, 1864, Brigadier General Alfred Torbert ordered two Union cavalry divisions to attack the Confederate cavalry camped along Tom’s Brook near Woodstock, Virginia. [Wikimedia Commons]

Also Known As

  • Woodstock Races

Date

  • October 9, 1864

Location

  • Shenandoah County, near Woodstock, Virginia

Campaign

Principal Union Commanders

  • Brigadier General Alfred Torbert
  • Brevet Major General Wesley Merritt
  • Brigadier General George A. Custer

Principal Confederate Commanders

  • Major General Thomas Rosser
  • Major General Lunsford Lomax

Union Forces Engaged

  • Army of the Shenandoah cavalry

Confederate Forces Engaged

  • Army of the Valley cavalry

Number of Union Soldiers Engaged

  • Roughly 6,300

Number of Confederate Soldiers Engaged

  • Roughly 3,500

Estimated Union Casualties

  • 57 (killed, wounded, captured/missing)

Estimated Confederate Casualties

  • 350 (killed, wounded, captured/missing)

Result

  • Union victory

Significance

  • The Confederate retreat at the Battle of Tom’s Brook was so rapid that Union cavalrymen referred to the Rebel flight as the Woodstock Races.

Timeline of the Shenandoah Valley Campaign of 1864

These are the main battles and events of the Shenandoah Valley Campaign of 1864 in order.