Overview
Following the Union victory at the Battle of Gettysburg, General Robert E. Lee ended his second invasion of the North and ordered the Confederate Army to retreat toward the Potomac River. On July 4, 1863, General John D. Imboden led Confederate wounded soldiers and supplies toward Williamsport and Falling Waters. Heavy rains slowed the retreat and raised the Potomac River. When Imboden reached Williamsport, he found the ford impassable and learned that Union cavalry had destroyed the Confederate pontoon bridge at Falling Waters.
Unable to cross into Virginia, Imboden established a defensive position at Williamsport. Meanwhile, General George G. Meade learned that Lee had left Gettysburg. Although officials in Washington urged him to pursue Lee aggressively, Meade initially sent cavalry after the Confederates while his main army recovered from the fighting at Gettysburg.
On July 6, General Judson Kilpatrick attacked General J.E.B. Stuart’s Confederate cavalry at Hagerstown but failed to drive it from the town. That same day, General John Buford attacked Imboden at Williamsport. Imboden used artillery and other defenders to protect the Confederate supplies and wounded.
Lee arrived at Williamsport on July 7 and strengthened his defenses while waiting for the Potomac to fall. He positioned James Longstreet’s Corps on the left and A.P. Hill’s Corps on the right. Meade gradually moved his reinforced army toward the Confederate defenses and started probing Lee’s lines by July 12.
By July 13, the Potomac had fallen enough for Lee’s army to cross. Longstreet’s Corps crossed at Falling Waters, while Richard Ewell’s Corps and most of Hill’s Corps crossed at Williamsport. On July 14, Union cavalry attacked the Confederate rearguard and captured more than 500 soldiers, but most of Lee’s army escaped. The final fighting took place on July 16 near Shepherdstown, where David M. Gregg attacked Confederate cavalry before withdrawing after nightfall.
Essential Facts
- Also Known As: Battle of Falling Waters, Battle of Hagerstown.
- Date: July 6–16, 1863.
- Location: Washington County, Maryland, around Williamsport.
- Participants: The United States of America (USA) and the Confederate States of America (CSA).
- USA Commanders: George G. Meade, Judson Kilpatrick, John Buford, George A. Custer, David M. Gregg.
- CSA Commanders: Robert E. Lee, J.E.B. Stuart, John D. Imboden, James Longstreet; A.P. Hill, Henry Heth, Fitzhugh Lee, J.R. Chambliss.
- Who Won: The outcome of the Battle of Williamsport was inconclusive.
- Campaign: Gettysburg Campaign.
- Era: Civil War, July–December, 1863.
Statistics
United States of America
- Troop Strength: Nearly 95,000 soldiers.
Confederate States of America
- Casualties: More than 500 Confederate soldiers were captured during the July 14 fighting.
- Troop Strength: About 35,000 able-bodied soldiers
Significance
The Battle of Williamsport is important to American History because it allowed Robert E. Lee and most of the Army of Northern Virginia to escape into Virginia after the Confederate defeat at Gettysburg. Heavy rains temporarily trapped Lee’s army north of the Potomac River, giving George G. Meade an opportunity to attack. However, Meade pursued cautiously while Lee strengthened his defenses and waited for the river to fall. By the time Meade ordered a general advance, most of the Confederate army had crossed the Potomac. Lee’s escape allowed the Civil War to continue.
History
Robert E. Lee Withdraws from the Battle of Gettysburg
Following the Union victory at the Battle of Gettysburg (July 1–4, 1863), Confederate General Robert E. Lee ended his second invasion of the North. At roughly 5:00 p.m. on July 4, Brigadier General John D. Imboden led a long train of Confederate wounded and supplies toward the Potomac River crossings at Williamsport and Falling Waters, about 50 miles to the southwest. Lee ordered the rest of the army to follow using a different route the next day.
Potomac River Impassable
As the operation started, heavy rains began falling, slowing the evacuation. When Imboden reached the Potomac, he found the river so swollen that the ford at Williamsport was impassable. He also discovered that Union cavalry dispatched from Harpers Ferry by Major General William H. French had destroyed the Confederate pontoon bridge across the river at Falling Waters.
Unable to reach Virginia, Inboden formed a semi-circular defensive line anchored on his left by the Conococheague Creek and on his right by the Potomac River at Falling Waters. With the Potomac at his back, Inboden established a temporary hospital at Williamsport and hunkered down to await Lee’s arrival with the rest of the Confederate Army.
Meade Lingers at Gettysburg
On July 5, Major General George G. Meade, commanding the Union Army of the Potomac, learned that Lee had left Gettysburg. Despite prodding from his superiors in Washington to pursue the Confederate general aggressively and destroy his army, Meade settled for dispatching his cavalry to harass the retreating Confederates.
Meade had reason to be cautious. The intense three-day battle had exhausted and battered his army. Unsure of the extent of the damage inflicted upon the Confederates, Meade also needed time to gather information to determine if Lee intended to withdraw to Virginia or to make another stand north of the Potomac. Finally, overriding orders to guard against a possible Confederate assault on Washington and Baltimore confounded Meade.
Meade Pursues Lee
After reconnaissance missions determined that Lee was retreating, Meade divided his army into three columns and launched a more vigorous but still cautious pursuit. Throughout the pursuit, Meade was careful to keep his main force between Lee and the nation’s capital.
Williamsport
On July 6, 1863, Brigadier General Judson Kilpatrick’s Union cavalry division tried unsuccessfully for six hours to dislodge Major General J. E. B. Stuart’s cavalry from Hagerstown. Stuart’s victory maintained control of important roads leading to Williamsport. On the same day, Union Brigadier General John Buford launched an ill-fated cavalry assault against Imboden at Williamsport. The Confederate general summoned enough artillery and defenders to hold off a three-hour Federal onslaught, saving the Confederate stores and wounded from being captured.
Lee Bolsters His Lines
When Lee arrived at Williamsport the next day, the river remained too high to cross, so he immediately went to work bolstering the Confederate defensive line. With only 35,000 able-bodied soldiers available, Lee deployed Major General James Longstreet’s Corps on the left and Major General A. P. Hill’s Corps on the right. While the river hindered the Confederate retreat, Lee rounded up a few boats to resupply his army with ammunition.
Meade Dawdles as Lee Escapes
Meanwhile, Meade’s reinforced army, now numbering close to 95,000 soldiers, crept to within a mile of the Confederate line over the next five days. By July 12, Meade had his army in position and began probing the Confederate defenses. The next day, heavy skirmishing erupted.
On July 14, Meade ordered a general advance by four divisions; however, the opportunity to destroy Lee’s army was already gone. By July 13, the Potomac River had fallen enough to allow the Confederates to retreat. That night Longstreet’s Corps crossed over a newly constructed bridge at Falling Waters. By morning, Ewell’s Corps and most of Hill’s Corps had forded the river at Williamsport.
Federals Attack Lee’s Rearguard
With Brigadier General George A. Custer’s brigade in the vanguard, on the morning of July 14, Union cavalry divisions commanded by Buford and Kilpatrick attacked Lee’s rearguard, commanded by Major General Henry Heth, north of the Potomac near Falling Waters. A premature assault by two Federal squadrons alerted the Confederates to the impending onslaught, enabling them to mount a more spirited defense than might otherwise have been possible. Still, the Federals captured over 500 Confederate soldiers before Heth’s division could cross the river on the pontoon bridge.
Final Actions
The final action in the Battle of Williamsport occurred on July 16, 1863, when Brigadier General David M. Gregg’s cavalry division approached the Confederate brigades of Brigadier General Fitzhugh Lee and Colonel J.R. Chambliss guarding the Potomac River Crossing at Shepherdstown, West Virginia. After several unsuccessful assaults, Gregg withdrew at nightfall.
Outcome
The Battle of Williamsport was arguably more important for what did not happen, as opposed to what did. Much to the dismay of his superiors, including President Lincoln, Meade’s measured pursuit of the trapped Confederate army enabled Lee to hang on long enough to escape across the Potomac after the rain-swollen waters receded. Coupled with Ulysses S. Grant’s victory at Vicksburg, Meade may have lost an opportunity to end the Civil War in 1863, two years before its actual conclusion.
Timeline
- 1863, April 30–May 6 — Robert E. Lee and the Army of Northern Virginia defeated Joseph Hooker and the Army of the Potomac at the Battle of Chancellorsville.
- 1863, June 3 — Confederate troop movements started as Lee gathered his army near Culpeper, Virginia, for his invasion of the North.
- 1863, June 5 — Confederate forces won the Battle of Franklin’s Crossing.
- 1863, June 9 — Union and Confederate forces fought the inconclusive Battle of Brandy Station.
- 1863, June 13–15 — The Confederates won the Second Battle of Winchester.
- 1863, June 17 — Union and Confederate forces fought the inconclusive Battle of Aldie.
- 1863, June 17–19 — Union and Confederate forces fought the inconclusive Battle of Middleburg.
- 1863, June 21 — Union and Confederate forces fought the inconclusive Battle of Upperville.
- 1863, June 27 — Confederate forces won the Battle of Fairfax Court House.
- 1863, June 20 — Union and Confederate forces fought the inconclusive Battle of Upperville.
- 1863, June 30 — Confederate forces won the Battle of Westminster, also known as Corbitt’s Charge.
- 1863, June 30 — Union and Confederate forces fought the inconclusive Battle of Hanover.
- 1863, June 30 — Union forces won the Battle of Sporting Hill.
- 1863, July 1 — Union and Confederate forces fought the inconclusive Battle of Carlisle.
- 1863, July 1–3 — Union forces won the Battle of Gettysburg.
- 1863, July 3 — Confederate forces won the Battle of Fairfield.
- 1864, July 4–5 — Union forces won the Fight at Monterey Pass.
- 1863, July 5 — George G. Meade learned that Lee had left Gettysburg and sent Union cavalry to harass the retreating Confederates.
- 1863, July 6 — Judson Kilpatrick attacked J.E.B. Stuart at Hagerstown, while John Buford attacked John D. Imboden at Williamsport.
- 1863, July 7 — Lee arrived at Williamsport and strengthened his defensive line while the Potomac River remained too high to cross.
- 1863, July 12 — Meade positioned his army near the Confederate defenses and started probing Lee’s lines.
- 1863, July 13 — The Potomac River fell enough for the Confederate army to cross, and heavy skirmishing took place.
- 1863, July 14 — Meade ordered a general advance as Union cavalry attacked Lee’s rearguard near Falling Waters and captured more than 500 Confederate soldiers.
- 1863, July 16 — David M. Gregg attacked Confederate forces guarding the Potomac River crossing at Shepherdstown before withdrawing at nightfall.
AP US History
Definition
Battle of Williamsport (1863) — The Battle of Williamsport was fought from July 6–16, 1863, during the Confederate retreat from Gettysburg. Heavy rains raised the Potomac River and temporarily prevented Robert E. Lee’s army from crossing into Virginia. Confederate forces defended Williamsport and Hagerstown against Union cavalry attacks while Lee strengthened his defensive lines. After the river fell, most of Lee’s army crossed the Potomac before George G. Meade ordered a general advance, allowing the Confederates to escape.
Alignment
The Battle of Williamsport is part of the following AP US History sections:
Suggested Reading
Please note that this section contains affiliate links to Amazon.com. If you click the links and purchase anything, American History Central may earn a commission.
Mingus and Wittenberg, the authors of more than 40 Civil War books, present a history of the opening moves of the Gettysburg Campaign in the 2-volume study. This compelling study is one of the first to integrate the military, media, political, social, economic, and civilian perspectives with rank-and-file accounts from the soldiers of both armies as they inexorably march toward their destiny at Gettysburg. This first volume covers June 3–21, 1863, while the second, covers June 22–30, completes the march, and carries the armies to the eve of the Battle of Gettysburg.
Meade and Lee After Gettysburg, the first of three volumes on the campaigns waged between the two adversaries from July 14 through the end of July, 1863, relies on the official records, regimental histories, letters, newspapers, and other sources to provide a day-by-day account of this fascinating high-stakes affair. The vivid prose, coupled with original maps and outstanding photographs, offers a significant contribution to Civil War literature.
