Stop 4: Reconnaissance of the Confederate Right Flank

Once you have finished exploring around the Patterson house, cross the main park road and pick up the Patterson Trail on the other side. When you come to the branch in the trail continue straight onto the Pierson Hollow Trail and follow it until the end.

Note: In addition to Pierson Hollow being a crucial Union position during the battle, there are also 30 acres of old-growth forest with trees 250-400 years old.

When Benham ordered the 13th Ohio to the left they moved down Pierson Hollow which ran parallel to the Confederate line. Using the terrain to provide cover for his men, Colonel William S. Smith managed to move his regiment all the way to the far right Confederate flank opposite Colonel Henry Heth’s 45th Virginia. The Confederates opened fire when they saw the Union men in the woods at their front, but Smith ordered his men to lay low and creep up to the crest of the hill where they were able to return fire. Their advance pushed the 45th Virginia back towards the center of the Confederate line, exposing the Confederate flank.

Smith had the opportunity to push the advantage, but he had only been ordered to do reconnaissance. He sent an officer to Benham and Rosecrans with the results of their maneuvering and asked for orders. The officer was delayed by an injury and when Smith did not receive orders back he decided to withdraw his eight companies back to the main road to consult with his superior officers in person.

Later in the battle, after the Second and Third Brigades were advanced, there was a second reconnaissance to the far end of the Confederate line. Most of the Third Brigade (commanded by Colonel E. P. Scammon) was held in reserve and did not participate in the fighting, except for a portion of the 23rd Ohio. While the Second Brigade moved to the right to position for their planned assault, Major Rutherford B. Hayes of the 23rd Ohio was ordered to take Companies A, B, E, and K to reconnoiter the far left of the Union line. While on this excursion Hayes bumped into Company E of the 28th Ohio that had gotten separated from their regiment and lost in the woods. There was almost a friendly fire incident and afterwards Company E largely operated with Hayes’ companies from the 23rd Ohio.

Lesser, W. Hunter. Rebels At the Gate: Lee and McClellan on the Front Line of a Nation Divided. Naperville, IL: Sourcebooks, Inc., 2004.

Lowry, Terry. September Blood: The Battle of Carnifex Ferry. Charleston, WV: Quarrier Press, 2011.

Shaffer, Dallas B. “The Battle at Carnifex Ferry.” State of West Virginia. Produced by the Department of Natural Resources, Division of Parks and Recreation. C. 1963.

Snell, Mark A. West Virginia and the Civil War: Mountaineers Are Always Free. Charleston, SC: The History Press, 2011.

Stutler, Boyd B. West Virginia in the Civil War. Charleston, WV: Education Foundation, Inc, 1966.