Padgett’s Field: Confederate Last Stand

On September 14, 1862, this area was an open field belonging to George W. Padgett, with a wooden rail fence lining the road on the east and a low stone wall bordering the field to the west. As the shattered remnants of Brigadier General Howell Cobb’s force streamed up Whipp’s Ravine and through the gap toward the safety of Pleasant Valley, Cobb attempted to check the retreat by making a last-ditch defense on the summit of Crampton's Gap. With most of his troops in headlong retreat, he stopped as many as he could and formed a hasty line behind the stone wall, while the 24th Georgia still held a position southeast of the gap along Gapland Road and concentrated fire on the Federals pursuing the Confederates up the ravine. New Jersey troops charging up the road from the southeast suddenly hurled a deadly volley on the 24th's right flank, and the Georgians broke under pressure. Cobb took their colors and ordered them to make a stand; some ignored him and continued their flight, while others stopped and formed behind the wall to wait for the Federals. As the head of the Union column turned the corner and approached the gap, the Federals were met by fire from Confederate muskets and two guns of the Troup Light Artillery, which had just arrived on the field. The blast caught the Federals off guard, and the column briefly recoiled before moving forward again. The New Jersey Brigade pressed on, turned the right flank of the Confederate line again, and resistance collapsed, sending the remaining Confederate troops into headlong retreat into the valley below.

Maryland · United States