During the Battle of Hanover, Confederate cavalry occupied the rich, rolling farmland of southern Pennsylvania near Westminster Road, where a timothy field was crossed by a stream ten to fifteen feet wide and three to four feet deep. After the initial Confederate attack on Hanover, Major General J.E.B. Stuart and his staff rode into the field on the side of the stream toward town to observe the action, unaware that a Union counterattack was advancing toward them. When the 2nd North Carolina broke and retreated under Farnsworth's charge, Stuart's party held its position briefly and fired pistols at the enemy's flank as they pursued the regiment along the road. With Stuart's retreat by road cut off and his position in extreme personal peril, he escaped by taking the ditch at a running leap on his favorite mare, Virginia, and landed safely on the other side.

Photo: Shane Oliver

Photo: Larry Gertner

Photo: William Pfingsten

Photo: Beverly Pfingsten

Pennville, Pennsylvania · USA