Initial Union Line and Shell Struck Post

At the beginning of the Battle of New Market, the left end of the Union line stood here, with the 1st West Virginia, 123rd Ohio, and 18th Connecticut infantry regiments stretching from this point to Manor's Hill. Early that morning, the 34th Massachusetts Infantry was also posted here along the nearby street, but before the men could eat breakfast they were ordered to retire about two miles through soft, sticky mud nearly ankle deep, where some lost their shoes and fought and retreated in stockinged feet. Reflecting confused Federal decision-making, the regiment was marched back and forth across the battlefield several more times and covered seven miles before the battle began, finally ending up on Bushong's Hill. Later, the 34th Massachusetts was heavily engaged and was one of the last Union regiments to leave the field. Early in the afternoon, Confederate General John C. Breckinridge and his staff rode to the rise in front after leaving the Henkel House in town, and during an exchange of Union and Confederate artillery fire, a Federal shell struck a gatepost across the street, showering them with splinters but narrowly missing them.

New Market, Virginia · United States