Signal Knob During the Civil War

On October 17, 1864, General Jubal Early sent John Gordon, Jed Hotchkiss, and others to Signal Knob to survey Union positions along Cedar Creek. From the peak at the northern end of Massanutten Mountain, rising 1,500 feet above the Valley floor, they gained a clear view of the Union army around Belle Grove and identified weak points in the smaller Confederate force's opponent. Hotchkiss made a map, and Gordon devised a plan to cross Cedar Creek and the North Fork to strike the Union line from the side rather than head on. Early approved the plan, and when the attack began on the morning of October 19, it worked brilliantly, routing the Union army north of Middletown by 10:30 a.m. Signal Knob, used by both sides as a signal station throughout the war, was crucial to Confederate success in the Valley during the 1864 Valley campaign.

Middletown, Virginia · United States