At the Battle of Monterey Pass, General Kilpatrick, quartered at the Monterey Inn, ordered artillery to support Custer’s troopers. Near the present-day golf course, Captain Alexander Pennington deployed two rifled cannon and shelled the Confederate battle line with case shot. The 5th Michigan Cavalry, commanded by Colonel Russell Alger, arrived and was ordered to dismount and get onto the ground. Alger soon realized that the wooden bridge remained intact, though it stood in a very exposed place, and his men quickly came under heavy fire. A courier was sent back to the Monterey Inn requesting additional troops for the breakthrough, and Kilpatrick ordered the 1st Ohio Cavalry, Company A, and the 1st West Virginia Cavalry to support the Wolverines. Alger and several of his command charged over the bridge and filed off to the left, where they formed a hasty battle line. Portions of the 6th Michigan Cavalry also charged over the bridge in support of the new position. This allowed the 1st West Virginia Cavalry to charge and break through the Confederate battle line, with the 1st Ohio Cavalry, Company A, in support. Alger recalled that the night was very dark, the bridge was unoccupied, the place was highly exposed, and the deep gorge beneath carried very high water.