On 11 June 1864, about 800 yards east, the Botetourt Battery prevented the destruction of the Orange and Alexandria Railroad bridge across the Tye River. The bridge was an important part of the Confederate railroad network for moving troops and supplies throughout Virginia. Confederate pickets of the Botetourt Battery, deployed as infantry and commanded by Capt. Henry C. Douthat, kept Federal cavalry from destroying the bridge. This enabled Lt. Gen. Jubal A. Early and the 2d Corps of Lee's Army of Northern Virginia to reach Lynchburg by train and prevent its capture by Union Maj. Gen. David Hunter.
