At dawn on 17 March 1863, Brig. Gen. William W. Averell led 2,100 Union cavalrymen across the Rappahannock River at Kelly’s Ford. About noon, Brig. Gen. Fitzhugh Lee counterattacked northwest of here with about 1,000 Confederate horsemen. Maj. John Pelham, a noted Confederate artillerist accompanying Lee’s men, was mortally wounded while impetuously taking part in a charge. The battle ended in a draw, marking the first time Confederate cavalrymen had not defeated their Union opponents and giving the Union cavalry new confidence. It also foreshadowed another Union crossing at Kelly’s Ford during the much larger battle of 9 June 1863 at Brandy Station.
