The Battle of Wildcat

On the morning of October 21, 1861, Confederate troops under Brigadier General Felix Zollicoffer attacked Union forces at Camp Wildcat, seeking to drive them from their hilltop position along the Wilderness Road. The rugged, mountainous terrain of the Rockcastle Hills made travel difficult, and Zollicoffer later called Wildcat almost inaccessible. By the time the Confederates reached the camp, reinforcements under General Albin Schoepf had joined the single Union regiment there, raising Union strength to 5,000 against 7,500 Confederates. The Confederates attacked repeatedly, but the Union defenders, holding the heights on the right, left, and front, met them with heavy fire for several hours. By nightfall the Confederates ceased their attacks and retreated down the mountain, and after a restless night digging new entrenchments and sleeping on their guns, Union soldiers discovered the next morning that they had held their ground and that the Confederates had withdrawn toward the Cumberland Gap.

Kentucky · United States