The Battle of Stones River
Following the Battle of Perryville in Kentucky in the Fall of
1862, the commanding generals on both sides ran headlong into
trouble with their superiors. The battle, which started as a
chance encounter between Confederate and Union forces, ended
with both Presidents censuring the generals in charge. Lincoln
was furious General Don Carlos Buell had not gone after the
retreating Confederates and destroyed them. For his inaction
that day, Buell was relieved of command and leadership of what
would become known as the Union Army of the Cumberland, which
was handed over to General William S. Rosecrans. The Union General
went after Bragg’s retreating forces and took up position
in Nashville.
Confederate General Bragg, who was a personal friend of President
Jefferson Davis, managed to hold on to his command following
Perryville above the objections of Confederate leadership. Bragg’s
orders had been to hold Kentucky and his failure to do so had
shaken the confidence President Davis placed in him. Bragg retreated
with his forces to Murfreesboro where he planned to spend the
winter. He established his headquarters in the Middle Tennessee
city and began formulating a plan to remove Rosecrans from Nashville
and regain some credibility with Confederate command.
Since the beginning of 1862, the Union had tried in vain to
gain control of the Mississippi River and to drive a wedge through
Confederate territory so as to hold the rail lines and major
thoroughfares leading into the Southeastern regions. With the
first full year of the war drawing to a close, Rosecrans wanted
to continue pressing the Confederates. On Dec. 26, 1862, Rosecrans
left Nashville with a 43,000-man-force to push General Bragg
aside and start towards Chattanooga.
Rosecrans’ Army reached Murfreesboro on Dec. 30 and camped
northwest of Murfreesboro holding the main road and rail line.
Confederate forces were less than half a mile away and readying
for the impending battle.
Confederate command had received word of the troop movement
and Bragg began moving his forces to strategic locations. A
steady rain and freezing temperatures made things difficult
for soldiers on both sides. Campfires were forbidden so as to
not give away positions. The men could only wrap themselves
in wool blankets away from the rain and wait the next morning.
Unknown to Rosecrans and Bragg, the generals had arrived at
the same conclusions about the battle. Each had decided to attack
the right flank of their opponent. Bragg’s goal was to
drive the Union forces into the northern loop of the Stones
River and Rosecrans wanted to cut the Confederates off from
their base of operations.
Bragg decided to send in two divisions of Lt. General William
Hardee’s Infantry supported by two more divisions of troops
under Tennessee General Leonidas Polk. General Hardee’s
men were considered some of the best trained in the Confederate
Army. Prior to the War’s beginnings, Hardee, who had served
with distinction in the Second Seminole and Mexican Wars, wrote
the book entitled: Rifle and Light Infantry Tactics. His methods
were considered revolutionary in many ways and served as a guide
for both sides during the war. On the dawn of Dec. 31, 1862,
Hardee’s divisions again put his methods to the test when
he furiously attacked the right flank of the Union line under
the command of General Alexander McCook. The Union forces were
hit hard by the firefight and it buckled quickly. By 10 a.m.,
the Union’s right flank and part of the centerline were
backed through the surrounding woods to the Nashville Pike.
With their line faltering units under the command of Union Generals
Sheridan and Negley dug in and began fighting hard against the
Southern onslaught. Their actions bought some much needed time
for battlefield adjustments to what was becoming a Union rout.
At that point, the battle began breaking down into a series
of moves and countermoves that resembled a chess game, rather
than the improvisational strategies necessary to win in combat
situations. All commanders on both sides, with the exception
of General Thomas Crittenden, were graduates of the U.S. Military
Academy at West Point. With the battle going badly, General
Rosecrans was forced to make a quick decision to save the Union
Army from total destruction.
In a move of desperation, General Rosecrans ordered men from
General Crittenden’s left wing to support the Union line
and take position along the Nashville Pike and the Nashville
and Chattanooga Railroad. In addition, Rosecrans ordered the
men "to contest every inch of ground". Union forces
rolled in artillery and joined Negley and Sheridan’s men
in hitting the oncoming Confederates. The Union forces beat
back the attacks, but at a heavy casualty rate. The booming
sound of the guns was becoming so intense at times that soldiers
stuffed their ears with cotton raided from a nearby field.
General Bragg saw he was starting to lose ground against the
Union and ordered up Major General John Breckenridge’s
brigades to back up the Confederate attack. For some reason,
however, Breckenridge’s men had been held in reserve and
were slow in getting to the field. The advantage was lost completely
and elements of Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois were able to beat
back the attacks with rifle butts and bayonets. The two sides
fought to a standstill and, when night covered the field, both
decided to hold their positions and wait.
The Confederates spent the night entrenching themselves and
Union officials met to discuss new strategies that might end
the stalemate. General Rosecrans again ordered his men to not
build campfires and give away their position, but some of the
men positioned on the Nashville Pike broke the orders. When
Rosecrans saw the fires near the road, he assumed he was surrounded
by Confederates and, rather than withdraw from the field which
would have standard given the casualties, he chose to stay put
and readjust his strategies to fight his way out.
New Year’s Day broke the next morning to a silent battlefield.
Union and Confederate forces remained on their lines, but no
major actions were taken that day as both celebrated the New
Year.
On Jan. 2, 1863, General Bragg awoke confident that the heavy
casualties his forces had inflicted on the Union would force
them to withdraw. He was surprised to discover that Rosecrans
was not only still on the field, but had moved his men to the
east side of Stones River on a hill that threatened Bragg’s
right flank.
Knowing the Confederates would try to take the hill – General
Crittenden ordered Artillery Chief Captain James Mendenhall
to set up his guns to provide support for the Union soldiers
on the hill. Within 30 minutes, Mendenhall brought 58 guns to
bear on a shallow river crossing known as McFadden’s Ford.
He placed 45 of them on heights overlooking the site and 100
yards away from the ford.
As expected, General Bragg ordered five of General Breckenridge’s
brigades to take the hill. In spite of a cold hard rain, the
4,500-man-force attacked just before dawn and started gaining
ground fast. The Union force looked like it was going to hold,
but soon the men broke into a running retreat. The Union soldiers
fled down the hill and to the shallow river crossing, which
offered the only way to safety. As the Confederate soldiers
came into range, the Union gunners held back until the bulk
of the onrushing soldiers were in range and opened fire on the
Confederates. McFadden’s Ford and Stones River soon turned
red with blood. Within minutes, over 1800 Southern soldiers
were killed or wounded in the intense artillery fire. Upon seeing
the carnage, Union General Negley spurred his men forward towards
the Confederates and sent them into retreat from the ford. He
quickly retook the hill and established the Union forces on
Bragg’s right flank. While the Confederates were poised
and prepared to counterattack the hill, General Bragg mistakenly
thought Rosecrans was receiving fresh troops from Nashville
and ordered a withdrawal from the field – totally surprising
his generals.
While Rosecrans took the field and occupied Murfreesboro, Bragg
retreated 36 miles south to Tullahoma.
Only Bragg’s retreat from the field gave Rosecrans the
chance to claim victory and explain 13,249 casualties. In fact,
the Union casualty rate was the highest at Stones River than
in any other battle in the War Between the States, including
the loss of Union General Joshua Sill, who died from injuries
sustained in the battle. Fort Sill in Oklahoma was later named
for the fallen General. Following the devastating defeat at
Fredericksburg, Union newspapers sold the Battle of Stones River
as a great victory in the North and President Abraham Lincoln
wired Rosecrans and his soldiers thanking them "for your
and their skill, endurance, and dauntless courage".
Confederate casualties numbered less than that at 10,266 men
lost, but also included the loss of General James Raines, who,
like Sill, later died from wounds sustained during the conflict.
For General Braxton Bragg, it would prove to be his undoing
as a credible commander. Gen. Hardee, who had never been a big
fan of Bragg, joined other military and political leaders publicly
calling for his removal from the Army of Tennessee.
When the Chattanooga Daily Rebel published an editorial criticizing
Bragg’s retreat from the Battle of Stones River and calling
for his removal, the Confederate General fired off a letter
to his subordinate officers asking them to help clear his name
and restore confidence in his command. His own wording of the
letter, however, left him open to harsher criticism of his command
style. While his general staff cleared his name in the retreat
from Murfreesboro, they refused to offer the confidence in his
command he so badly wanted. So much so, President Jefferson
Davis dispatched General Joseph E. Johnston to investigate the
Army of Tennessee commander and his reasons for retreating from
Murfreesboro. Although Bragg was cleared of any wrong doing
in the reports, he never again had the confidence of the Confederate
President. Bragg would go on to successfully engage Rosecrans
Army again at Chickamauga, but his failure to pursue the retreating
Union Army would lead to his command being taken from him and
it dispersed to other notable Confederate Generals.
General Braxton Bragg was one of the most hated Generals of
the War Between the States and was often credited by Confederate
leaders with losing the war in the western theater. Bragg reportedly
often blamed others for his failures and never seemed to take
official responsibility for the results of his command.
Following the Battle of Shiloh, Bragg developed a low opinion
of volunteer troops and was notorious in his treatment of them.
In fact, he was reportedly known to abuse the troops in his
command in order to instill what he saw as discipline. Many
generals tried to take Bragg to task over the issue, but got
nowhere because of the general’s reputation in Richmond.
After Bragg’s capture of Munfordville, KY, however, he
seemed to lose his nerve in battle. Although considered an able
strategist and organizer, his subordinate officers resented
his command style that did little to inspire confidence in the
troops fighting under him. It was only his personal friendship
with Confederate President Jefferson Davis that is credited
with saving his neck on more than one occasion. During the Battle
of Stones River, it was reported that one of his generals actually
conceived the idea of having one of Breckenridge’s Brigades
"accidentally" fire upon the General. It was later
noted that General Bragg suffered from severe migraines and
other illnesses on the battlefield, which may help explain his
disposition, but also gives credit to the subordinates recognizing
he was unfit to command.
When Stones River National Military Park was created in 1927,
only a small portion of the battlefield and its cemetery were
included in the official boundaries, which is around 600 acres
total. The remaining battlefield was traditionally farmland
and remained in families for generations. Representative Bart
Gordon helped sponsor legislation in the mid-1990s to allow
the Park to increase its boundaries and protect some of the
historic areas, but the bill was killed in the eleventh hour.
Since then, he has remained quiet about the issue.
Since failure of the bill, developers have been leading a battle
to buy up land next to the Park for development and City officials
have been rezoning the land commercial. The new development
interests include a planned a multi-use Commerce Center that
would sit right in the general region where Union and Confederate
troops engaged in the heaviest action. This would also mean
widening roads that would greatly increase traffic flow in and
around the park and have a definite environmental impact on
the Park.
Park officials understand they cannot protect the entire 4,000-acre
battlefield, but have asked to be a part of the planning process
so as to ensure future development would not include buildings
that would destroy the views from the Park necessary for historical
interpretation. City officials, however, have refused to acknowledge
the Park’s interests or answer their questions. Park friends
and officials have tried to work with the City, but have also
discovered through land records that many of the City’s
representatives reportedly have personal financial interest
in the land being zoned commercial. Many have claimed publicly
the Park is trying to purchase the land at outrageously low
prices, but the National Park Service denies the charge stating
"it is a law to pay fair market value for any land acquired
by the National Park Service".
Park officials are now being joined by a growing number of people
who would like to see Stones River increase its boundaries and
preserve the ground where so many men fought and lost their
lives. It is one of four National Military Parks in Tennessee
that draws military school cadets as well as students of military
history to the region to study the battle. The recent disputes
and Murfreesboro’s lack of concern for the battlefield
has led many national historians and preservationists to declare
it one of the most endangered National Parks in America.
In addition, heritage tourism is starting to become one of the
leading untapped sources of tourist revenues and Tennessee is
only now beginning to compete with Virginia for the multi-million
dollar market. Families are opting for historical and cultural
vacations that include tours of historic facilities and battlefields.
Civil War Reenactors alone are one of the fastest growing segments
in the American historical community. Many cities have taken
advantage of it in Tennessee. While the costs are minimal to
hold what is known as a "mega reenactment", the events
can draw as many as 100,000 spectators a day and be a boom to
the local tourist economy.
Numerous such reenactments have taken place in Tennessee and
also in the Murfreesboro region. In fact, Middle Tennessee is
regarded as one of the best regions in the South for historical
preservation of landmarks from the War Between the States. With
that kind of reputation, many historical officials are wondering
why City officials have turned their back on Stones River.
"I'm to the point of thinking this is a lost cause,"
said Preservationist and former Tennessee Wars Commissioner
Jerry Lessenberry. "It is hard to tell people how much
value this Park has to Murfreesboro, the State of Tennessee,
and the nation. Over 250,000 people a year visit Stones River
National Park and that number can increase dramatically if the
City will work with the Park to protect some of these historical
fields and develop a sustainable tourist base that can be built
upon in the coming years. We’re not talking about another
endangered forest here or an animal that can be relocated to
a new habitat. This is a place where tens of thousands of men
fought and died in one of the most costly battles in the War
Between the States."
Park officials are still trying to work with the city and preservationists
as well as state historians are also trying to keep attention
focused on preserving as much of the battlefield as possible.
State and federal representatives have been watching things
develop in the City, but have been slow to weigh in on the issue.
Tennessee has only recently formed an organization to aid in
battlefield preservation.
The Tennessee Civil War Preservation Society is dedicated to
the protection of the state’s historic battlefields. Membership
costs $20.00 per year and is open to anyone wishing to help.
For more information on the organization, you can contact the
TCWPA at P.O. Box 293029, Nashville, TN 37229-3029.
