Mount Ephraim Crossroads

Mount Ephraim Crossroads. Confederate Rearguard Holds. Sugarloaf Mountain Rises before you. There, the long running cavalry fight that began in the late afternoon on September 9, 1862, in Barnesville came to a halt. By the next morning the 8th Illinois and 3rd Indiana Cavalry were tangling with the 7th and 9th Virginia Cavalry at the southern base of Sugarloaf., Each side brought up artillery and reinforcements. Dismounted troopers of the 2nd Virginia Cavalry fired on the Federals from slope of the mountain. Cannon fired rumbled and echoed off Sugarloaf throughout the day as the fight continued. By evening neither side had budged., Early on the morning of September 11, the Confederates slipped away after brief exchanges of gunfire, also abandoning a mountain-top signal station. The sharp fight at Sugarloaf Mountain proved to be a successful rear guard action for the Army of Northern Virginia as it marched northwest out of Frederick., "There is some beautiful country here. I am particularly charmed with the country this side of Frederick ... I think if I owned one of the many fine farms I have passed, I could spend my days on it very happily." , William Hazelton, 8th Illinois Cavalry, (sidebar) , Farm To Inn , In 1862, Robert Johnson built a log house here, which is encased in the north end of the Comus Inn. The logs can be seen on the interior. In 1885 and later around 1900, the original cabin was enlarged, with, respectively, a wing to the south and a rear extension. The name Comus (Roman god of revelry) was not used until a post office was established here in 1930. In 1973, the building became a restaurant, fitting for its classical name.