The Assault on Bushong's Hill

The Assault on Bushong's Hill. "The first rebel line melted away.". , Time: Mid Afternoon , Around 2:30 to 3:00 pm, the area around you was engulfed in battle as the Confederates moved against the Union position on Bushong's Hill, 1/2 mile to your front. At this point, the fire from the Federal defenders was so intense that one Confederate said, "the shot and shell from the enemy... seemed to keep the air blue.", Union Gen. Franz Sigel had placed his men in a formidable position on Bushong's Hill, with four regiments of infantry and 17 cannon on a narrow front that began at the bluffs above the river and sloped down to the Valley Turnpike. And the ground leading up to their position was mostly open, leaving the Confederates exposed to the concentrated Federal fire., The Confederate front line marched into a furious storm of infantry and artillery fire. "I could see the shells mow them down by scores..." one Union soldier remembered. "[T]he first rebel line melted away.", The 30th Virginia and the right half of the 51st Virginia stalled on the Bushong Farm under the heavy fire. The 62nd Virginia to their right advanced 100 yards farther, leaving them isolated, and now drew the bulk of Federal fire. One soldier said the fire was "the hottest I ever been under." Woodson's company of Missourians, attached to the 62nd, was directly in front of Union cannon - within "pistol shot" - and was torn to shreds by shrapnel. Fearing the entire unit would be annihilated, the 62nd's commander, Col. George Smith, pulled them back., The Federals shifted their fire back to the 51st and 30th, and "cut up, shattered, and scattered" by the merciless fire, parts of both regiments gave way, creating a dangerous gap in the Confederate line., To fill the gap, Confederate Gen. John C. Breckinridge called up his only reserves - the young VMI Corps of Cadets. "Put the boys in," he said. "And may God forgive me for the order.", The Union Counterattack , With the Confederates staggered, Sigel ordered a Union counterattack, but an ill-considered cavalry charge and a disjointed infantry attack were both easily repulsed., (Captions):, Col. Joseph Thoburn commanded the Union troops on Bushong's Hill. , Nicholas Picerno Collection., Confederate Col. George Smith, commander of the 62nd Virginia. , Image courtesy Virginia Museum of the Civil War., Union Artillerymen , Courtesy Library of Congress