Taking Bloody Hill

Taking Bloody Hill. . , In the frosty morning of October 23, 1864, this field and ridge exploded with the whistle of bullets and the hiss and whiz of cannon shells bursting overhead. The Union cavalrymen skirmish on foot and crawl across the long open field from Byram's Ford to reach the base of the hill - soon to be known as Bloody Hill., Here, you would have seen the line of 2600 blue-coated dismounted Union soldiers, stretching for nearly a half-mile in front of you. The soldiers are hunkered down at the base of Bloody Hill and jammed against the sheer 15-foot rock wall that rises above them., Atop Bloody Hill, an opposing line of 3800 Confederate cavalry soldiers stretches across the Byram's Ford Road for nearly a half-mile. The four Confederate cannons roar with a torrent of artillery shells crashing over this field., Acrid clouds of smoke drifting in the air rise above the Confederates line. The fire from their rifles rains an explosion of bullets upon the approaching Union soldiers. The more than 6000 guns of the combined opposing armies produce a deafening din., The Union soldiers' attempts to advance up the slope of Bloody Hill are driven back by the withering Confederate storm of bullets. Eventually, some Union sharpshooters reach the log house standing by the Road on the slope and open fire., After several hours of battle here, at 11:00 AM, the Confederates withdraw because they are running out of ammunition and unable to continue the heavy fire upon the Union attackers.