Brandy Station in Culpeper County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)

Battle of Brandy Station

The Battle Opens

Photographed by Mike McKeown, August 2, 2025

1. Battle of Brandy Station Marker

Inscription.

Battle of Brandy Station. The Battle Opens. , "Early in the morning, I was aroused by a courier ... announcing that the enemy had crossed the river in considerable force ... I hastily collected a portion of my regiment amounting to about 150 men, and charged down the road toward Beverly Ford. Here I attacked two regiments of cavalry." , Maj. Cabell Flournoy, 6th Virginia Cavalry, CSA, With the strategic initiative firmly in hand following his victories at Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville, Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee decided to invade the North. Lee ordered his cavalry under Gen. J.E.B. Stuart to Culpeper and assigned him the critical task of screening the main infantry movement and preventing the Federal horsemen from discovering the movement. Gen. Alfred Pleasonton's Union cavalry soon detected Stuart's presence and the Federals launched an expedition to destroy the Confederates., On the foggy morning of June 9, 1863, horsemen from Gen. John Buford's wing splashed across the Rappahannock River at Beverly's Ford, about a mile to your left front. Col. Benjamin F. Davis, a brigade commander, led Buford's advance. His former regiment, the 8th New York Cavalry, rode at the head of the column and collided with pickets from the 6th Virginia Cavalry. Henry Cutler, a lieutenant in Company B, 8th New York, was killed in the initial volley, the first casualty of the Gettysburg Campaign. The Virginians gave way as the Union cavalry galloped through woods surrounding and along Beverly's Ford Road. , Davis's attack stirred a hornet's nest. Regiments from Gen. William E. "Grumble" Jones's brigade, camped around St. James Church, about a mile to your rear, responded to the threat. Additional companies from the 6th Virginia struck the 8th New York in the road. The New Yorkers recoiled in the face of the counterattack. Attempting to rally the regiment Davis shouted, "Stand firm, Eighth New York!" Immediately after he uttered these words, Lt. Robert O. Allen of the 6th Virginia shot Davis dead at a bend in the road a little over two tenths of a mile in front of you. Despite Davis's effort, the 8th New York collapsed. , (captions) , Counterattacks by Jones's brigade not only helped to stem the Union tide but allowed the batteries from Maj. Robert Beckham's Stuart Horse Artillery to withdraw and assume a new position at St. James Church., As the 8th New York Cavalry broke in the face of Confederate assaults, the second regiment in Davis's column, the 8th Illinois, engaged the 6th and 7th Virginia. This painting depicts the moment shortly after Capt. George Forsyth of the 8th Illinois fell wounded (shown pinned under his home) by a salvo from one of Beckham's guns in Beverly's Ford Road. Capt. Elon Farnsworth (shown mounted to the left of the flag) assumed command of the regiment. Sergeant George C. Hupp, himself wounded later in the day, rides up in the road on the right. - Courtesy of Keith Rocco

"Early in the morning, I was aroused by a courier ... announcing that the enemy had crossed the river in considerable force ... I hastily collected a portion of my regiment amounting to about 150 men, and charged down the road toward Beverly Ford. Here I attacked two regiments of cavalry." —Maj. Cabell Flournoy, 6th Virginia Cavalry, CSA

With the strategic initiative firmly in hand following his victories at Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville, Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee decided to invade the North. Lee ordered his cavalry under Gen. J.E.B. Stuart to Culpeper and assigned him the critical task of screening the main infantry movement and preventing the Federal horsemen from discovering the movement. Gen. Alfred Pleasonton's Union cavalry soon detected Stuart's presence and the Federals launched an expedition to destroy the Confederates.

On the foggy morning of June 9, 1863, horsemen from Gen. John Buford's wing splashed across the Rappahannock River at Beverly's Ford, about a mile to your left front. Col. Benjamin F. Davis, a brigade commander, led Buford's advance. His former regiment, the 8th New York Cavalry, rode at the head of the column and collided with pickets from the 6th Virginia Cavalry. Henry Cutler, a lieutenant in Company B, 8th New York, was killed in the initial volley, the first casualty

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of the Gettysburg Campaign. The Virginians gave way as the Union cavalry galloped through woods surrounding and along Beverly's Ford Road.

Davis's attack stirred a hornet's nest. Regiments from Gen. William E. "Grumble" Jones's brigade, camped around St. James Church, about a mile to your rear, responded to the threat. Additional companies from the 6th Virginia struck the 8th New York in the road. The New Yorkers recoiled in the face of the counterattack. Attempting to rally the regiment Davis shouted, "Stand firm, Eighth New York!" Immediately after he uttered these words, Lt. Robert O. Allen of the 6th Virginia shot Davis dead at a bend in the road a little over two tenths of a mile in front of you. Despite Davis's effort, the 8th New York collapsed.

(captions)
Counterattacks by Jones's brigade not only helped to stem the Union tide but allowed the batteries from Maj. Robert Beckham's Stuart Horse Artillery to withdraw and assume a new position at St. James Church.

As the 8th New York Cavalry broke in the face of Confederate assaults, the second regiment in Davis's column, the 8th Illinois, engaged the 6th and 7th Virginia. This painting depicts the moment shortly after Capt. George Forsyth of the 8th Illinois fell wounded (shown pinned under his home) by a salvo from one of Beckham's guns in Beverly's Ford Road. Capt. Elon

Photographed by Mike McKeown, August 2, 2025

2. Battle of Brandy Station Marker

Farnsworth (shown mounted to the left of the flag) assumed command of the regiment. Sergeant George C. Hupp, himself wounded later in the day, rides up in the road on the right. - Courtesy of Keith Rocco

Erected by American Battlefield Trust.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: War, US Civil. A significant historical date for this entry is June 9, 1863.

Location. 38° 32.122′ N, 77° 51.451′ W. Marker is in Brandy Station, Virginia, in Culpeper County. It can be reached from Beverly Ford Road 0.8 miles north of St James Church Road, on the left when traveling north. At stop 3 along the Burford Knoll and Cunningham Farm Walking Trial. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Brandy Station VA 22714, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the Washington Metropolitan Area

and in Northern Virginia.

It is also in the American South,

specifically in the Upper South,

and in the Mid-Atlantic.

Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the original Thirteen Colonies,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: A different marker also named The Battle of Brandy Station (about 500 feet away, measured in a direct line); a different marker also named Battle of Brandy Station (approx. 0.2 miles away); a different marker also named Battle of Brandy Station (approx. 0.2 miles away); a different marker also named The Battle of Brandy Station (approx. half a mile away); a different marker also named The Battle of Brandy Station (approx. 0.6 miles away); a different marker also named

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The Battle of Brandy Station (approx. 0.7 miles away); The 1863-64 Winter Encampment (approx. 0.7 miles away); a different marker also named Battle of Brandy Station (approx. 0.8 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Brandy Station.

Other markers no longer nearby. The Battle of Brandy Station (was about 600 feet away but has been permanently removed); a different marker also named The Battle of Brandy Station (was approx. 0.2 miles away but has been permanently removed).

Also see . . . Brandy Station Battlefield (American Battlefield Trust). (Submitted on August 2, 2025, by Mike McKeown of Baltimore, Maryland.)

Credits. This page was last revised on August 8, 2025. It was originally submitted on August 2, 2025, by Mike McKeown of Baltimore, Maryland. This page has been viewed 100 times since then and 25 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on August 2, 2025, by Mike McKeown of Baltimore, Maryland. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.