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Near Bartow in Pocahontas County, West Virginia — The American South (Appalachia)
 

Camp Allegheny

1861-1862

 
 
Camp Allegheny Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Bernard Fisher, August 8, 2012
1. Camp Allegheny Marker
Inscription. In late November 1861, Confederate forces at Camp Bartow moved southeast to this strong position on Allegheny Mountain overlooking the Staunton-Parkersburg Turnpike. Colonel Edward Johnson, 12th Georgia Infantry, took command of the garrison with orders to guard this mountain pass for the winter.

Battle of Allegheny Mountain
At daybreak on December 13, 1861, forces under Union General Robert H. Milroy attacked the Confederate flank of Colonel Johnson along the ridge to your right. A simultaneous attack on the left flank failed to materialize when Colonel Gideon Moody’s Union force arrived late. This delay enabled Johnson to fight off both advances in turn. Milroy and Moody retired from the battle, having lost an opportunity to open the turnpike to the Shenandoah Valley.

“I saw [Col. Johnson] at one point, where his men were hard pressed, snatch a musket in one hand and, swinging a big club in the other, he led his line right up among the enemy, driving them headlong down the mountain...” -John Robson, 52nd Virginia Infantry

Colonel Johnson earned a general’s star and the nickname “Allegheny” for his actions in the battle.

The Harsh Landscape of Winter
“We are still living in our tents, but we make them tolerably comfortable by constructing rude fireplaces
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to them. At night we do not fare so well.”
-James E. Hall, 31st Virginia Infantry

At 4,400 feet, the wind-swept summit of Allegheny Mountain is the highest elevation of any Civil War fortification in the east. Throughout the winter of 1861-62, more soldiers died from exposure and disease than were killed during the battle.

Artifacts, structures and archaeological resources at Camp Allegheny are protected by federal laws such as the Archaeological Resources Protection Act of 1979, as amended.

Please stay within the publicly owned portion of the site. Entry into private lands will require landowner consent. As you visit and enjoy Camp Allegheny, please be certain to leave it as you found it. If you observe artifacts, please leave them in place and report them to U.S. Forest Service personnel. Should you observe anyone digging, using a metal detector or collecting at this location, please inform the Forest Supervisor at (304) 636-1800 or the District Ranger at (304) 456-3335.

 
Erected by US Forest Service.
 
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Forts and CastlesWar, US Civil. A significant historical month for this entry is November 1861.
 
Location. 38° 28.421′ N, 79° 43.347′ W. Marker is near Bartow, West Virginia, in Pocahontas
Battle of Allegheny Mountain image. Click for full size.
2. Battle of Allegheny Mountain
County. Marker can be reached from Old Pike Road (County Route 3) 2 miles west of U.S. 250, on the left when traveling west. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Arbovale WV 24915, United States of America. Touch for directions.
 
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Camp Allegheny 1861-1862 (here, next to this marker); War In West Virginia (approx. 1.3 miles away); The Great Raid (approx. 1.3 miles away); Highland County / West Virginia (approx. 1.3 miles away in Virginia); The First Campaign (approx. 1.3 miles away); a different marker also named Camp Allegheny (approx. 1.3 miles away); West Virginia / Virginia (approx. 1.3 miles away); a different marker also named Camp Allegheny (approx. 1.6 miles away in Virginia). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Bartow.
 
More about this marker. On the upper left are portraits of Col. Edward Johnson (C.S.A.), Col. Gideon Moody (U.S.A.) and Gen. Robert Milroy (U.S.A.). On the right is sketch entitled “Frozen Camp”.
 
Related marker. Click here for another marker that is related to this marker. Old Marker At This Location titled "Camp Allegheny 1861-1862".
 
Also see . . .  Camp Allegheny (Allegheny Mountain). American Battlefield Trust (Submitted on November 14, 2021.) 
 
Camp Allegheny Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Bernard Fisher, August 8, 2012
3. Camp Allegheny Marker
Looking across the battlefield in front of the marker. image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Bradley Owen, October 14, 2017
4. Looking across the battlefield in front of the marker.
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on November 14, 2021. It was originally submitted on August 11, 2012, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia. This page has been viewed 1,232 times since then and 37 times this year. Photos:   1, 2, 3. submitted on August 11, 2012, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia.   4. submitted on January 29, 2021, by Bradley Owen of Morgantown, West Virginia.

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Mar. 28, 2024