Battle of Camp Wildcat.

jessgettysburg1863

2nd Lieutenant
Joined
Jun 3, 2012
Location
Living in Kilmore in Victoria Australia
The Battle of Camp Wildcat took place on October 21, 1861 in western Kentucky, the second engagement in that state of regular army troops representing both the Union and Confederacy. What could have been a retreat against overwhelming odds turned into a Union victory due to the timely arrival of badly-needed reinforcements.

Prelude
Despite being neutral, both sides saw the value of Kentucky in the war. For the Confederacy, control of Kentucky would offer a front line of defense should the Union invade eastern Tennessee; for the Union, control of the Bluegrass State would prevent the rebels from increasing the size of the Confederacy and gaining access to the Ohio River. Both sides were actively recruiting new soldiers.
Confederate Brigadier General Felix Zollicoffer assumed command of a brigade in Bristol, Tennessee in July, 1861; from there he began a movement through the Cumberland Gap into Kentucky along the Wilderness Road, then considered a major artery to the state's interior. The object of the move was to control the road up to the town of Boonesboro, organize confused Confederate regiments, and prevent a Union invasion; control of the road also meant control of the mountain residents who were pro-union in sentiment.
At the same time, Theophilous Garrard, a grandson of a Kentucky governor who had just resigned his seat in the state senate to take an Army commission as colonel, was given command of a new Union regiment which at that time existed only on paper. Setting up a recruiting station near his home town of Manchester, he managed to enlist nearly a thousand men by late August.

See the link for the full article.

http://www.conservapedia.com/Battle_of_Camp_Wildcat

Camp Wild Cat.jpg

http://www.civilwarobsession.com/2011_10_01_archive.html

fordstream2.jpg

http://wildcatbattlefield.org/battle6.html
 
Information is a bit off. Camp Wildcat is in EASTERN KY. Good book to read is.. The Battle of WildCat Mountain by Kenneth A Hafendorfer. Also this battle was really a recon in force. Zollicoffer got the information he wanted and left. If your in the area, it is a great place to stop and take a nature walk. There is a sites including rifle pits still visible along the Wilderness Trail. If you do go, I suggest a vehicle that can handle steep gravel mountain roads. I visited last year, and plan to spend some more time there in the future. There is also a mainstream reenactment that takes place in late Oct. Not all that bad, if you come with the right attitude. Good eating, and some fun sites. Camping is very limited and crowded, which is no fun, however if they put a bridge in there is another field that could be used. A great field for progressives, and can be got to by a foot bridge that is there now.
 
I went to school (college) just down the road from Camp Wildcat. A buddy of mine who lives within a stone's throw of the battlefield took me there. He had been all over that field way back before it was put on the list. It is a great place to visit!
 
Information is a bit off. Camp Wildcat is in EASTERN KY. The Battle of WildCat Mountain by Kenneth A Hafendorfer. Also this battle was really a recon in force. Zollicoffer got the information he wanted and left. If your in the area, it is a great place to stop and take a nature walk. There is a sites including rifle pits still visible along the Wilderness Trail. If you do go, I suggest a vehicle that can handle steep gravel mountain roads. I visited last year, and plan to spend some more time there in the future. There is also a mainstream reenactment that takes place in late Oct. Not all that bad, if you come with the right attitude. Good eating, and some fun sites. Camping is very limited and crowded, which is no fun, however if they put a bridge in there is another field that could be used. A great field for progressives, and can be got to by a foot bridge that is there now.

Thanks for picking that up Shawn, l have asked one of the Mods to move it.

Cheers..........................Jess :thumbsup:.
 
Back
Top