Favorite battle

My favorite battle to study would be Wilson's Creek, followed by Pea Ridge and Dug Springs.

A list of battles I'm familiar with but would like to do more in depth study on would include:

- The First Battle of Springfield, Mo (Zagonyi's Charge)
- The Second Battle of Springfield, Mo
- Battle of Lexington, Mo
- Battle of Boonville, Mo
- Battle of Carthage, Mo
Missouri was hotly contested until March 1862 but it was embroiled in a virtual civil war.
 
Missouri was hotly contested until March 1862 but it was embroiled in a virtual civil war.


Securing of Mo. and Md.(and Ky.) were the vital first strategic victories of the North, that dictated where the South would be invaded, but, also, IMO, their success.
 
Securing of Mo. and Md.(and Ky.) were the vital first strategic victories of the North, that dictated where the South would be invaded, but, also, IMO, their success.
But keep in mind until January 1862 there was still a Confederate presence in both MO and KY as noted by Henry W. Halleck in a letter to Abraham Lincoln about why he and Don Carlos Buell could not attack and move.
 
I’m curious to hear what your favorite battles to study are? I’d have to say the two I’m most interested in are Gettyburg and Antietam.
Those are certainly favorites and have been for the longest, but since I'm from "the West" I have a soft spot for Shiloh as well. I find I'm more interested in battles from the first half of the war up through Gettysburg when it seemed the South had at least a fair chance of winning than anything later after Gettysburg/Vicksburg. Since I've had more chances recently in the past decade to travel to the East, I've somewhat specialized lately in the battles of Stonewall Jackson, particularly his Valley Campaign and am currently reading the classic Stonewall Jackson and the American Civil War by Englishman G. F. R. Henderson.
 
I'm pretty new to studying the Civil War and most of what I study doesn't really have a pitched battle, so I'm going to go with First Kernstown. It's the first battle that intrigued me enough to start hunting down book-length studies of it.

I hope you found this one in your search; if not, it's the only one I know of!

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Those are certainly favorites and have been for the longest, but since I'm from "the West" I have a soft spot for Shiloh as well. I find I'm more interested in battles from the first half of the war up through Gettysburg when it seemed the South had at least a fair chance of winning than anything later after Gettysburg/Vicksburg. Since I've had more chances recently in the past decade to travel to the East, I've somewhat specialized lately in the battles of Stonewall Jackson, particularly his Valley Campaign and am currently reading the classic Stonewall Jackson and the American Civil War by Englishman G. F. R. Henderson.
Just added you into my "Following" list.
 
I spend the most time studying the battles and engagements my Grandfathers were actually involved in with an emphasis on Chickamauga, 2nd Corinth/Davis Bridge and the Vicksburg campaign. I had Grandfathers at Mansfield/Pleasant Hill and Brice's Crossroads but have not had the opportunity to study these in depth though I look forward to it. Any battle where I actually had family involved I can't help but consider it my favorite.

I would have to say Shiloh overall is my favorite, especially after visiting the battlefield.

Of course I must temper this by saying I have not visited Gettysburg yet and most of my life I have been fascinated by Gettysburg as we all are. I didn't have family at any of the fighting in the east so the western battles as tragic as they were interest me the most.

Like you I tend to go for places ancestors fought. That however covers most of Virginia. I guess since I am close to Gettysburg and had 8 ancestors there that would be my top of the list.
 
Don't forget to study the Battle of Pilot Knob. A fine book called Pilot Knob The Thermopylae of the West.

I somehow was unable to quote the fine gentleman from Missouri and wanted to share an important battle. As most of his were in the west. Old Sterling Price sure muddled his way through Missouri.
 
While not classified as a battle, The sinking of the Queen City at Clarendon and the following 4 days. Caught my eye right away when I was writing the regimental histories.

I truly got hooked 2009 when I found my ancestor's discharge papers. Prior to that was and on/off interest.
 
It's cliche, but Gettysburg. TNT's movie helped get me interested in the war and it was one of the first battlefields I visited. Even without romanticizing it as the High Water Mark, there is so many interesting aspects to it with the large area and multiple days.

In terms of number of books/pages read on one battle/campaign, Shiloh and Chickamauga are the only standouts, but I wouldn't call either of them favorites. Chickamauga in particular was just too much of a confused fight. I've read widely more than deeply on the war so it's hard to pick anything that stands out to me besides Gettysburg.
 
McDowell -- Small battle,Confederates on high ground are attacked suffer higher loses, but win the battle. Rare that defenders have more loses.
Of course that was mainly the fault of the members of the overeager Georgia regiment that held the most exposed position and actually refused to back up where they wouldn't be silhouetted against the sky whenever they fired their muskets - that single regiment suffered over half the Confederate losses, somewhere around or over 200.
 
Of course that was mainly the fault of the members of the overeager Georgia regiment that held the most exposed position and actually refused to back up where they wouldn't be silhouetted against the sky whenever they fired their muskets - that single regiment suffered over half the Confederate losses, somewhere around or over 200.
Thank you.With out artillery also as the hill was too steep and densely wooded for the Confederates to pull the guns up. Gen Johnson is wounded here.
 
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