Port Republic

 June 9, 1862

     After the repulse of Shields' cavalry raid into Port Republic and Fremont's repulse at Cross Keys, Jackson planned to cross the South River and strike Shields early on the morning of June 9th.  If all went well, Jackson would then re-cross the river and attack Fremont.  A makeshift bridge was constructed over the flooding South River by a unit of black engineers, and Jackson's men began to cross early that morning.

Union Line

      With the rebels approaching, the Union troops under Brig. Gen. Erastus Tyler deployed.  Originally positioned along the prominent wooded ridge at the foot of the mountains, in the area visible to the left of the road, the troops swung out into line at this road.  The line stretched from the South Fork of the Shenandoah River on their right, visible as a treeline across the modern railroad tracks on the far right of the picture, to the Coaling at the foot of the mountains on their left.  The Coaling was at the area of the wooded ridge visible just to the left of the road, and it was used to produce charcoal, a necessary material for the local iron furnaces.  Because of the incredible number of trees necessary in the production of charcoal, the nearby woods were a thicket, much like the well known Wilderness west of Fredericksburg.  At the Coaling, seven Federal guns enfiladed the field below, dominating it with its fire. So with their flanks solidly anchored on virtually impassible obstacles, the Yankees were in a very good position.

    The first Confederate unit to approach was the Stonewall Brigade under Winder.  Two regiments of the brigade were dispatched along the wooded ridge toward the Coaling, the key to the Union position.  These Confederates failed to take the Coaling, and the rest of Winder's brigade became pinned down in the field in front of the Union line.  At this point, the bridge over the river failed, leaving the Confederates in a vulnerable position.  Eventually, however, the bridge was fixed, and Richard Taylor's excellent Louisiana brigade began arriving.

From The Coaling

    One of Taylor's regiments reinforced the haggard Confederate line in the field while the rest moved through the woods to attack the Coaling.  Winder made a desperate attack in order to prevent a Union attack on his ragged line, which surely would have broken immediately.  After about an hour, Winder's men would break, and the battle would seem lost.  

     But let's go back to Taylor's brigade.  The 1,700 Louisianans were now attacking the Coaling.  They had had a difficult time getting through the heavy underbrush in the area but were now deployed for attack.  The Confederates moved across the ravine visible through the trees on the left of the picture, and attacked up the hill.  As difficult as it was, the attack succeeded.  Soon, however, the Federals recaptured the hill.  The battle was not going well for Jackson.  If the battle continued as it had, perhaps all of the sacrifices of the brilliant Valley Campaign would eventually come to naught. 
 

Ewell Attacks

The situation would change once again, however.  Taylor once again attacked and captured the Coaling, visible on the right of the picture, and although Winder was being routed in the fields in the center of the picture, Ewell was approaching the area with two Virginia regiments along the ridge on the left of the picture on a route parallel to the road.  Seeing the desperate nature of the fight in the field, Ewell deployed his men into a line at the road (I believe in the area of the dip in the road) and attacked into the Union flank in the field.  Meanwhile, Jackson rallied the Stonewall Brigade and attacked once again.  These attacks stemmed the Union tide.      Although Taylor's men had once again succeeded in taking the Coaling in fierce hand to hand combat, the Yankees hadn't given up the fight.  Hoping to prevent the guns from being carried off, the Yankees killed the horses, and the six hundred man 66th Ohio counterattacked from the rear of the Coaling.  They failed.  But success did come from two Ohio regiments, the 5th and 7th, who moved from the direction of the river toward the Coaling, swept past enemy occupied buildings at Lewiston, and recaptured the vital hill.  (See map.)

From Below the Coaling

    Here, at the intersection below the Coaling, you can survey the scene of the climax of the battle.  In this 360 degree view, the road visible on the far left - and far right - (now East Side Hwy.) heads north into the Luray or Paige Valley.  Soon, the Yankees would be in disorganized retreat down this road.  In the other direction is Port Republic, from which Jackson's men had marched.  In reaction to the renewed Union occupation of the Coaling, some Confederates were taking cover at Lewiston, the site of which is the prominent white buildings on the corner.

    The crossing road heads to the river along the Union line at the start of the battle. (now Lynnwood Rd.)  The two Ohio regiments had just come from that direction during their recapture of the Coaling.  In the other direction, the road heads through the heavily fought over ravine in front of the Coaling.  It then heads up the Blue Ridge to Brown's Gap. (now Ore Bank Road.  The church and houses here and at the Coaling did not exist at the time.)

    The Louisiana brigade attacked once again, and Ewell's two regiments, followed by newly arriving Confederates, attacked through Lewiston toward a battery in the area of the modern evergreens across from Lewiston.  The Coaling was captured for good now, and in the plain, the Stonewall brigade was routing the Yankees to its front.  Almost all of the Union guns near the Coaling were captured, and the Union army was put to flight.  Jackson's men pursued the Yankees for five miles.    

Fremont Shells the Battlefield

     Meanwhile, Isaac Trimble, whose brigade had been left as a rear guard to face Fremont's army, had withdrawn into Port Republic and burned the bridge behind them.  Unable to advance south beyond the North River, Fremont appeared on the heights across the South Fork Shenandoah River, visible up the road shown in this picture, just as the battle of Port Republic was ending.  Too late to affect the battle, Fremont shelled the Confederates as they assisted the wounded of both sides.  The act was contrary to the customs of war and to contrary to common decency.  Rather than unnecessarily risk his men helping the enemy wounded, Jackson ordered only his own wounded men help, then he evacuated the field. 

 

Brown's Gap

    It had been one of the most desperate battles of the war, and the climax of the famed Valley Campaign.  Jackson had lost 800 men and had inflicted 500 Union killed and wounded and captured several hundred more.  Many of the casualties were concentrated at the Coaling.  Much more important than casualties, Shields and Fremont withdrew to the northern end of the Valley.  The Valley Campaign had been a great success.  Jackson had tied down several times his own number of troops, and his actions had prevented a Union advance south from Fredericksburg, which surely would have meant the loss of Richmond.  That evening, Jackson marched up to Brown's Gap along the Blue Ridge, and several days later took his force to join Lee at Richmond.  Combined, Lee and Jackson would attack and defeat McClellan during the Seven Days, save Richmond, and change the course of the war.   
 

topo map   The "Port Republic Battle Mon." is the location of the Coaling.  Diagonally across the intersection is the location of Lewiston.  The first picture was taken looking south from the intersection of Route 708 and the railroad.
 

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