Assault on Allegheny - General Information

Pridgeon’s Shenandoah Legion & The Highland Historical Society are proud to present

ASSAULT ON ALLEGHENY!!

July 24 – 26, 2009 in Bartow, WV

For Reenactors:

• Main
• Intro
• General Information
• Event Regulations
• Registration Form
• Federal Reenactor Info
• Confederate Reenactor Info

Useful Info:

• Directions
• History & Links
• Attendee List

General Information for Reenactors:

Pridgeon's Shenandoah Legion, Highland Historical Society & Highland Chamber of Commerce cordially invite you to participate in the Assault on Allegheny event, to be held July 24 – 26, 2009 in Bartow, WV. We welcome all serious historical interpreters to join us in recreating the experiences of the soldiers who participated in this closing phase of the Allegheny Mountain Campaign of late 1861.

The website contains a site description, historical setting, detailed explanation of the event goals, rules and registration materials.

The sponsors also want to emphasize that this event will have individual registration only! Unit commanders may send a single check to cover their unit, but each individual must fill out a separate registration form and sign the waiver. There will be NO EXCEPTIONS to this rule.

Event Organizers / Sponsors:

• The Highland Historical Society
• The Highland County Chamber of Commerce
• Pridgeon's Shenandoah Legion

Event Organizing Committee:

Overall Event Staff	Jim White, Bob Denton, Lorraine White
Confederate Military	David Pridgeon, Commanding
Federal Military	Scott Buffington, Commanding.
Web site	Chris Clarke (webmaster), content provided by Organizing Committee

Event Site:

The event registration will be located at Traveler’s Repose in Bartow, WV, approximately 45-minutes west of McDowell, WV. However the activities will include marching along the original Staunton-Parkersburg Pike, as it crosses Allegheny Mountain just east of Bartow. A detailed site map and directions are included on the website.

Camp Allegheny is extremely well-preserved . The locale today looks much as it did in 1861, consisting primarily of open sheep pasture. The Forest Service administers and protects that portion of the camp north of the Staunton-Parkersburg pike. This area includes three rows of stone piles and surface depressions representing the remains of at least 35 cabins. The hillside above this point contains a shallow trench. This hillside and the ridge flat above are the locations of General Milroy's attack during the December 13, 1861 battle.

South of the turnpike, on private property, lie extensive earth and stone breastworks on the summit of Buffalo Ridge enclosing well defined battery emplacements, stone piles representing more cabin locations and a prominent oval earthen enclosure on the ridge crest often referred to as a "a command post." Visitors to the site should not enter the private portion without permission from the land owners.

Recognizing the historical significance of this location, the Forest Service nominated Camp Allegheny to the National Register of Historic Places in 1990. This nomination was accepted and the site is now listed on the National Register. The Federal camps for Friday night will be located at the site of Camp Bartow, overlooking Traveler’s Repose. The Confederate camp for Friday will be east of Camp Allegheny, in a forested area along the Pike. The event will move towards an eventual clash of forces near the top of the mountain, with skirmish activity on Saturday afternoon, and a reenactment of the Battle of Camp Allegheny on Sunday morning.

Topography and Weather – what to expect:

The event will be covering ground ranging in altitude from 2,770 feet to 4,400 feet above sea level. The Federal march on Saturday will consist of a gradual ascent of Allegheny Mountain, rising 1,700 feet in roughly 7.5 miles. Alternately, the Confederate march will start at 3,800 feet, and will cover about 4 miles to the site of the Camp. However, Confederate forces will range along the Pike, and will be asked to descend and ascend several hundred vertical feet as well. Therefore, all participants must be in good physical condition.

Even though this event will be taking place in late July, the weather on Allegheny Mountain is highly changeable and can be very cool, even in midsummer. Above 4,000 feet, the temperatures seldom rise above 80 degrees at this time of year, so sleeping blankets will be in order as the evening temperatures may fall into the upper 50s to low 60s. If the weather is dry and pleasant off the mountain, be prepared for chilly nights. However, if it is hot and humid at lower elevations, then the mountain will see evening thunderstorms, and if severe, they can be accompanied by dangerous lightning, high winds, hail, and brief heavy downpours. Typically, these thunderstorms will only occur in late afternoon through sunset, and usually are very brief. However, in some circumstances they can last on and off all night, therefore we are asking all participants to make sure that they can shelter themselves from rain as structures will not be available. Thus, due to the potentially cool evening temperatures and possibility of heavy rain, every effort must be made to avoid getting soaked, as hypothermia is a distinct possibility under these circumstances.

Historical Setting:

Camp Allegheny, also known as Camp Baldwin or Camp Johnson, is a Civil War era Confederate fortification located astride the Staunton-Parkersburg Turnpike in Pocahontas County, West Virginia. Camp Allegheny was built in the summer of 1861 by Confederate forces in an attempt to control the turnpike (present County Route 3). They hoped to bar Federal advances toward Staunton, Virginia and the Shenandoah Valley. At an elevation of approximately 4,400 feet above sea level, the fortification is the highest in the eastern theater of the Civil War.

Camp Allegheny consists of an enclosed pit and parapet fortification to the west of the turnpike, with associated cabins and earthworks on a hill to the east. The fort was constructed on the farm of John Yeager and a large sugar maple grove supposedly was cut down for building cabins. Following the October 3, 1861 Battle of Greenbrier River at Camp Bartow (nine miles northwest), Confederate General Henry R. Jackson moved his forces to this position. Here the Confederate Army established winter quarters.

Camp Allegheny Battle

Brigadier general Robert H. Milroy, newly promoted commander of Federal forces in the Cheat Mountain Division, determined to destroy the Confederate outpost here. On the morning of December 12, 1861 he assembled a force of about 1,900 men at Cheat Summit fort and advanced on Camp Allegheny. Opposing Milroy was Colonel Edward Johnson's 1,200 man Confederate force consisting of Georgia and Virginia regiments, two batteries of artillery (totaling eight guns) and a detachment of cavalry.

The Federal troops seized abandoned Camp Bartow (site of the October 3 Battle of Greenbrier River). There General Milroy divided his force, hoping to strike both the right and left (east and west flanks) of Camp Allegheny at daybreak on the 13th. Milroy personally directed the main column which advanced along the Staunton-Parkersburg Turnpike. This body of troops left the road and picked its way up the steep mountainside approximately one mile from Camp Allegheny. The column's intended position was to reach the right and rear of the Confederates.

Meanwhile, the second Federal column under Colonel Moody was to march up the Green Bank road and attack the left. Colonel Moody's attack was to be the signal for Milroy's simultaneous assault. However, Milroy's force encountered a strong Confederate picket and began the fight prematurely. The Confederate advanced from their earthworks toward Milroy, but were driven back by the superior long range rifles of the Federals. The Confederates quickly rallied, however, and returned from the trenches and log cabins in force. The fighting was at such close quarters that the Confederate cannons could not be used efficiently. Milroy had not brought any artillery with his troops, hoping to capture the Confederate guns. Finally breaking off the engagement, Milroy gathered his dead and wounded from the open field and led the exhausted Federals back to the turnpike.

At that time, Colonel Moody made his hopelessly late attack on the left flank of Camp Allegheny. Colonel Johnson was now able to commit his entire force against Moody. Worn out by the long march, (and rumored to have visited a local cider mill the previous night) Moody's troops fought stubbornly but were soon driven back. They retreated down the mountainside and rejoined Milroy's command.

The battle at Camp Allegheny opened at 7:15 a.m. and was over by 2:00 p.m. Johnson's Confederates remained in control of the fort and Milroy's Federals retreated to Cheat Mountain. Casualties were almost even with both sides reporting roughly 20 killed and a little over 120 wounded and missing. As a result of this action, Colonel Johnson was promoted to Brigadier General and his command received a commendation from the Confederate Congress.

The Winter of 1861-1862

George P. Morgan of the 31st Virginia regiment noted in his diary for August 20, 1861, "Between the measles and the worst climate ever seen, I am still dragging out a kind of miserable existence unable to do military duty or anything else. Here on top of the Allegheny Mountain it rains in torrents nearly every day, and when not raining, we can't see fifty yards." Colonel Johnson's troops abandoned the works at Camp Allegheny in April 1862. Soon after, local guerrillas apparently set fire to much of the camp. Camp Allegheny saw sporadic use during various raids later in the war.