Engagement at James City
On 10 October 1863 Confederate cavalry cormmanded by Maj. Gen. J.E.B. Stuart engaged Union
cavalry and infantry under Brig. Gen. H. Judson
Kilpatrick and Maj. Gen. William H. French at
James City (present-day Leon). The two forces
confronted each other atop the ridges on either
side of the village, and an artillery duel ensued.
James City virtually disappeared in the smoke. A
Confederate detachment captured the Union signal
station on Thorofare Mountain, a mile to the south.
Late in the day Stuart repulsed a Union cavalry
charge, and during the night the Union force
withdrew toward Culpeper. This engagement was
the only instance during the war when Stuart
led a force without a Virginia regiment.
Marker is on Seminole Trail (U.S. 29) south of James City Road, on the right when traveling north.
Courtesy hmdb.org
