Haymarket During the Civil War
“Pass Around Their Army Without Hindrance”
On June 25, 1863, Confederate Gen. J.E.B. Stuart and about 5,000 of his cavalrymen approached
Haymarket. They acted on orders from commanding Gen. Robert E. Lee, who was on the western side of the Bull Run Mountains marching north to invade Maryland and Pennsylvania. He directed Stuart to “pass around their [U.S.] army without hindrance” to screen the Army of Northern Virginia from observation as it crossed the Potomac River. Stuart took the intended
route north through Haymarket on the advice of the noted partisan ranger Maj. John S. Mosby.
Here, Stuart and U.S. Gen. Winfield S. Hancock’s II Corps converged on the Old Carolina Road simultaneously. Hancock, too, was marching
north toward Leesburg. Stuart attacked the Federal wagon train and infantry, shelling them with
six cannons. This bombardment “scattered men,
wagons, and horses in wild confusion,” causing
several Union casualties. The Federals regrouped,
formed a battle line, and marched toward Stuart,
forcing him to make a decision either to fight the
larger force or to retreat. Stuart decided to withdraw southwest toward Buckland Mills and sent
a courier to Lee detailing his change of plans.
The courier never reached Lee with this vital
news. Stuart began moving northward on a new
route that took him 60 miles away from his intended route and out of communication with Lee for eight critical days. The effect of the loss of
contact between Lee and Stuart, his most trusted reconnaissance officer, on the outcome of the Battle of Gettysburg has been debated ever since.
Marker is on Washington Street (John Marshall Highway) (Virginia Route 55) west of Jefferson Street (Old Carolina Road), on the left when traveling west.
Courtesy hmdb.org
