The Battle of Mine Run, also known as Payne's Farm, or New Hope Church, or the Mine Run campaign (November 27 – December 2, 1863), was conducted in
Orange County, Virginia
Orange County is a county (United States), county located in the central Piedmont region of Virginia, Piedmont region of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was ...
, in the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...
.
An unsuccessful attempt of the
Union Army of the Potomac
The Army of the Potomac was the primary field army of the Union army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. It was created in July 1861 shortly after the First Battle of Bull Run and was disbanded in June 1865 following the Battle of ...
to defeat the
Confederate
A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...
Army of Northern Virginia
The Army of Northern Virginia was a field army of the Confederate States Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. It was also the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. It was most often arrayed agains ...
, it was marked by false starts and low casualties and ended hostilities in the
Eastern Theater for the year.
Background

After the
Battle of Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg () was a three-day battle in the American Civil War, which was fought between the Union and Confederate armies between July 1 and July 3, 1863, in and around Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The battle, won by the Union, ...
in July, Confederate
Gen. Robert E. Lee
Robert Edward Lee (January 19, 1807 – October 12, 1870) was a general officers in the Confederate States Army, Confederate general during the American Civil War, who was appointed the General in Chief of the Armies of the Confederate ...
and his command
retreated back across the
Potomac River
The Potomac River () is in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States and flows from the Potomac Highlands in West Virginia to Chesapeake Bay in Maryland. It is long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography D ...
into
Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...
. Union commander
Maj. Gen. George G. Meade was widely criticized for failing to pursue aggressively and defeat Lee's army. Meade planned new offensives in Virginia for the fall. His first attempt was a series of inconclusive duels and maneuvers in October and November known as the
Bristoe campaign.
In late November, Meade attempted to steal a march through the Wilderness of Spotsylvania and strike the right flank of the Confederate Army south of the
Rapidan River
The Rapidan River, flowing U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed April 1, 2011 through north-central Virginia in the United States, is the largest tributary of the Rappahannoc ...
. Meade had intelligence reports that Lee's army, half the size of Meade's Army of the Potomac (actually 48,000 to Meade's 81,000), was split in two, separated by Clark's Mountain, with the two flanks anchored at Mine Run and Liberty Mills, over thirty miles apart. His plan was to cross the Rapidan at points beyond
Maj. Gen. J.E.B. Stuart's cavalry screen, overwhelm the right flank (
Lt. Gen. Richard S. Ewell's
Second Corps) and then follow up with the remainder (Lt. Gen.
A.P. Hill's
Third Corps).
[NPS]
Unlike Maj. Gen.
Joseph Hooker
Joseph Hooker (November 13, 1814 – October 31, 1879) was an American Civil War general for the Union, chiefly remembered for his decisive defeat by Confederate General Robert E. Lee at the Battle of Chancellorsville in 1863.
Hooker had serv ...
's plan in the
Chancellorsville campaign
The Battle of Chancellorsville, April 30 – May 6, 1863, was a major battle of the American Civil War (1861–1865), and the principal engagement of the Chancellorsville campaign.
Confederate General Robert E. Lee's risky decision to divide h ...
earlier that year on essentially the same ground, Meade planned no diversions; he intended a lightning strike with his entire army. The army marched on November 25 and got off to a good start, aided by fog on Clark's Mountain, which screened his movements from Confederate lookouts. However, Maj. Gen.
William H. French
William Henry French (January 13, 1815 – May 20, 1881) was a career United States Army officer and a Union Army General officer, General in the American Civil War. He rose to temporarily command a corps within the Army of the Potomac, but was re ...
's
III Corps
III or iii may refer to:
Companies
* Information International, Inc., a computer technology company
* Innovative Interfaces, Inc., a library-software company
* 3i, formerly Investors in Industry, a British investment company
Other uses
* I ...
got mired in fording the river at Jacob's Ford, causing traffic jams when they moved their artillery to Germanna Ford, where other units were attempting to cross.
Opposing forces
Union
Confederate
Battle
Speed had escaped Meade, who was furious with French, and this allowed Lee time to react. Lee ordered Maj. Gen.
Jubal A. Early
Jubal Anderson Early (November 3, 1816 – March 2, 1894) was an American lawyer, politician and military officer who served in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War, Civil War. Trained at the United States Military Academy, ...
, in temporary command of Ewell's Second Corps, to march east on the Orange Turnpike to Locust Grove, where Early's men began skirmishing with advance Union elements. Maj. Gen.
Edward "Allegheny" Johnson's division was marching along the Raccoon Ford Road to join Early when the head of Gen. French's III Corps made contact in the heavy wooded terrain along the Widow Morris Road. Johnson turned his division about and ordered what can only be described as a reckless double-envelopment assault against a mostly unseen enemy of unknown strength, throwing his 5,500 men against French and John Sedgwick's VI Corps (a combined 32,000). It was about 3:45 - 4:00 p.m. Johnson's assault fell apart quickly on the left, where Steuart lost control of his brigade, and quickly bogged down in the middle (Stonewall Brigade) and on the right (Stafford and Jones), but was strong enough to slow down the Union advance until nightfall, when Johnson left the field on his own accord, retreating with the rest of the army west behind the Mine Run Creek. The actual fighting consumed less than two and one-half hours and the losses were heavy. Johnson lost nearly 550 men (or 10% of his strength) and French's corps about 950 from all causes. The Battle of Payne's Farm was short, bloody, and important. Johnson's attack put French and his III Corps back on its heels, slowed the advance, and saved Lee's army. If Johnson had cleared the Widow Morris Road before the arrival of French and Sedgwick, or had been driven away in defeat, the 32,000 Federals could have marched behind Lee's left flank and into his rear.
After dark, Lee withdrew to prepared field
fortification
A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Lati ...
s along Mine Run. The next day the Union Army closed on the Confederate position. Meade planned a heavy
artillery
Artillery consists of ranged weapons that launch Ammunition, munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieges, and l ...
bombardment followed by Maj. Gen.
Gouverneur K. Warren's
II Corps attack in the south, then Maj. Gen.
John Sedgwick
John Sedgwick (September 13, 1813 – May 9, 1864) was an American military officer who served as a Union Army general during the American Civil War.
He was wounded three times at the Battle of Antietam while leading his division in an unsucces ...
's
VI Corps 6 Corps, 6th Corps, Sixth Corps, or VI Corps may refer to:
France
* VI Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry formation of the Imperial French army during the Napoleonic Wars
* VI Corps (Grande Armée), a formation of the Imperial French army dur ...
in the north an hour later. Lee planned an assault for December 2 that would have exploited the dangling left flank of the Union line, discovered the previous day by Maj. Gen.
Wade Hampton Wade Hampton may refer to the following people:
People
*Wade Hampton I (1752–1835), American soldier in Revolutionary War and War of 1812 and U.S. congressman
* Wade Hampton II (1791–1858), American plantation owner and soldier in War of 1812
* ...
's cavalry. Although the Union bombardment began on schedule, the major attack did not materialize; Meade concluded that the Confederate line was too strong to attack (although Warren is credited with getting the attack canceled) and retired during the night of December 1–2, ending the fall campaign. Lee was chagrined to find he had no one left in his front to attack.
[
]
Aftermath
The Army of the Potomac went into winter quarters at Brandy Station, Virginia
Brandy Station is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Culpeper County, Virginia, United States. It was first listed as a CDP in the 2020 census with a population of 191. Its original name was Brandy. The name Brand ...
. Mine Run had been Meade's final opportunity to plan a strategic offensive before the arrival of Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was the 18th president of the United States, serving from 1869 to 1877. In 1865, as Commanding General of the United States Army, commanding general, Grant led the Uni ...
as general-in-chief the following spring. Lee also regretted the inconclusive results. He was quoted as saying, "I am too old to command this army. We never should have permitted those people to get away." Confederate hopes of repeating their Chancellorsville triumph had been dashed.
The Mine Run Campaign was Meade's last and failed attempt in 1863 to destroy Lee's Army of Northern Virginia before winter halted military operations. In the spring of 1864, Grant re-initiated battle with Lee in the Overland campaign
The Overland Campaign, also known as Grant's Overland Campaign and the Wilderness Campaign, was a series of battles fought in Virginia during May and June 1864, towards the end of the American Civil War. Lieutenant general (United States), Lt. G ...
.
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (February 27, 1807 – March 24, 1882) was an American poet and educator. His original works include the poems " Paul Revere's Ride", '' The Song of Hiawatha'', and '' Evangeline''. He was the first American to comp ...
wrote the 1863 poem "Christmas Bells", which became the carol " I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day", in response to learning of his son Charles Appleton Longfellow being severely wounded in the battle.
Battlefield preservation
Attorney, historian, and publisher Theodore P. Savas, who obtained the official records and other primary sources, was convinced that the few articles written on Payne's Farm had incorrectly located the fighting area and axis of the troops involved and was determined to test his theory. He contacted his friend Paul Sacra in Richmond, and the pair set out to locate and map the Payne's Farm battlefield in the late 1980s. Armed with extensive primary sources and battle reports, he and Sacra located what they believed was the field and, with the permission from several landowners, used metal detectors to prove it. Within a couple days Savas and Sacra had unearthed hundreds of artifacts, including bullets, a ramrod, bayonet socket, a partial harmonica behind the Louisiana position in the farm lane, belt buckles, buttons, and much more. Savas drew maps of the field and the general location of the artifacts and delivered them to The Association for the Preservation of Civil War Sites (or APCWS), and its director, A. Wilson Greene, in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Greene, who had no idea the field was in such pristine condition, was excited by the find and affirmed its importance.
Saving the land was a slow process for a variety of reasons, including the fact that the majority landowner wanted to develop the land. At that point Savas and Sacra presented him with proof that the land contained at least two mass graves (which they had not detected or recovered anything from), and that to develop the land for homes would be a travesty. The Civil War Trust
The American Battlefield Trust is a charitable organization (501(c)(3)) whose primary focus is in the preservation of battlefields of the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, and the American Civil War, through the acquisition of battlefield lan ...
(a division of the American Battlefield Trust
The American Battlefield Trust is a charitable organization (501(c)(3)) whose primary focus is in the preservation of battlefields of the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, and the American Civil War, through the acquisition of battlefield lan ...
) and its partners later acquired and preserved of the battlefield. The battlefield today features a wooded, 1.5-mile interpretive trail with historical wayside markers. It is located on Virginia highway 611 across from the Zoar Baptist Church about two miles north of Locust Grove.
American Battlefield Trust
The American Battlefield Trust is a charitable organization (501(c)(3)) whose primary focus is in the preservation of battlefields of the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, and the American Civil War, through the acquisition of battlefield lan ...
"Mine Run Battlefield" page. Accessed May 29, 2018.
Notes
References
*
David J. Eicher, Eicher, David J. ''The Longest Night: A Military History of the Civil War''. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2001. .
* Esposito, Vincent J. ''West Point Atlas of American Wars''. New York: Frederick A. Praeger, 1959. . The collection of maps (without explanatory text) is available online at th
West Point website
* Salmon, John S. ''The Official Virginia Civil War Battlefield Guide''. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 2001. .
Further reading
* Gottfried, Bradley M. ''The Maps of the Bristoe Station and Mine Run Campaigns: An Atlas of the Battles and Movements in the Eastern Theater after Gettysburg, Including Rappahannock Station, Kelly's Ford, and Morton's Ford, July 1863 - February 1864''.
Savas Beatie, 2013.
* Graham, Martin F., and George F. Skoch. ''Mine Run: A Campaign of Lost Opportunities, October 21, 1863–May 1, 1864''. Lynchburg, VA: H. E. Howard, 1987. .
* Mackowski, Chris. ''The Great Battle Never Fought: The Mine Run Campaign, November 26–December 2, 1863''. Emerging Civil War Series. El Dorado Hills, CA:
Savas Beatie, 2018. .
External links
Mine Run Campaign in ''Encyclopedia Virginia''
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1863 in Virginia
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Orange County, Virginia
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