General Zollicoffer
sent the
following telegram this morning to General Johnston, Bowling Green
Kentucky:
One Ohio Regiment said to be twelve miles distant. Another regiment of the enemy a few miles beyond. I will feel of them today with two regiments and some cavalry. My force here is about 5,400.1
Johnston
replied, the same day, thus:
Your telegram from
London received. The information we have of the enemy in your front is this:
10,000 at Camp Dick Robinson, of these 4,000 are in advance toward Cumberland
Gap, but how far is not known; it is commanded by Garrard; and 10,000 dotted
from Robinson to Cincinnati.
General Polk ordered
two howitzers, one Parrott and three iron guns to be shipped for you to
Knoxville, October 15. A company to man this battery will be sent in a few
days.2
On advancing with
the infantry, about daybreak, Zollicoffer soon learned that the enemy had so
blockaded the road, by cutting trees across it, that it was very difficult for
infantry to approach the enemy's position, much less cavalry and artillery;
and, moreover, the enemy's entrenched camp on Rockcastle Hills was a natural
fortification, almost inaccessible, from our side of approach.
Winding their way,
as best they could, between two hills, over the fallen timber, and up, up, up
the rugged cliffs. Finally, about 9 A. M., the Eleventh (Rains) and Seventeenth
(Newman) Tennessee Regiments attacked the Federals in their entrenchments on
Rockcastle Hills. The following is taken from Colonel
Newman's official report:
NEAR ROCKCASTLE
HEIGHTS, October 21, 1861.
As ordered, I formed
my regiment from hill-top to hill-top at open intervals to move in rear of
Colonel Rains' Regiment and support him. Lieutenant-Colonel Miller was ordered
to take command of the left wing, composed of Companies A, D, F and I . . . . and
for the movements of said companies on the field I refer you to the report of
Lieutenant-Colonel Miller, which is hereto appended and made a part of my
report.3 The six companies, viz.: B, C, E, G, H and K, . . . . constituting
the right wing, were under my immediate command, and moved forward in line of
battle in the direction of the heights in front of our position.
Upon reaching a
point within eighty yards of the heights, we discovered a number of men
ascending the heights and entering the fortifications, but supposing these men
to be a portion of Colonel Rains' command, I did not order them to be fired
upon.
At this point we
received a heavy volley of rifles and musketry. The command moved on, however,
without returning the fire until within forty paces of the enemy's works before
we discovered they were not Colonel Rains' men, at which time the men were
ordered to cover as well as they could and to return the enemy's fire. In this
position we maintained a heavy fire for twenty-five minutes, when I ordered
Captain Armstrong and Lieutenant Harrison to move their companies around to my
extreme right to prevent a flank movement of the enemy, which I saw they were
about to make. These officers executed the order with promptness and alacrity,
under fire.
The fire was kept up
by all the companies for an hour and ten minutes, and, seeing that it was
impossible to fall back without great loss, I ordered the works to be charged.
Four companies gallantly charged the works, as ordered. Officers and men
seemingly vied with each other as to who should be first to reach the works of
the enemy.
After the
fortification was reached, and many of my men had got within the works, driving
the enemy from the first parallel, not receiving any support, and being nearly
destitute of cartridges, I ordered my command to fall back, which it did in
good order. While this was being executed the other two companies maintained
their position as ordered. . . . . . . . . . . .
Killed, 11; wounded,
34.
After he had fallen
back to Flat Lick, between Barboursville and Camp Buckner, Zollicoffer sent the
following
report to A. S. Johnston:
CAMP FLAT LICK, KNOX
COUNTY, October 24, 1861.
On the 21st I
reached the enemy's entrenched camp, on Rockcastle Hills, a natural
fortification, almost inaccessible. Having reconnoitered in force under heavy
fire for several hours from heights on the right, left and in front, I became
satisfied that it could not be carried otherwise than by immense exposure, if
at all. received large reinforcements.
Our loss was
forty-two wounded and eleven killed and missing. We captured twenty-one
prisoners, about 100 guns and four horses. The loss of the enemy in killed and
wounded unknown.
The country is so
poor that we had exhausted the forage on the road for fifteen miles back in
twenty-four hours. Our subsistence nearly exhausted. Under these circumstances
I deemed it proper the next day to fall back. Enemy's camp said to be 7,000
strong, with large reserves near at hand.
I have not been able
to find Colonel Rains' official report, therefore can give no further account
of the part taken by his regiment in the above action, though it would seem
that the most of the fighting was done by Newman's Regiment, from the fact that
Zollicoffer reports the same number, eleven, “killed and missing" from the
brigade that Newman reports “killed" from his regiment; the former,
however, reports eight more wounded, which may have been the loss of Rains'
Regiment.6
Remaining in front
of the Federal position, Zollicoffer made another slight attack about two
o'clock, P. M., but still he could not induce the enemy to come from his
intrenchments and give battle on equal footing.
The Thirty-third
Indiana Infantry, under Colonel John Coburn, and the First Kentucky Cavalry,
under Colonel Frank Wolford, did the most of the fighting on the part of the
enemy.
I take the following
from Colonel
John Coburn's official report, addressed to “General A. Schoepf, Commanding
Brigade:
They (Rebels) soon
came near us7 under cover of a wood, which entirely concealed their
approach until we were apprised of their presence by the firing of musketry. At
this time we were reinforced by a portion of the First Kentucky Cavalry,
dismounted, under Colonel Wolford, about two hundred and fifty strong, who
immediately formed and took part in the engagement. The firing at this time was
very severe, which caused the cavalry to waver and retreat. They were soon,
however, rallied and formed again in order, and fought with good spirit.
The enemy engaged
was composed of a portion of General Zollicoffer's command, and consisted of
two regiments of Tennesseans, under the command of Colonels Newman and Cummings
(Rains). They charged up the hill upon us, and were met by a galling and deadly
fire, which wounded and killed many of them. The front of their column approached
within a few rods of us with their bayonets fixed, declaring themselves “Union
men,” and “all right,” at the next moment leveling their guns at us and firing.
After being engaged
nearly an hour, the enemy retreated, bearing off a portion of their dead and
wounded and their arms. Our men have buried their dead left on the field and
taken the wounded8 to our hospitals. Thirty corpses have been found
up to this time (October 22d). A large number of their wounded and dead were carried
off in their wagons. It is safe to estimate the loss of the enemy at least one
hundred killed. . . . . . . . . .
About the close of
the engagement four companies of the Seventeenth Ohio, Colonel Connell, came
upon the hill and formed in line of battle. . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . About two
o'clock, P. M., we were again attacked. At this time the Fourteenth Ohio,
Colonel Steedman, appeared upon the field. . . . . . . . . . . .
At ten o'clock at
night Lieutenant Sypher, of Captain Standart's Ohio Battery, came on the hill,
on an alarm fired three rounds. They were the last shots fired.
At about two o'clock
in the morning we heard sounds which betokened a movement of General
Zollicoffer's army. It proved to be a retreat. . . . . . . . . . . .
The number of our
loss is a follows: Company D, one killed and five wounded; Company I, one
killed and ten wounded, three mortally. Colonel Wolford lost one killed and
eleven wounded.9
Colonel T. T.
Garrard, Third Kentucky, who was in command at Wildcat before General Schoepf
arrived, wrote to General Thomas, under October 25th, thus:
Your aid arrived in
time to save us from a certain defeat (what others may say to the contrary
notwithstanding). It is not necessary for me to say one word about the fight,
for you have no doubt been fully posted. Though don't be deceived as to the
number killed by us; my impression is that we did not kill to exceed sixteen,
and wounded some thirty or forty.
Many say we lost a
great victory by not pursuing the enemy. It is true, if we had have known as
much then as now, we might have done.wonders. But we expected an attack the
next morning, and every one was sleeping on their arms, and we never knew the
enemy had left camps until near eight o'clock. We have a great many here who
know precisely how to manage affairs when the enemy is out of hearing, but
would be as much at a loss to do so in a fight as I would be.
I am glad to have an
opportunity of proving by a Federal Colonel, who was
present at Wildcat, that Colonel Coburn did greatly overestimate our
loss at that place.
Supposing that all
of the missing were killed, Colonel Newman reported eleven killed, but as three
of them were only wounded, our loss was really eight killed and forty-five
wounded, one mortally.
Colonel Garrard does
not say any thing about the Federal loss in his report. General Schoepf reports
four killed and eighteen wounded, while Colonel Coburn reports twenty-six
wounded from his and Walford's regiments.
1 Rebellion
Records, Vol. IV., p. 209.
2 Rebellion
Records, Vol. IV., p. 212.
3 Not found.
4 Rebellion
Records, Vol. IV., p. 213.
5 Rebellion
Records, Vol. IV., p. 210.
6 Since writing the above I have learned (from
Military Annals of Tennessee, p. 293) that Rains lost “one killed and six or
eight wounded."
7 On an eminence east of the Federal encampment.
8 Three, one mortally, so General Schoepf
reports. See Rebellion
Records Vol. IV., p. 207.
9 Rebellion Records, Vol.
IV., p. 208.
10 Rebellion Records, Vol.
IV., p. 319.
