The burning of Chambersburg was ordered by Jubal Early in retaliation for Union General David Hunter’s activities in the Shenandoah Valley. During Hunter’s Raid he burned VMI and Governor Letcher’s home in Lexington, VA. After Hunter was defeated at Lynchburg he returned to Jefferson County and began burning the homes of private citizens including: Alexander Boteler a former member of the Confederate Congress; Edmund Lee a distant relative of Robert E. Lee; and he even burned the home of his cousin Andrew Hunter! Andrew was ordered out of his home and not permitted to save any of his personal belongings. Andrew was held without charges for a month at Harper’s Ferry. Jubal Early wrote in his memoirs, “I came to the conclusion it was time to open the eyes of the people of the North to this enormity, by an example in the way of retaliation.” Chambersburg would be the target. A Confederate raiding party would demand of the townspeople either $100,000 in gold or $500,000 in currency in exchange for not burning the town.

Late on the evening of July 28 a courier rode into General John McCausland’s camp with his orders. He would strike Chambersburg with his and Bradley Johnson’s Cavalry Brigades, two guns from Braxton’s Battery and two guns from the Baltimore Light Artillery. A total of about 2,800 men. McCausland assembled his force near the Hammond House in Berkeley County WV (shown below).

Unknown to him he would be striking one of the weakest parts of the line of defense along the Potomac River between Williamsport and Cumberland- the Department of the Susquehanna. Although capably led by General Darius Couch, he had few resources. To defend the entire Cumberland Valley Couch had only about 400 men. These included: the Patapsco Guards, a company of Maryland infantry commanded by Captain Thomas McGown; two guns from the NY Light Artillery; and what were probably his best troops 45 men from the 6th NY Cavalry under Lieutenant Hancock McLean. Unfortunately at the beginning of the month Couch’s Signal Corps was reassigned to Harper’s Ferry.

McCausland’s route is shown below.

At 6:00 AM on July 29 Major Harry Gilmor and about 200 men from his Maryland Cavalry unit headed out to secure McCoy’s Ferry Ford south of Clear Spring, Maryland. The ford is shown below. The pictures were taken from the boat launch on the Maryland side.

McCausland had Gilmor send out patrols toward Cumberland and Hagerstown on the National Road. At Hancock they captured a dismounted company of Union Cavalry (there is no interpretation of the raid in Hancock). Another patrol under Lieutenant Jeff Smith met resistance from the 14th PA Cavalry at Clear Spring where three Confederates were killed. McCausland’s plan was to ride to Chambersburg through Clear Spring and Mercersburg. Gilmor was to clear the town and create a diversion toward Hagerstown. Gilmor drove the 12th and 14th PA east out of Clear Spring with the aid of the 36th VA. This is mentioned on the Civil War Trails sign in Clear Springs.

Simultaneously, Early was sending units on feints toward Hagerstown, Shepherdstown and Harper’s Ferry. A marker interpreting the Hagerstown feint is shown below. This feint was particularly important because it drew Averell’s Cavalry away from Chambersburg.

As Gilmor pushed the Federals east, he ran into an ambush at Spickler’s Hill at Miller’s Tavern. Gilmor lost 17 men killed or wounded.

By 11:00 AM McCausland’s main body had crossed the Potomac and were in Clear Spring. Lieutenant McLean and his small force were doing their best to delay them by setting up a series of ambushes on the road south of Mercersburg. After a brief fight in Mercersburg’s Diamond around 3:00 PM the Federals were driven out of town by the 36th VA. The Diamond is at the intersection at Main Street and Seminary Street shown below.

McCausland consolidated his force and left Mercersburg at midnight. McLean had bought enough time for Couch to evacuate Chambersburg and he and his men withdrew north of Chambersburg to Shippensburg. At 12:30 AM McCausland was at Bridgeport and by 2:00 AM at St. Thomas. He arrived at the Henry Greenawalt House (shown below) at 5:00 AM about one mile west of Chambersburg where McCausland held a meeting with his officers.

At 5:30 AM the Rebels fired several shells at the town from Fairground Hill from a little behind the area where this picture was taken.

The 8th and 36th VA were sent into town on foot to reconnoiter the town along with Gilmor’s Cavalry who were to block the roads out of town. After the town was secured the 21st VA Cavalry under Colonel William Peters were ordered to occupy the town.

Next- The Burning of Chambersburg- July 30, 1864

Sources

Southern Revenge! Civil War History of Chambersburg, Pennsylvania edited by Ted Alexander

McCausland’s Raid and the Burning of Chambersburg by Ted Alexander Blue and Gray Magazine August 1994.

History and Tour Guide of the Burning of Chambersburg and McCausland’s Raid by Ted Alexander published by Blue and Gray Magazine 2004.