In the winter of 1863-1864 the 2,000 soldiers of the 2nd Brigade of the 3rd Division of the II Corps were encamped on Stony Point near Morton’s Ford- shown below.

In early February Major General Benjamin Butler became aware that a part of Robert E. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia under General George Pickett had been transferred to North Carolina in order to attempt to retake New Bern. With Longstreet in Tennessee, Butler concluded that the time was ripe to launch an attack on Richmond. He sent telegrams to Secretary of War Edwin Stanton and General-in-Chief Henry Halleck and was granted approval for his plan. A combined cavalry and infantry force of about 6,000 men from Butler’s Army of the James would proceed from New Kent to Baltimore Crossroads and across the Chickahominy River at Bottoms Bridge to Richmond. Simultaneously a diversionary attack would be launched along the Rapidan to hold Lee in place. Major General George Meade was at home ill with pneumonia and Major General John Sedgwick was in temporary command of the Army of the Potomac. Sedgwick was opposed to the plan for several reasons: his intelligence suggested that the force detached from Lee was smaller than reported; the Confederates across the river were well entrenched; the roads were too poor for a flanking maneuver; and a demonstration would hinder future operations by placing the Confederates on higher alert. Despite his reservations he was ordered by Halleck to support Butler and begin the operation at daylight on February 6th. Sedgwick‘s plan was to have Warren’s II Corps demonstrate against Rebel forces at Morton’s Ford, Newton’s I Corps was to do the same at Raccoon’s Ford, Merritt’s Cavalry Division would operate upstream near Barnett’s Ford, and Kilpatrick’s downstream toward Germanna and Ely’s Ford. What would ensue would be the largest conflict of the winter encampment period.

A map of the area is shown below

In the cold and the rain at 7:00 AM on February 6th 8,000 men of the 3rd Division of the II Corps began advancing from Stony Point. They headed down the road to the ford which took them past the front of Struan, Powhatan Robertson’s home. The II Corps that morning would be commanded by Brigadier General John Caldwell. Major General Gouverneur Warren was ill and remained at his headquarters given that the mission was only to be a demonstration. The 3rd Division was commanded by Brigadier General Alexander Hays. His three brigade commanders were: 1st Brigade- Colonel Samuel Carroll (4th OH, 8th OH, 7th WV Battalion and 14th IN); 2nd Brigade- Colonel Charles Powers (1st DE, 10th NY Battalion, 14th CT and 108th NY); and 3rd Brigade- Brigadier General Joshua T. Owen (39th NY, 111th NY, 125th NY and 126th NY).

Struan is shown above- the picture was taken from the road Algonquin Trail- 38.3914484, -77.9096683. Struan was the home of Powhatan Robertson. It was designed by Jeremiah Morton the brother of Dr. George Morton and built around 1830. The house was constructed so that the front faced the Blue Ridge Mountains and not the road. It served as the headquarters of Major General Warren during the Battle of Morton’s Ford and a hospital after the conflict.

At 9:30 AM the column was about a half mile from the ford. Brigadier General Caldwell reconnoitered the area and ordered Hays to cross the ford with 300 men and advance about half a mile. Hays then directed Brigadier General Owen (3rd Brigade) to move across the ford with 300 hundred of his most experienced men, 100 each from the 39th NY, 125th NY and 126th NY. The men were not to press too hard as this was only a demonstration and not bring on a general engagement. Pontoon bridges that were to be used to cross the Rapidan were stuck in the mud and the men had to wade across the icy cold waist-deep waters. They would move out at 10:30 AM led by Captain Seabury and capture 30 Rebel pickets from the Stonewall Brigade. The skirmish line they would set up is shown on the map below and was about 800 yards ahead of the Confederate entrenchments shown in the maps below and extended beyond the Buckner house (the two photos below show the area along the fence line behind the current house where the skirmish line extended).

Images of the area shown below are from the 14th Connecticut regimental history. The banks of the ford on the Orange County side are high 8-12 feet. Once one moves up the bank there is a large open field that slopes upward leading to two houses- the Buckner house and a second group of structures to the west that includes Dr. Morton’s house and surrounding outbuildings and slave cabins. Not shown in the pictures, but one can see in the maps, the open field continued past the houses to a wooden tree line where the Confederates had built entrenchments that were their primary line of defense, concealed in the woods about a mile from the ford, in a semi-circular arc commanding the high ground. In addition, as is evidenced from the maps, Morton’s Ford might be a suitable site for a demonstration but it would be a poor choice for an engagement because troops attacking across the ford would be trapped in a cul-de-sac with their backs to the river in close proximity to two camps of Ewell’s Corps.

Unlike neighboring fords on the Rapidan Morton’s Ford was not immediately commanded by high bluffs on the Confederate side which is the reason Sedgwick chose it for his primary area of demonstration.

The Morton house and surrounding buildings no longer exist but the structure below sits on the former site of the Buckner house. Picture shot from Horseshoe Road- 38.3771368, -77.9007184.

The Federals had taken the Confederates completely by surprise and seized the ground around Morton’s farm. As they advanced and opened fire Confederate forces were alerted to their presence. Owen called up the rest of his 1st Brigade as Caldwell deployed his artillery placing 2 guns on the high ground northwest of the ford to protect Owen’s right and 2 more guns a mile west of the the ford. Initially the 39th NY, the Garibaldi Guards, refused to cross because they felt the water was too deep. They crossed after General Hays walked across the ford and back. Hays crossed with Company D of the 125th NY.

The Richmond Howitzers under R. M. Anderson opened fire on the Federal artillery across the river. Anderson did not initially fire on the Union skirmishers because his view of them was blocked by the ground and when he did see them he thought they were retreating Confederate pickets. Now that he did, he concentrated his fire on them and halted them until reinforcements could arrive.

What Sedgwick could not have known was that the two Confederate camps behind the entrenchments had double the usual number of troops there. Brigadier General George Steuart’s brigade of 2 North Carolina and 3 Virginia regiments had recently arrived to relieve two regiments of Brigadier General Stephen Dodson Ramseur’s North Carolinians and 2 regiments of Brigadier General George Dole’s Georgians. Now those troops hurried forward to the entrenchments from their camps along with a battery of artillery commanded by Colonel Henry Cabell. As the artillery was deploying II Corps commander General Richard Ewell arrived at the entrenchments.

As Owen saw the Rebel force in his front continually growing, he adjusted his troop dispositions. Fearing that he would be flanked on his left he called back for further reinforcements. At this point the demonstration was evolving into an engagement. Sometime between 12:30 and 1:15 PM Caldwell sent the 1st Brigade under Colonel Samuel Carroll to Owen’s assistance and they took up position on Owen’s right. The Rebels continued to pour into the earthworks and about an hour later Owen estimated that he was facing at least 4,000 men. About 2:15 Owen asked for even more men and the 2nd Brigade was sent forward under Colonel Charles Powers which included Samuel Fiske’s 14th CT and the 108th NY. All of Hay’s 3rd Division was now across the Rapidan. As Powers’ Brigade advanced across the open fields they came under heavy fire from the Rebel guns until they reached a hollow just below the Buckner house.

The field below the Buckner house is very hilly with several swales.

Lieutenant Theodore Null of the 12th NJ panicked and recrossed the river claiming he was ill. Caldwell unwilling to commit to a more serious action sent a message back to Warren for instructions. Hays believed that he could defeat the entire Confederate force if he were supported by the whole II Corps. At this point Warren rode forward accompanied by General Andrew Humphreys, Meade’s Chief of Staff to see the situation for himself. He was concerned with what he saw. Ewell was extending his lines both left and right and their firing was increasing. The area his troops occupied was a cul-de-sac in a curve of the river at the center of fire from both ends of Ewell’s force. He would have to move the rest of his Corps across the ford with his pontoon bridges stuck in the mud. If his forces were repulsed they would be trapped with a river at their back. As it was getting later in the afternoon he concluded that the 3rd Division should be withdrawn at nightfall.

The Rebels, however, had different plans and at 4:30 PM they launched an attack. Severe fighting developed on the Morton farm shown in the pictures below. Shown below is part of a broad field where the Morton family cemetery (Soldier’s Rest) and house were located.

On December 3, 2023 a new gravestone was added to the cemetery.

Private Scronce of the 46th NC was wounded at Sharpsburg in the West Woods with a bullet wound to the thigh. He convalesced at home and reported back to duty December 31, 1862. He participated in the building of breast-works, Frampton Line, at Pocotaligo, SC. He fought at the 2nd Battle of Gum Swamp, near New Bern NC, and was on the far right flank during the Battle of Bristoe Station. On February 15, 1864, at Orange Courthouse, he succumbed to “congestion of the brain” and was buried at Soldiers Rest.

More pictures of the field are shown below

Aerial views of the area are shown below

The 111th NY on the left of the Union line held despite being outnumbered 3:1 but the right side of the line the Confederates recaptured the area around the Morton House and continued to press forward. Carroll repositioned his brigade to protect the road to the ford. Owen ordered the 39th NY, the “Garibaldi Guards”, forward to support the skirmish line. The unit had a large infusion of recent recruits, many of whom could not speak English. The veteran skirmishers that the unit had contributed early in the morning left only a group of raw recruits being called forward that had never seen combat and they faltered. Hays had taken charge of that portion of the battlefield and moved the 14th Connecticut forward to turn back the Rebel assault. The regiment came through the swale and when they reached the ridge upon which the Buckner house sat they came under heavy artillery fire.

When three dozen of the new recruits tried to hide behind the house they were chased out by regimental officers at swordpoint. The 14th CT reformed and moved forward in the dark toward the Morton farm 500 yards away. Captain Frederick Doten and six of his men moved into the Morton house and were firing out at the rebels. General Hays rode up and ordered them out of the house and Doten and his men were captured by members of the 44th GA. The Georgians fired on Hays knocking him off his horse with a bullet that struck the saddle, but he was able to remount his horse and escape. Realizing the 14 CT alone could not drive back the Rebels Hays called up the 108th NY and the 10th NY Battalion, the “National Zouaves” to support them. Hays ordered them to fire but they initially refused because the 14th CT were directly in front of them. Hays insisted that they were Rebels and not Union soldiers and demanded they fire. Their volley struck an unknown number of men from the 14th CT in the back. Hays realizing his error ordered them forward to join the 14th CT and together they pushed the Confederates from the buildings of the Morton farm.

By 6:00 PM the battlefield was silent, and the Union line stabilized. With the pontoons still stuck in the mud Union engineers had cobbled together a footbridge and the 1st Brigade of Brigadier General Alexander Webb’s 2nd Division were sent to support Hays and they deployed on the right to protect the river crossing. An hour later the rest of Webb’s men crossed. The 20th NY carried the wounded back across the river first. At 7:50 Hays’ 3rd Brigade was ordered to recross. The other 2 brigades were ordered to recross at 10:00 PM. By 1:00-3:00 AM all of the 3rd Division were back across except for a small detachment of the 152nd NY that were deployed on an island in the middle of the ford that withdrew at daylight. The Union lost nearly 300 men and the Confederates suffered 55 casualties. Half of the casualties came from the 14th CT, 18 of their men died as a result of wounds sustained in the battle.

The men of the 18th CT who were killed on the field or were mortally wounded: Company A- Cornelius Reardon (wounded 2/6/1864 and died 2/10/1864), Charles G. Hyatt (shown below- grave 113, wounded 2/6/1864 and died 2/28/1864); Company B- Frederic Harrison (shown below- grave 111, wounded 2/6/1864 and died 2/12/1864); Company C- William Braheny (Brahanny) (killed 2/6/1864), Alexander McNeil (shown below, listed as probably killed, was actually captured and subsequently died in Salisbury prison); Company D- Edwin Brockett (wounded 2/6/1864 and died 2/24/1864, buried in Grove Street Cemetery, New Haven, CT), Henry W. Orcutt (wounded 2/6/1864 and died 2/7/1864, buried Elmwood Cemetery in Tolland, CT), Henry Owen (wounded 2/6/1864 and died 2/25/1864); Company E- Wesley Banks (wounded 2/6/1864 and died 2/9/1864 from tetanus, buried in Hull Cemetery in Redding, CT), Watson Jones (wounded 2/6/1864 and died 2/9/1864); Company F- Danford J. Davis (wounded and missing 2/6/1864 thought to have died on the field); Company H- Robert A. Chadwick (wounded 2/6/1864 and died 2/7/1864, buried East Lyme Cemetery in East Lyme, CT), Silas S. Fox (killed 2/6/1864); and Company I- Amory Allen (killed 2/6/1864, buried in Zion Hill Cemetery in Hartford, CT), John Daniel (killed 2/6/1864), Francis M. Norton (killed 2/6/1864 and buried in West Cemetery Madison, CT) and Charles Slessenger (wounded 2/6/1864 and died 2/24/1864, shown below- grave 115).

Another soldier in the Culpeper National Cemetery who may have died of wounds received in the battle is Joseph Kimball, Company E, 1st Delaware (grave 112) who died on February 13, 1864. Colonel Charles Powers report in the War of the Rebellion lists the 1st DE as under his command.

Men who were captured at Morton’s Ford and died in Confederate prisons (11 found): Thomas Kane died at Andersonville 9/4/1864; Philetus Barnum died at Andersonville 10/10/1864; William Thompson died at Andersonville 7/15/1864; Henry Walter died at Andersonville July 1864; Henry Burncastle died at Andersonville 8/30/1864; Moses Tyler died at Andersonville 4/14/1864; John Gordon died at Andersonville 7/7/1864; Thomas Kelley died at Andersonville 8/26/1864; Christian Buhll died in a Rebel prison; Nicholas Dean died in Richmond; and Henry Woods died in Millen, Georgia 11/11/1864.

I can find no records for the burial of William Brahanny (or Braheny), Danfield J. Davis, Silas S. Fox, or John Daniel in any cemetery. Robert E. Lee’s report after the battle reads as follows- “The forces of the enemy which crossed at Morton’s Ford on Saturday were driven to the river under cover of their guns that evening. During the night they recrossed to the north bank, but remained in position yesterday. This morning they have disappeared. They left 17 dead and 46 prisoners in our hands. Our loss, 4 killed and 20 wounded. The guard at the ford (a lieutenant and 25 men), while bravely resisting the passage of the enemy, were captured. The enemy’s cavalry which appeared at Barnett’s Saturday retired across Robertson River Sunday evening.” In Patricia J. Hurst’s book on page 150 she states that local tradition says that the 17 Union soldiers were buried in Soldiers Rest.

Monument to Sargeant Alexander McNeil- Riverside Cemetery, 496 Riverside Street, Waterbury, Connecticut. Source- The Mysterious Fate of Alexander McNeil

The monument is toward the back of the cemetery on a hill near the back wall. Sargeant McNeil is not buried here. He was captured during the Battle of Morton’s Ford. He is one of many Union soldiers who died in Salisbury prison and is buried in a mass grave at Salisbury National Cemetery, 501 Statesville Boulevard, Salisbury, NC.

Little came of the I Corps’ demonstration at Raccoon Ford. On the 6th 300 men marched to the ford and burned several buildings to attract the Rebels attention. When there was no response Major General Newton deployed three artillery batteries (Battery B 4th US, Battery L 1st NY, and Battery A 1st Maryland). They fired about 60 shells onto the Orange County side of the ford but again the Confederates did not respond and the I Corps returned to their camps.

In the next post we’ll cover what happened with Butler’s forces on their way to Richmond.

Sources

Rebels Across the River by Bruce Trinque. America’s Civil War September 1994.

Tiger at Morton’s Ford by Wayne Mahood. Civil War Times February 2003.

History of the Fourteenth Connecticut Volunteer Infantry by Charles D. Page.

Soldiers, Stories, Sites and Fights Orange County, Virginia 1861-1865 and the Aftermath by Patricia J. Hurst.