From The Washington Times: Ball's Bluff hosts the dedication of armaments on July 9th
VIENNA, Va, July 7, 2011 — Also known as the Battle of Harrison’s Island and sometimes as the Battle of Leesburg, the fighting at Ball’s Bluff happened on October 21, 1861.
Nearly 150 years later, Ball’s Bluff is inviting Civil War and history fans to join in with park rangers, volunteers and staff as they dedicate replicas of authentic and fully operational weaponry used during that battle.
Amongst the items are two mountain Howitzers and a James rifle, which will be on display and will be used after the dedication ceremony scheduled for 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, July 9, 2011. The James rifle is the most unique, produced in response to the need for rifled artillery, and with a 3.80" bore; problems continued with it and production was ceased sometime in 1862. The Howitzers continued to be reliable, heavy-duty artillery.
Cemetery at Balls Bluff
The battlefield area, with its small national cemetery – one of the smallest national burial grounds in the country — is a National Historic Landmark and is maintained by the Northern Virginia Regional Authority.
There are only 54 Union graves forming a circle with the low brick wall of this pristine cemetery, and most of them are marked “Unknown.” However, those visible graves do not represent the degree of carnage which the wooded area saw that day in the fall of 1861.
The Union and Confederate troops were pretty evenly matched on that day, 1,720 Union and 1709 Confederate, but the final tally of dead was anything but even. The Confederates of the 17th Miss. Infantry surprised the Yankee troops from the 15th Mass. Infantry and the 1st Minnesota, who were crossing over the river romf the Maryland side, and drove them over the edge of the steep slope and down to the Potomac.
Many were weighed down by their heavy uniforms and weapons and slipped into the water where they died. A few who had attempted to cross by boat saw their boats overturned and they, too, drowned.
It was said that bodies floated downriver to Washington City and some were found as far as Mt. Vernon. A total of 223 Union soldiers were killed, 226 were wounded and 553 were captured later on that night. The Union troops were able to recover many of their dead, resulting in the small number of graves in the cemetery.
Among the Union dead were Col. Edward D. Baker, a U. S. Senator and the only senator ever killed in battle.
Another Union soldier was seriously wounded and lived to become a Supreme Court Associate Justice – Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. of the 20th Mass. Vol. Infantry.
The Confederate troops saw 36 killed, 117 wounded, and two captured. Only one Confederate is buried there, Clinton Hatcher of Augusta County, VA who fought with the 8th Virginia Regiment.
There is also a marble memorial to Gen. Edward D. Baker, the Union leader. His remains are buried at the Presidio of San Francisco Cemetery in California.
In the years to come, it would be remembered only as a minor skirmish, but in 1861, it was the second largest battle in the Eastern Theater.
The 150th reenactment of the battle will take place on October 22, 2011 at 2.30 p.m. with an Illumination that evening at 7:30 p.m.
It is easy to reach the battlefield by going west on Route 7 towards Leesburg, then Route 15 Bypass north. Turn right on Battlefield Parkway and left on Ball’s Bluff Road. The park is located at the end of the street.
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