by Phillip Hatfield, PhD
The Battle at Hurricane Bridge is an often
overlooked Civil War action occurring at the small and otherwise
quiet western Virginia village. For five hours behind the limited
protection of an unfinished earthen fort, the green Union troops
of the 13th West Virginia Volunteer Infantry under the command of
Captain James Johnson, fought to hold off the hardened Confederate
veterans of the 8th and 16th Virginia Cavalry commanded by Brigadier
General Albert Gallatin Jenkins.
Ultimately,
the March 28, 1863, battle at Hurricane Bridge directly contributed to the
Union army maintaining control of the James River & Kanawha Turnpike,
a key supply line, and enabled Federal control of the Kanawha Valley for
the remainder of the war.
“...the
enemy appeared in force and opened a furious fire upon us simultaneously
on three sides from as many different hills, owing to the high elevation
of which, and unfinished condition of our works, exposed our men to a most
galling cross fire, which they withstood and returned with
the firmness of veterans.”
- Captain James W. Johnson, 13th West Virginia Volunteer
Infantry, Union Commander at Hurricane Bridge, March 28, 1863
About the Author:
Philip
Hatfield, Ph.D., is a member of the Company of Military Historians, and
holds a doctorate in psychology from Fielding University; a master’s
degree in psychology from Marshall University; and a bachelor’s degree in
psychology and history from the University of Charleston. Dr. Hatfield is
a veteran of the U.S. Air Force, and is the author of five books and
numerous scholarly articles related to the Civil War. He is a native of
Hurricane, West Virginia.
