Description: |
After invading Maryland in September 1862, Gen. Robert E. Lee divided his army to march on and
invest Harpers Ferry. The Army of the Potomac under Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan pursued the Confederates
to Frederick, Maryland, then advanced on South Mountain. On September 14, pitched battles were fought for
possession of the South Mountain passes: Crampton’s, Turner’s, and Fox’s Gaps. By dusk the Confederate
defenders were driven back, suffering severe casualties, and McClellan was in position to destroy Lee’s army
before it could reconcentrate. McClellan’s limited activity on September 15 after his victory at South Mountain,
however, condemned the garrison at Harpers Ferry to capture and gave Lee time to unite his scattered divisions at
Sharpsburg. Union general Jesse Reno and Confederate general Samuel Garland, Jr., were killed at South
Mountain. |