American Civil War Battlefields
Perryville, KY
Fall Field Trip to
Perryville
October 28, 2018
Text and Photos courtesy of LCWRT Member John Davis
On Sunday, October 28, twenty-four members and guests of the
Louisville Civil War Round Table gathered at the visitor’s center and museum in
Perryville to learn about the battle that occurred there on October 8, 1862. The
weather was cool and cloudy as we began the tour under the guidance of
Perryville historian Chuck Lott. We walked from the visitor’s center to the
place where Confederate brigades from Cheatham’s division deployed in line of
battle around 2:30 PM searching for the Union left flank which consisted mostly
of men from Alexander McCook’s 1st Corp. From there, we would walk
the battlefield following the action in the order it occurred that October
afternoon.
Thanks to the efforts of preservationists and especially the
Civil War Trust (now the American Battlefield Trust) the park encompasses 1100
acres with 150 more coming. You cannot appreciate this battle and how it
unfolded unless you come and walk these rolling hills over which the fighting
occurred. The steep hills separated by narrow hollows made for difficult maneuvering
for the armies.
Confederate Monument, Perryville
When the wind picked up and began gusting and howling just
as it did on the day of battle, we could understand how Don Carlos Buell did
not hear the battle that was underway just over two miles from his
headquarters. As a result of this ‘acoustic shadow’, nearly two thirds of the
Federal army were never engaged allowing the much smaller Confederate force to
drive the Union left flank in before darkness brought a halt to the fight. We
followed in the footsteps of the Confederate assault on the Union far left
flank up and down one hill after another and through a now famous cornfield where
a Wisconsin regiment made a stand before falling back. We passed the sites of
where Union Generals William Terrill and James Jackson fell mortally
wounded.
We halted at noon and returned to the visitor’s
center for a very good boxed lunch provided by the Great American Deli of
Danville. In the windy afternoon, we followed the Confederate attacks that took
place on the Union center and right flanks by divisions under the leadership of
Patton Anderson and Simon Buckner that were finally halted at dark. After
walking nearly four miles of hills and valleys, we retreated to the visitor’s
center tired but filled with a renewed appreciation of this important battle
and the land over which it was fought.
