America’s Civil War: Loudoun Rangers

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Several times during the war, and at least three times on the Maryland bank of the Potomac, the Rangers were surprised in their camps and badly mauled by large, concentrated forces of White’s or Mosby’s command. At least twice the Rangers claimed that the striking Rebels wore blue uniforms, which allowed them to get close enough to deliver a surprise knockout blow, but this has always been disputed.

When both companies of the Rangers were camped at Keyes Switch on the B&O Railroad just west of Harpers Ferry on April 6, 1865, few expected any threatening activity from the all-but-beaten Confederate Army. Military discipline, accordingly, was at low ebb. The Rangers were relaxing in camp when a force of 250 horsemen approached from the northwest on the Charlestown Pike. Since they wore blue uniforms, no one took undue notice. Mosby’s troops, thus undetected, captured every horse and man in the camp, some 81 horses and 65 men.

This was the final blow to the Rangers. Chief of Staff Winfield Scott Hancock, when informed of the attack, threw away the tele-gram with a hearty laugh and said, ‘Well, that’s the last of the Loudoun Rangers.’

In later years, the old veterans gathered to reminisce about the war and to remember their fallen comrades, many of whom had died in Southern prisons. The reunions were a lot like those of their Virginia Confederate neighbors–with one notable exception: They met to celebrate a victory.

This article was written by William Marvel and originally appeared in the March 1998 issue of America’s Civil War magazine.

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Tags: 19th Century, America's Civil War, American Civil War, Historical Conflicts, Historical Figures

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