On September 15, with the rain continuing unabated and the element of surprise hopelessly lost, Lee canceled his operation against Cheat Mountain.

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On October 24, western \Virginia’s 40 counties voted to form the Union state of West Virginia. In consequence, Lee judged his position untenable and withdrew six days later, leaving the region to its fate, with nothing to show for his efforts but a newly acquired gray beard.

The successful Federal campaign in western Virginia was soon eclipsed by the double disasters at Manassas and Ball’s Bluff, a Confederate one-two punch that assured a much longer and more difficult war than either side had expected. But it ultimately provided the Union with a new state and enhanced McClellan’s reputation to such a degree that he would be placed in command of the Union armies in the East.

Robert E. Lee, on the other hand, went on to do much better than he had at Cheat Mountain. Ably assisted by an improved cadre of subordinate commanders, he would become a master of the art of overcoming an opponent by the relentless application of constant pressure, a technique that would win his Army of Northern Virginia a succession of remarkable victories and bring down a succession of Northern counterparts–including McClellan.

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