‘But just at this most critical time two of our regiments — Virginia and Alabama men attacked them in the flank and with such a Rebel yell that no Yankee yet has been able to stand and they thru down their arms and most of them ran panic stricken over us. Many we killed and took prisoners. It was the turning point and in a few minutes Pope’s army was in a retreat. He [Pope] who had made the statement that he had never seen any but the backs of the rebels, had to run himself — he had never met Stonewall before….’Our division lost nearly 50% in killed and wounded. The Company I was in had over half killed and wounded (our brigadier General Winder was killed also our Colonel [Richard H.] Cunningham and 2 lieutenants of our County).

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‘We drove them back a mile & a half and just around sundown they threw five thousand Cavalry against our lines to try to break through. We were drawn up in line in a field near a large body of timber where Hatch’s cavalry were ready to make the charge. Orders came for every man to put double charges of balls in his guns. My gun had been shot 50 times and I had only wiped it out once and in ramming down the last charge the steel ramrod [got] hung [up] and I could not get it out. My cousin said it would burst if you shoot it out that way. Take this rock and beat it down which I did. I was in the front rank kneeling down. The rear rank stood up with fixed bayonets. When they came charging out of the woods one of them was riding on a fine sorrel horse. I said look boys I am going to get that fellow and let drive at him and he went down with his horse. The charge from my gun had torn his side to pieces and the steel ramrod had gone in him and struck something and down into the saddle. The recoil from my gun was so heavy that it knocked me over and nearly broke the arm of one of our men behind me. My Captain [William P. Mosely] said ‘Warden I did not know I had a piece of Artillery in my Company before.’

‘This was on Saturday and I stayed on the battlefield until Monday and then withdrew to Orange. General Jackson [was] trying then to cut off heavy reinforcements coming from Fredericksburg to Pope’s relief.

‘My uncle found me and we both thinking we could get to Culpeper quicker, tried another route back through Madison County. We got in sight of the town as the last of Pope’s rearguard were going out.

In an hour both of us were at home. But such a change. One of the main dwellings had been burned down for wood & all but one of the other buildings. No fencing, no crops, no stock, no timber. Servants all taken away and nothing but bare ground left.

‘They told us when Pope’s army came in hundreds of them came there and took everything they could find of value away. No bedclothes, silverware, dishes or anything to eat left and they were breaking up and taking the furniture away.’

While some of Patteson’s account may be exaggerated, his determination to fight with Jackson and his comments on the Union army are indicative of the passions aroused by Pope’s measures. The battle-seasoned youngster remained with his family until 1863, when he again left home to fight for the Confederacy. That time he served with Colonel John S. Mosby’s 43rd Battalion, Partisan Rangers.

This article was written by Scott M. Sherlock and originally appeared in the July 2002 issue of America’s Civil War.

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