Existing comment:
Climax at the Thomas Farm:
"This battle, though short, was severe."
-- Confederate Major General John B. Gordon
In the fields of the Thomas Farm, the Battle of Monocacy drew to its climax. That afternoon, Confederate troops twice swept across the farm, trying to reach the Georgetown Pike to cut off the Union retreat. Veteran Union troops, though outnumbered, resisted fiercely. By 4:00 pm, Union General Wallace knew the result: his army must retreat or be destroyed.
"The heaviest fighting was in the hollow, between the hills not far from Gambrills Mill. Through the hollow runs a little stream, and so great was the number of dead and wounded along its banks, that the water for about 100 yards was red with blood."
-- Lieutenant Edward Y. Goldsborough, 8th Regiment MD Volunteer Infantry |