3rd Winchester • Tour the Battlefield • Battle Maps • Battle Facts • The Armies
—
Red Bud Run • Star Fort • Fort Collier • Rutherford’s Farm
Stephenson Depot • National Cemetery • Confederate Cemetery
The “Thoburn’s Attack” wayside marker is about a mile south of the Redbud Road trailhead on the walking tour of the Civil War Trust’s Third Winchester battlefield site. (see map below)
The view looks west toward the start of the lane of trees that line Hackwood Lane. About 350 yards ahead the Confederates of Gordon’s Division formed a line of battle running from left to right across the photo, with seven guns of Braxton’s Artillery Battalion anchoring the line on the (photographer’s) right. Thoburn’s Union Division attacked toward this line and, in cooperation with a flank attack by Duval’s Division on the far right, forced it back in 40 minutes of hard fighting.
From the marker:
The Third Battle of Winchester
Thoburn’s Attack
As the Nineteenth Corps tried to reorganize its lines, Union Col. Joseph Thoburn’s division of the Eighth Army Corps came up from reserve and took position at the edge of the First Woods behind you. Union Gen. Philip Sheridan soon arrived and directed Thoburn to move forward as soon as the other division of the Eighth Corps (on the other side of Red Bud Run) was ready. About 3 p.m. “a mighty battle yell,” from the other side of Red Bud Run announced the arrival of those troops and the entire Eighth Corps moved forward with elements of the Nineteenth Corps joining in. “For thirty minutes the battle that ensued was perfectly terrific,” recalled one participant, “but then the forces in our front gave way, and in an instant we were over their works, and after them with yells and shouts of victory.”
From the caption to the drawing:
Alfred Waud sketched this image of the Eighth Corps moving into position to attack Gordon’s Division surrounding the Hackwood House. (image Courtesy of the Library of Congress)
The marker is about a mile south from the Redbud Road trailhead on the walking tour for the Civil War Trust’s Third Winchester battlefield site. The trailhead can be reached from the Interstate 81 interchange with U.S. 11 north of Winchester. At the light immediately to the east of the interchange take Redbud Road (County Road 661) south 0.85 mile. Parking for the trailhead is on the south side of Redbud Road. (39°11’54.4″N 78°07’32.0″W)