The First
Battle of Franklin was fought in Williamson County, Tennessee on April 10th
1863, taking place near where the more famous battle of the same name would
happen in 1864.
On April 10th
1863 Confederate Major General Earl Van Dorn advanced his cavalry, about 6,000
strong, north from Spring Hill, Tennessee, towards Franklin, Tennessee. His force would run into skirmishers of Union
Major General Gordon Granger. Granger
had received a report of an attack to his north in Brentwood, Tennessee, and
thought Van Dorn’s attack was a mire diversion.
When Granger learned that there was no threat to Brentwood, he decided
to drive Van Dorn. When the Union
commander sent orders, he found that one of his subordinates had already
initiated an attack.
The 4th
United States Cavalry under the command of the Brigadier General David S
Stanley came in behind Van Dorn’s troopers by crossing the Harpeth River at
Hughes’ Ford. The Union troopers
captured Freeman’s Tennessee Battery, but loose it when Confederate Brigadier
General Nathan Bedford Forrest made a counterattack. Finding Union cavalry in his rear, Van Dorn
withdrew back to Spring Hill, leaving the Union in control of the area. This battle cost the Confederates 137 and the
Union 100 casualties.
No comments:
Post a Comment