Price was heading west faster now, since he was getting word about Union forces (under Pleasanton and Smith) snapping at his heels. On October 19, Price’s army approached Lexington and the advance guard under Jo Shelby collided with Union scouts and pickets about 2pm. Shelby faced three brigades and two batteries of guns, and soon drove the pickets back to the main body. At first Union resistance was strong, but after a nasty firefight Price’s men pushed them back. They fell back through the town to the western outskirts, then northwest along the Independence Road, pursued by Confederate horsemen until dark.

Without Curtis’s entire force, the Yankees had not been able to stop Price’s army, but the battle had slowed Price still further. This gave time for Pleasanton’s men to catch up, and Blunt also gained valuable information about the size and strength of Price’s army.

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eHistory Staff

Selected sources:
American Battlefield Protection Program, Heritage Preservation Services, National Park Service.