Page 37

(Rappahannock Station 1)

Rappahannock Station

August 22-25, 1862
Also known as: Waterloo Bridge, White Sulphur Springs, Lee Springs, Freeman�s Ford
Culpeper and Fauquier Counties, VA
Campaign: Second Manassas Campaign (June-September 1862)

Maj. Gen. John Pope , USA
Maj. Gen. Thomas J. Jackson , CSA

Only brigades were engaged, although larger forces were maneuvering.

Casualties were light, about 225 in total.

In mid-August, Lee determined that McClellan�s army was being withdrawn from the Peninsula to reinforce John Pope.  He sent Longstreet from Richmond to join Jackson�s wing of the army near Gordonsville and arrived to take command himself on August 15. August 20-21, Pope withdrew to the line of the Rappahannock River. On August 23, Stuart�s cavalry made a daring raid on Pope�s headquarters at Catlett Station, showing that the Union right flank was vulnerable to a turning movement. Over the next several days, August 22-25, the two armies fought a series of minor actions along the Rappahannock River, including Waterloo Bridge, Lee Springs, Freeman�s Ford, and Sulphur Springs, resulting in a few hundred casualties. Together, these skirmishes primed Pope�s army along the river, while Jackson�s wing marched via Thoroughfare Gap to capture Bristoe Station and destroy Federal supplies at Manassas Junction, far in the rear of Pope�s army.

Page 37

(Rappahannock Station 1)