The Battle of McDowell, Virginia was fought on this date of May 8, 1862 as a part of Stonewall Jackson’s Valley Campaign. Two brigades of Union General Fremont’s command were moving toward the Shenandoah from western Virginia. Jackson marched out to meet them and successfully pushed back the brigades of Milroy and Schenck on Sitlington’s Hill (another name for this battle).
Though Jackson lost more men (420 as compared to about 260), it was a strategic victory for the Southern cause. It drew more attention to Jackson’s maneuvering and strategies, and it opened the way for subsequent victories two weeks later at Front Royal and First Winchester.
Map of Jackson’s Valley Campaign of the American Civil War, part 1. Drawn by Hal Jespersen, as at: http://www.posix.com/CWmaps/
Randy Buchman
Enfilading Lines 