Source: Library of Congress - American Memory
Why did the Confederates and the Yankees fight at Manassas? The worn-out corn and wheat fields on the banks of a small stream called "Bull Run" were not valuable... but the railroad junction nearby was. With control over the railroad, the Yankees would be able to supply their army with food and ammunition - and feed the horses hauling artillery and wagons of supplies. Hauling hay for horses in wagons would slow down the Union advance "on to Richmond." Once the Union controlled the rail line through Manassas, however...
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The Union Army would be a moving city with a population greater than most Virginia counties - in 1860, only 4 counties had a population greater than 30,000 people. The soldiers were always hungry, and rarely interested in carrying heavy equipment. An amazing amount of "stuff" was issued to the Yankee troops - blankets, cooking utensils, uniforms, tents, weapons, shovels, etc.
After a few miles of walking on a hot summer day, soldiers would pull much of the equipment out of their knapsacks and drop it on the side of the road. After all, lead bullets were as heavy as... lead. Once in camp, or on the eve of battle, the troops would need to be resupplied again. |
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| The generals responsible for the Union Army in 1861 knew that a highway (today's Route 1, paralleled by Interstate 95) connected Washington and Richmond directly. It was the shortest and theoretically the fastest route for the Yankees marching "On to Richmond." That was the rally cry of the Northern newspapers, after Virginia seceded from the Union officially on May 24, 1861 and Richmond became the new Confederate capital.
However, those generals also knew that more than newspaper editorials and soldier courage was important - logistics were essential to military success. For example, the hard-working horses pulling artillery and supply wagons required an extraordinary volume of hay, and it took a lot of horses hauling "fuel" just to feed the horses hauling the cannons and military supplies. The Virginia farms between Washington and Richmond would not provide hay willingly to a invading Union army matching to take military control of the capital in Richmond and end the Confederacy. Hauling hay and other supplies by rail would make a Union army easier to supply. Control of the Orange and Alexandria (O&A) Railroad between Alexandria and Gordonsville, and control of the Virginia Central from Gordonsville to Richmond, would make the Union invasion more likely to succeed. The Union generals chose to attack Richmond via the line of the Orange and Alexandria and the Virginia Central railroads in 1861. It would require travelling more miles to go west to Manassas, south down to Gordonsville, and then southeast to Richmond rather than due south from Washington to Richmond - but the railroads would simplify the logistics dramatically. |
Manassas was hardly even a "place" in 1861. It had a few homes nearby, including Tudor Hall - but it was primarily a railroad junction rather than a town. The junction of the O&A and the Manassas Gap Railroad provided a fast connection between the Shenandoah Valley and the Piedmont east of the Blue Ridge. In war, speed is valuable.
The Union was unable to use the Manassas Gap Railroad to move the Federal troops in the Shenandoah Valley to Manassas, because the Confederates controlled the territory through which the tracks ran. Starting on July 16, 1861, General Thomas Jackson led the Confederate troops from Winchester, forded the Shenandoah River, spent the night at Ashby Gap (where Route 50 crosses the Blue Ridge today), then walked to Piedmont Station (now known as Delaplane) where the road (modern-day Route 17) and the railroad both crossed Goose Creek.
The Confederates loaded their Shenandoah Valley army into boxcars for several days, hauling them to Manassas in time for the first battle there on July 21, 1861. The Yankees knew the extra forces were assembling - their troops at Centreville heard the locomotives arrive at Manassas. The Confederates even blew the trail whistles often to intimidate the enemy that they knew was assembling on the northern side of Bull Run. The Confederate troops that arrived on Sunday, July 21 during the battle helped determine that the Confederates would win; the major troop movement by train made the difference... and General Thomas Jackson earned his famous nickname, "Stonewall."
