Project Gutenberg's The Battle of Stone River, by Henry Myron Kendall

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Title: The Battle of Stone River

Author: Henry Myron Kendall

Release Date: April 17, 2010 [EBook #32028]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

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Military Order of the Loyal Legion
OF THE
United States.

COMMANDERY OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

WAR PAPERS.
49

The Battle of Stone River.

PREPARED BY COMPANION
Major
HENRY M. KENDALL,
U. S. Army,

AND
READ AT THE STATED MEETING OF NOVEMBER 4, 1903.

The Battle of Stone River.

After the battle of Perryville, October 8, 1862, a rather leisurely
pursuit of Bragg's retreating forces was made on the roads to Cumberland
Gap, but no engagement was brought on. It soon appeared that Bragg did not
intend to again give battle in Kentucky, but would withdraw into Tennessee
and join the force under Breckenridge which had been left to watch
Nashville during the invasion of Kentucky. Buell concluded that Bragg
would concentrate his entire force near Nashville and endeavor to capture
that place and somewhere in its vicinity fight a decisive battle which
would determine the fate of West Tennessee and Kentucky. Buell therefore
discontinued his pursuit and turned his forces toward Nashville, placing
them mainly at Bowling Green, Glasgow, and other points on the Louisville
and Nashville Railroad.

A great deal of pressure had been brought to bear upon the Administration
to make a campaign in East Tennessee, a mountainous region whose people
were mostly loyal. General Halleck in Washington planned a campaign in
that region and called upon Buell to carry it out. But Buell declined. His
reasons were that such a campaign would place him at a long distance from
Louisville, his base, dependent upon wagon transportation alone over
almost impassable roads, in a country devoid of supplies and especially
suitable to defensive operations. Ag