Nashville, TN (ca. 2014)

State Capitol Building

Stones River National Battlefield

Entering Stones River National Battlefield...

Stones River National Battlefield Map

Visitor Center

The size and simplicity of the visitor center at Stones River belies the magnitude of the events which took place here...

Visitor Center

Inside the visitor center is a somewhat smallish exhibit area, though it is clear and concise in its explanation of the events at Stones River...

Headquarters, Army of the Ohio - Major General William S. Rosecrans

General Rosecrans set up his headquarters north of Murphreesboro, along the Nashville Pike. From here, much of the planning for the forthcoming battle would take place...

Headquarters, Army of the Tennessee - Brigadier General Braxton Bragg

This is actually the second headquarters location chosen by Bragg over the course of the battle. His first headquarters was deemed too distant from the fighting so, on January 1, he moved it here along the Nashville Pike just south of the main battleground... "History will yet award the main honor...to the private soldier, who...has encountered all the hardships and suffered all the privations." --General Bragg, CSA, 1863

Headquarters, Army of the Tennessee - Brigadier General Braxton Bragg

Stones River itself as it flows but a few dozen yards behind Bragg's Headquarters...

First Day - Dec. 31, 1862 - Early Morning - McFadden's Lane

After days of marching and skirmishing the Federal army finally arrived at the outskirts of Murphreesboro. On the night of December 30-31 the 80,000 men of both armies were only a few hundred yards of each other. With morning, all knew that major fight would commence but for the time being they just tried to stay as comfortable as possible against the bitter cold...

First Day - Dec. 31, 1862 - 6:30am - Dawn Attack

Just as dawn was breaking and the men of General Johnson's division on the Union right were preparing breakfast a crash of musketry announced the Confederate attack. Nearly 10,000 Confederates were charging directly at Johnson's 6,600 men, and the results were predictable. The Union line quickly dissolved and the remaining troops fell back to the north...

McFadden's Lane

This now bucolic lane was at the start of the battle the center of the Union line. Though the battle started far to the right of the troops here, the quick collapse of those divisions brought the battle here in a hurry...

First Day - Dec. 31, 1862 - 7:00am - Sheridan Makes a Stand

Of all the divisional commanders on the field that morning, Brigadier General Philip Sheridan had had the foresight to prepare his men for an imminent attack. This meant that, though the right flank of the Union line quickly broke Sheridan's brigades held firm. Sheridan's foresight and determination likely saved the battle for the Union. Wave after wave of rebel attacks struck Sheridan's lines but they held firm. For two precious hours these brigades blunted the Confederate advance allowing General Rosecrans to form a more solid defensive line along the Nashville Pike...

First Day - Dec. 31, 1862 - 8:00am - The Slaughter Pen

To General Sheridan's left was the division led by Major General James S. Negley who had taken up positions in a strange cedar forest with a broken, rugged limestone floor. For hour after bloody hour the Confederate's hit these woods with uncoordinated, piecemeal attacks. The carnage was unthinkable. By noon, the defenders of these woods found themselves running out of ammunition and flanked on both sides and they finally retreated. The cost had been enormous. As one Confederate recalled upon reaching the Union lines: "I cannot remember now of ever seeing more dead men and horses and captured cannon all jumbled together, than that scene of blood and carnage … on the (Wilkinson) … Turnpike; the ground was literally covered with blue coats dead.” Union soldiers thought the scene reminiscent of the slaughter pens of the Chicago stockyards...the name stuck...

First Day - Dec. 31, 1862 - 8:30am - The Slaughter Pen

To General Sheridan's left was the division led by Major General James S. Negley who had taken up positions in a strange cedar forest with a broken, rugged limestone floor. For hour after bloody hour the Confederate's hit these woods with uncoordinated, piecemeal attacks. The carnage was unthinkable. By noon, the defenders of these woods found themselves running out of ammunition and flanked on both sides and they finally retreated. The cost had been enormous. As one Confederate recalled upon reaching the Union lines: "I cannot remember now of ever seeing more dead men and horses and captured cannon all jumbled together, than that scene of blood and carnage … on the (Wilkinson) … Turnpike; the ground was literally covered with blue coats dead.” Union soldiers thought the scene reminiscent of the slaughter pens of the Chicago stockyards...the name stuck...

First Day - Dec. 31, 1862 - 9:00am - The Slaughter Pen

The attacking Confederates had this general view of the brigades holding firm amongst the jumbled rocks of the Slaughter Pen. Both sides suffered severely before the fighting here was over. Many units on both sides lost a third or more of their men and every one of General Sheridan's three brigade commanders were killed or mortally wounded...

First Day - Dec. 31, 1862 - 9:30am - The Slaughter Pen

The attacking Confederates had this general view of the brigades holding firm amongst the jumbled rocks of the Slaughter Pen. Both sides suffered severely before the fighting here was over. Many units on both sides lost a third or more of their men and every one of General Sheridan's three brigade commanders were killed or mortally wounded...

First Day - Dec. 31, 1862 - 10:30am - The Slaughter Pen

To General Sheridan's left was the division led by Major General James S. Negley who had taken up positions in a strange cedar forest with a broken, rugged limestone floor (on the right in this photo). For hour after bloody hour the Confederate's crossed these fields and hit the woods with uncoordinated, piecemeal attacks. The carnage was unthinkable. By noon, the defenders of these woods found themselves running out of ammunition and flanked on both sides and they finally retreated. The cost had been enormous. As one Confederate recalled upon reaching the Union lines: "I cannot remember now of ever seeing more dead men and horses and captured cannon all jumbled together, than that scene of blood and carnage … on the (Wilkinson) … Turnpike; the ground was literally covered with blue coats dead.” Union soldiers thought the scene reminiscent of the slaughter pens of the Chicago stockyards...the name stuck...

First Day - Dec. 31, 1862 - 9:00am - Chalmers Brigade

To the right of the Union line that morning an attacking force of 2,000 Mississippian's under Brigadier General James Chalmers advanced towards a small copse of trees that would bedevil the Confederates the entire first day, now known as Round Forest. In a graphic prelude to what would take place in front of the forest time and time again this day, the Mississippians came under an immediate and overwhelmingly intense fire from the Union troops and guns defending the woods. The rebels were mowed down by the dozens. After the slaughter, Union troops in the trees looked down at the carpet of dead confederates and named this ground "Mississippi Half-Acre"...

First Day - Dec. 31, 1862 - 12:00pm - Parsons' Batteries

To the left of the carnage at the Slaughter Pen, a pair of Union Batteries under Captain Charles C. Parsons was also doing more than its part to hold back the Confederate tide. With four 3-inch ordinance rifles and four 12-pounder howitzers, Parsons men dealt out death and destruction at an incredible rate over the course of four hours that morning. In all, his eight guns fired 2,199 rounds at the enemy and, despite being critically low on ammunition, refused to abandon his position until orders came to fall back to the now stout Union line along the Nashville Pike...

First Day - Dec. 31, 1862 - 12:00pm - Nashville Pike

Looking towards the Nashville Pike.

First Day - Dec. 31, 1862 - Afternoon - Pioneer Brigade

By early afternoon the Union position along the Nashville Pike was solid but by no means unbreakable. The enormous loss of men suffered during the morning hours meant that Rosecrans had to continually pull up reserve troops to fill his thinning ranks. Such was his desperation that he even called on units not accustomed to front line duty. The so-called 'Pioneer Brigade" was one such unit. Made up primarily of Mid-westerners, these men were normally called upon for important engineering projects such as bridge building and road improvements. Virtually untested in battle, Rosecrans was taking a gamble on these men being able to stand up to the Confederate onslaught. But stand up they did. When other veteran units were falling back, the Pioneer Brigade held firm. In all, the regimental history records that they withstood five Confederate assaults. Despite taking heavy casualties, the Brigade was instrumental in holding the line and denying a Confederate victory at Stones River...

First Day - Dec. 31, 1862 - Afternoon - Pioneer Brigade

By early afternoon the Union position along the Nashville Pike was solid but by no means unbreakable. The enormous loss of men suffered during the morning hours meant that Rosecrans had to continually pull up reserve troops to fill his thinning ranks. Such was his desperation that he even called on units not accustomed to front line duty. The so-called 'Pioneer Brigade" was one such unit. Made up primarily of Mid-westerners, these men were normally called upon for important engineering projects such as bridge building and road improvements. Virtually untested in battle, Rosecrans was taking a gamble on these men being able to stand up to the Confederate onslaught. But stand up they did. When other veteran units were falling back, the Pioneer Brigade held firm. In all, the regimental history records that they withstood five Confederate assaults. Despite taking heavy casualties, the Brigade was instrumental in holding the line and denying a Confederate victory at Stones River...

First Day - Dec. 31, 1862 - 1:00-4:00pm - The Cotton Field

The battle was now nearly six hours old as the severely bloodied Confederate army emerged from the woodline on the edge of the cotton fields lining the Nashville Pike. The Confederates had suffered horrendous casualties up to this point and the sight that greeted them on the other side of the field must have been overwhelming...a fresh blue line, 30,000 strong, backed by no less than 38 cannon which opened up on them as soon as they emerged from the trees. The fight was far from over...

First Day - Dec. 31, 1862 - 1:00-4:00pm - The Cotton Field

Though the Confederates took a few minutes to rest and regroup as they reached the cotton field that lay between them and the last Union line along the Nashville Pike they soon resumed the offensive. It was a slaughter. The intensity of the fire raining down on them from the Pike drove back the first charge in 10 minutes...