The 1863 Battle of Buffington Island led to the closure of one of the most daring cavalry campaigns of the American Civil War.

Confederate Brig. Gen. John Hunt Morgan, a Kentucky native and Mexican War veteran, was reknowned for the lightening raids of his 2nd Kentucky Cavalry Regiment. In July 1863, Morgan's Raiders headed north with approval from Gen. Braxton Bragg to attack in and around Louisville, Ky. Morgan only sent a detachment of his unit in a feint toward Louisville to allow his main body of 3,000 "Alligator Horses" to safely cross the Ohio River further west. Morgan proceeded into Indiana and then Ohio, circling Cincinnati to avoid Federal troops there. Racing east, the general found at every turn home guard units to the front and seasoned Federal cavalry units to the rear.

Morgan's last, best hope for escape was the Ohio River crossing at Buffington Island, north of Pomeroy, Ohio. On the morning of July 19, Morgan's troops awoke and saddled up to make their crossing when they were assailed by Gen. Henry Judah's Union cavalry. Before the Confederate unit could react, they also were attacked by their pursuers, Union cavalry under Gens. Edward Hobson and James Shackleford, as well by two gunboats steaming up the river.

Finding themselves trapped, Morgan led more than 1,100 of his men through a narrow pass at the north end of the valley, while his brother-in-law and second-in-command, Col. Basil Duke, directed a delaying defensive stand. Morgan and the remnant of his troops rode north to near Lisbon, Ohio, where he was finally captured July 26. At Buffington Island, Duke and more than seven hundred of Morgan's troops surrendered, while about 100 men were killed or severely wounded.

Today, a memorial commemorates the site of Morgan's capture as the point farthest north reached by any body of Confederate soldiers. Morgan's Ohio Raid had ended in self-destruction, but it aided Bragg in his victory at Chickamauga. The 1000-mile raid resulted in the infliction of almost 600 casualties, the capture and parole of six thousand Union troops, the occupation of more than 100,000 Union militiamen and the destruction of $10 million worth of railroad equipment (34 bridges and 60 tracks), telegraph wire, warehouses and military depots.

This Heidelberg College archaeological project is an attempt to accurately locate and preserve the field of battle and to more fully understand the motives and movements of the combatants during the fateful Battle of Buffington Island. Comments or suggestions about the project or the web site can be forwarded to buffington@heidelberg.edu.

The Buffington Island Battlefield Heidelberg College Archaeological Project web site has been recognized by Links ² Go as a key resource in the field of Historical Archaeology.

This material is based upon work assisted by a grant from the Department of the Interior, National Park Service. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Department of the Interior.

Archaeologists will discuss the findings of the archaeological survey of the Buffington Island Battlefield June 1, 2 and 5, 2000.

Photos and updates were posted from the field during the excavation!

American Battlefield Protection Program awarded a grant for the Buffington Island Battlefield study.

DOCUMENTS: Letters, reports, legislation and other documents related to the project.

PRESS ARCHIVES: Stories about the project published in the media.

LIBRARY: A listing of books on the subject of Morgan's Raiders.

VISUALS: Photos and maps of the project.

TRAIL: Cities and monuments along the trail of the raid.

HEIDELBERG: The institution sponsoring this archaelogical project.

ARCHAEOLOGIST: The professor who supervised this project.

Other major field study projects of the Center for Historic and Military Archaeology include the Johnson's Island Civil War Military Prison site near Sandusky, Ohio, and the Fallen Timbers Battlefield Archaeological Project in Maumee, Ohio.