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The sky began to lighten at 5:08 on Friday, August 29, 1862 in Prince William County. The sun rose at 5:36 am.
Brawner’s
At first light, Jackson began the repositioning of his
units. The Stonewall Brigade and supporting brigades who had fought the
previous night’s battle had slept (more likely passed out, if they got any
shut-eye) with their weapons ready for the return of King’s division. In the
gray light of pre-dawn, they fell back to the unfinished railroad grade north
of Brawner’s Farm, but not without Union artillerists lobbing shells at the
moving masses.
Jackson wanted his old division, now commanded by William
Starke, as the right flank of the railroad grade. But he was worried about a
Union column advancing from Manassas Junction up Pageland Lane (the route King
had retreated on the night before, unknown to Jackson) flanking him. So he
split Ewell’s division (now led by Alexander Lawton), leaving half of it to the
left of Starke along the unfinished railroad, but sending Jubal Early with his
brigade and the Louisiana Brigade far out to the right, across Pageland Lane,
with a large gap between it and the rest of the line.
Chinn Ridge and Henry Hill
Sigel got his artillery firing from Chinn Ridge just as soon
as they could make out masses of men moving in the distance at Brawner’s Farm.
The First Corps, Army of Virginia was second smallest in Pope’s army after
Jesse Reno’s Ninth Corps, with only six brigades. It was mostly made up of
German and Eastern European immigrants, many who could not speak English, and
its structure reflected its ad hoc assembly.
Robert Schenck led its First Division of two brigades (one
of which was the corps’ only non-majority immigrant unit) and was the first to
step off on the morning of August 29. Confederate artillery had opened up in
response to Sigel’s bombardment, and Schenck advanced half his men under their
fire to the Turnpike until they were covered by Dogan’s Ridge, but let the
other half advance to the same spot unharassed on the far side of Chinn Ridge.
Sigel wanted Schenck to march west, down either side of the Warrenton
Turnpike [US 29], with the independent brigade of Robert Milroy extending his
line to the left. Meanwhile, Sigel’s Third Division under Lincoln’s close
friend Carl Schurz, would sweep down from Henry Hill and join into line,
clearing out skirmishers that Sigel believed were in the woods. McDowell would
meet him at Brawner’s Farm, coming from the other direction, effectively
creating a miniature version of the book-slamming maneuver Pope had first envisioned.
Further south of Henry Hill, a bedraggled Irvin McDowell
found his Third Division commander, John Reynolds, having breakfast at the
Conrad House [on the campus of NOVA], the Pennsylvania Reserves camped on the
grounds. Reynolds gave McDowell an account of the fight at Brawner’s Farm,
based on his conversations with King the night before, as well as Pope’s orders
for the morning that had never reached McDowell.
McDowell recognized as well as Reynolds that Pope’s maneuver
was useless without any of the Third Corps, Army of Virginia between Jackson
and Gainesville, and that he had to retake that ground promptly. Ricketts’
division was still somewhere between Thoroughfare Gap and Gainesville, they
knew, and might make a convenient rally point. McDowell ordered Reynolds to
support Sigel’s attack from the left, which would put him in good position to
link up with the rest of the corps when it was assembled, and hurried south to
Manassas Junction to find King.
Unfinished Railroad
Powell Hill had advanced his men into the plain in front of
the unfinished railroad the evening before, where they had received
intermittent artillery fire from Sigel’s corps. At dawn, on Jackson’s orders,
he pulled them back to Stone Ridge, which ran behind the railroad grade, and
linked it up with Ewell’s division. Hill anchored the Confederate line on Bull
Run at Sudley Springs, so it didn’t stand the same risk of being flanked like
the right did.
Sigel’s planned attack would cross the plain right in front
of Hill.
Centreville
At dawn, three hours after he had been ordered to, Phil
Kearny started the men of his division marching west down the Turnpike towards
the old battlefield.
Lower Fords
John Pope, full of optimism and braggadocio, packed up his
headquarters overlooking Bull Run and set out for Centreville.
Bristoe Station
At approximately 5:20, Fitz John Porter was given Pope’s
marching order from the night before. Porter calmly finished his breakfast,
then put his Fifth Corps in motion by way of the route Sigel had followed to
Manassas Junction the day before.
Gainesville
James Ricketts’ men had spent an exhausted night in
Gainesville, and were up and on the move again early. Bayard’s cavalry brigade
fanned out behind them, providing protection from prying eyes about their
movements. John Buford’s cavalry brigade, meanwhile, waited in Gainesville to
get a clearer idea what Longstreet would be bringing to the battle.
Thoroughfare Gap
Longstreet had his men marching at first light, as promised.
Hood’s division led the column, followed by the independent brigade of the
forgotten First Manassas hero “Shanks” Evans, and then Kemper’s division. The
division of Neighbor Jones would have a little extra shut-eye, since it had
fought hardest the day before, and join the back of the column, at least until
it had marched far enough south that Wilcox’s division at Hopewell Gap could
fall in.
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