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Stephenson History #1 Traditional Cache

Hidden : 7/5/2009
Difficulty:
2 out of 5
Terrain:
1.5 out of 5

Size: Size:   micro (micro)

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Geocache Description:


I've always been curious about Stephenson, VA (if you know me well, you can probably figure out why), so one day recently I decided to visit, and on my way down the road this particular monument and historical sign caught my eye. I pulled over to take a closer look, and as soon as I realized what it detailed, I just knew I had place a cache nearby.


A little bit of history about this site . . .
Information primarily taken from the following source.

After the Battle of Brandy Station, General Robert E. Lee launched his plan for a second invasion of the north. He ordered the 2nd Corps of the Army of Northern Virginia, under the command of Major General Richard S. Ewell to attack the US force at Winchester and clear the Lower Valley of Union opposition. In the resulting three-day battle (collectively known as the Second Battle of Winchester, June 13-15, 1863), Ewell's corps clashed with a US division under the command of Major General Robert Milroy.

After two days of fighting, Major Gen. Ewell assumed Milroy might attempt a retreat during the night and ordered General Edward "Allegheny" Johnson to prevent his escape by cutting off a potential escape route via Charles Town Road. Therefore, at about 9 p.m, Johnson marched north to Berryville Pike and west to Jordan Springs Road, where he turned north towards Stephenson's Depot, a train stop on the Winchester and Potomac Railroad near the intersection of Martinsburg Pike and Charles Town Road.

At about this same time, Milroy and his officers did indeed make the decision to try to "cut their way through" to Harper's Ferry using Charles Town Road. Shortly after midnight, the Federal soldiers left quietly and moved down the railroad line toward the Charles Town crossroad, just south of Stephenson's Depot.

Near dawn on June 15, Johnson's skirmishers encountered the head of Milroy's retreating column. Milroy faced his column to the right of the pike and prepared to fight his way out of a "murderous trap" by enveloping the enemy. As it grew light, Federal forces made several desperate but uncoordinated attacks against Johnston's regiments, but the Confederates, being steadily reinforced, drove back each attempt. At some point Milroy's horse was shot out from under him, and the Division as a whole scattered in various directions to the northwest, north, and northeast. The short, pre-dawn battle resulted in the capture of Milroy's wagon train and the capture of over 2,300 Union prisoners. From here, the Confederate Army advanced into Pennsylvania where it suffered defeat two weeks later at Gettysburg.

General Robert E. Lee later described the actions at Stephenson's Depot by saying "I Regard this as the Thermopylae of My Campaign."

This large monument was placed to honor the 1st Maryland Battery, which stood a position just to the south along the railroad. Sustaining heavy causalities, the battery blocked Milroy's line of retreat until Confederate forces had sufficiently massed. In the action, the battery lost 13 men. The lower inscription in the bronze portion of the monument lists the casualties by name.



Note: What you seek here is a micro cache. It is NOT among the flowers, so there is no need to rummage among them in your search.

If you wish to learn more about the action at Stephenson's Depot, please also visit Stephenson History #2, a second cache in this little series designed to introduce you to two interesting historical sites within Stephenson, VA.


Additional Hints (Decrypt)

tebhaq yriry sebag yrsg

Decryption Key

A|B|C|D|E|F|G|H|I|J|K|L|M
-------------------------
N|O|P|Q|R|S|T|U|V|W|X|Y|Z

(letter above equals below, and vice versa)