Shields rapidly followed us, but our men kept holding him in check. We were sent on at the head of the army, as the cavalry could make much better time. We arrived one day ahead of the infantry and rode two miles beyond Harrisonburg in the direction of Parkersburg, and fortified.
Gen. Ashby maneuvered so wisely, that John C. Fremont, (the old woolly horse), thought he had to fight Jackson’s whole army and was preparing for same. While he was preparing for a general attack, Jackson passed through Harrisonburg and went in the direction of Port Republic.
When Fremont made the attack, we retreated hurriedly through Harrisonburg, and Fremont censured his English General, Percy Windam, for allowing Ashby to deceive him that way.
Windam pursued us and made his brags that he would capture Ashby before the sun went down. He attempted it and Ashby made the same attempt at him. Windam ordered a charge, but his men wouldn’t follow him and he ran into our lines and we captured him. Just as we captured him, Gen. Ashby was killed. A confederate brigade was ordered back to help us and quite a number of our men were killed, but not so many as of the enemy. This is known as the battle of Harrisonburg. Night came on and put a stop to hostilities for a time.
The cavalry pickets were stationed all around, but the next morning just after sun rise, the enemy began to advance again. Gen. Ewell’s division took a stand near a little village called Cross Keys. Gen. Fremont marched against him with a force more than double the number of his. At about 10 o’clock the battle began and raged until about four. Fremont was completely whipped and never made another attack.
Jackson, now thinking his way was clear, continued his march to Port Republic. But when he arrived, to his great surprise, Gen. Shields had come in on the east side and stationed a battery to guard the bridge to prevent Jackson from crossing. Jackson rode up to the men commanding the battery and told them to move the guns back to another position, which would be better, and these men didn’t know who Jackson was and obeyed the order, and Jackson went back and marched his men on over the bridge. He went on down the river with his and Ewell’s divisions to meet Shield’s main army. We, of the 2nd Va. cavalry was left in the rear to hold Fremont in check, and as soon as Ewell’s and Jackson’s men crossed the bridge they burned it. Of course our cavalry could cross without the bridge but they fired it to stop Fremont’s infantry and artillery. The waters of the Shenandoah were especially deep at this time, but we crossed unharmed.
When Jackson reached the Lewis House he found that Shields had taken the very position he was aiming to get. He had stationed 18 pieces of artillery in an apple orchard around the Lewis House. It was on a hill and commanded three ways.
Gen. Branch with his brigade was ordered down the Shenandoah, at the water’s edge. Gen. Trimble was ordered up at the foot of the mountain, his men being concealed by the timber. Jackson’s brigade came down the river about a half mile from Branch’s men, on a road running parallel with the river. Since Gen. Ashby’s death, Gen. Stewart from Maryland, was commanding Ashby’s men. Stewart’s men were ordered up to the right of Jackson’s men and in full view of the Lewis House and Shields’ whole army. Shields had taken his position and of course Jackson had to make the attempt to move him from it.
Jackson had sent a regiment up a ravine about 400 yards from the house and right in front of the battery. They were entirely concealed in a rye field. About 200 yards behind this regiment was another regiment also concealed in the rye. Neither of these regiments knew the other one was in the field, and when the signal guns were fired for all to advance, and the men nearest the battery raised up, the regiment in the rear of the rye field fired on them, not knowing they were our men, and killed about 300 before they found their mistake. Both regiments quit firing and concealed themselves again.
Trimble, Branch and Jackson, advanced a part of the way, but when this confusion occurred between the two regiments in the rye field, Jackson’s whole army seemed demoralized. They thought, probably all those men in the rye field were men supporting and protecting the battery.