The Battle of Philippi
(June 2, 1861)

What do you know about the The Battle of Philippi (June 2, 1861)?

Try this Alan's US Civil War History Made Easy Quiz. 

"Check Your Answers" at the end of the page.

1) After the start of hostilities at Fort Sumter in April 1861, a former Army officer returned to the Army and, on May 13, assumed command of the Department of the Ohio, headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Who was the former Army officer?

1. Stephen B. Ambrose
2. George Crook
3. George B. McClellan

2) The Department of the Ohio's immediate objectives was to occupy the State of West Virginia (at that time the northwestern part of the Commonwealth of Virginia) to protect the predominantly pro-Union populace of the area, and to keep open the railroad line, which was a critical supply line for the Union.
What was the railroad?

1. Baltimore & Ohio Railroad
2. Penn Central Railroad
3. Virginia & Florida Railroad

3) On May 26, in response to the burning of bridges on the railroad near the town of Farmington, ordered Col. Benjamin Franklin Kelley of the (Union) 1st Virginia Infantry with his regiment and Company A of the 2nd Virginia Infantry, to advance from Wheeling to the area of the sabotage and secure the important bridge over the Monongahela River at a town, about 70 miles southeast of Wheeling.
What was the town 70 miles southeast of Wheeling?

1. Clarksburg
2. Fairmont
3. Morgantown

4) Kelley's men were supported by an infantry regiment under Col. James Irvine. After securing Monongahela River, the 1st Virginia advanced again and seized the important railroad junction of Grafton, about 15 miles southwest of Monongahela River town, on May 30.
What was the infantry regiment commanded by Col. James Irvine?

1. 16th Ohio Infantry
2. 16th Pennsylvania Infantry
3. 16th Vermont Infantry

5) Meanwhile, the 14th Ohio Infantry Regiment, under Col. James B. Steedman, was ordered to occupy Parkersburg and then also proceed to Grafton, about 90 miles to the east.

• True or False?

6) By May 28, the Department of the Ohio commander ordered a total of about 3,000 troops into Western Virginia and placed them under the overall command of Brig. Gen. Thomas A. Morris.
What state's volunteers did Morris command?

1. Indiana Volunteers
2. Maine Volunteers
3. Tennessee Volunteers

7) Confederate Col. George A. Porterfield had been assigned to command of state forces in northwestern Virginia on May 4 and ordered to Grafton to take charge of enlistments in that area. As the Union columns advanced, Porterfield's poorly armed 800 recruits retreated to Philippi, about 17 miles south of Grafton. At Philippi, a covered bridge spanned the Tygart Valley River and was an important segment of the vital turnpike.
What was the name of the turnpike?

1. Beverly-Fairmont Turnpike
2. Charleston-Clarksburg Turnpike
3. U.S. 50 Turnpike

8) Col. Kelley devised a two-prong attack against the Confederate forces in Philippi, approved by Gen. Morris on his arrival in Grafton on June 1. The principal advance would be 1,600 men led by Kelley himself, and would include six companies of his own regiment, nine of the 9th Indiana Infantry Regiment under Col. Robert H. Milroy, and six of the 16th Ohio Infantry. In order to deceive the enemy into believing their objective was Harpers Ferry, they departed by train to the east. They de-trained at the small village of and marched south on a back road (on the same side of the river as Philippi) intending to arrive at the rear of the town.
What was the name of the small village.

1. Bridgeport
2. Kingwood
3. Thornton

9) The 7th Indiana under Col. Ebenezer Dumont were sent to Webster, about 3.5 miles southwest of Grafton. There they would combine with the 6th Indiana under Col. Thomas T. Crittenden and the 14th Ohio under Col. Steedman. The column, with a total of 1,400 men under the command of Col. Dumont (with the assistance of Col. Frederick W. Lander, volunteer aide-de-camp to Gen. McClellan), would march directly south from Webster on the Turnpike. In this way, the Union force would execute a double envelopment of the Confederates.

• True or False?

10) On June 2, the two Union columns set off to converge on Philippi. After an overnight march in rainy weather, both columns arrived at Philippi before dawn on June 3. Morris had planned a predawn assault that would be signaled by a pistol shot. The untrained Confederate troops had failed to establish picket lines to provide perimeter security, choosing instead to escape the cold rain that fell at morning and stay inside their tents. A Confederate sympathizer saw the approaching Union troops and sent her young son on horseback to warn the Confederates. While the sympathizer watched, Union pickets captured the boy and she fired her pistol at the Union soldiers. Although she missed, her shots started the attack prematurely.
Who was the Confederate sympathizer?

1. Mrs. Thomas Humphreys
2. Mrs. Ira Jones
3. Mrs. Helen Morgan

11) The Union forces began firing their artillery, which awakened the sleeping Confederates. After firing a few shots at the advancing Union troops, the Southerners broke lines and began running frantically to the south, some still in their bed clothes, which caused journalists to refer to the battle as the "Battle at Philippi".

• True or False?

12) Who was shot while chasing some of the retreating Confederates?

1. Col. Kelley
2. Col. Smith
3. Col. Wagner

13) Col. Lander's ride down the steep hillside through heavy underbrush was considered such a feat of horsemanship that gave an illustrated account of it shortly afterward.
What was the magazine?

1. Leslie's Weekly
2. Time Magazine
3. Weekly Gazette

14) Where did the remaining Confederate troops retreated to about 45 miles to the south?

1. Huttonsville
2. Sutton
3. Webster Springs

15) After the battle, Col. Porterfield was replaced in command of Confederate forces in western Virginia.
Who replaced Col. Porterfield?

1. Brig. Gen. Robert S. Garnett
2. Brig. Gen. Robert J. Jackson
3. Brig. Gen. Robert E. Lee

16) It was the first organized land action in the war, but is often treated dismissively as a skirmish rather than a significant battle.

• True or False?

The Battle of Philippi (June 2, 1861)
[Answers]

1) C  2) A. 3) B.  4) A.  5)  True  6) A.  7) A.  8) C.  9) True 10 A.  11) False. The Union forces began firing their artillery, which awakened the sleeping Confederates. After firing a few shots at the advancing Union troops, the Southerners broke lines and began running frantically to the south, some still in their bed clothes, which caused journalists to refer to the battle as the "Races at Philippi".  12) A.  13) A.  14) A.  15) A.  16) True