School House Ridge
School House Ridge at the Harpers Ferry Battlefield is one of those out of the way corners that get overlooked by most visitors to the park. The Federal lines on Bolivar Heights were long part of the park. But until Civil War Preservation Trust purchased sections on School House Ridge, the battle lines used by Jackson’s forces during the September 1862 siege were neglected. With the addition of the Murphy Farm section, the real story of the 1862 battle plays out to the visitor, without a long hike up Maryland or Loudoun Heights.
The northern section of School House Ridge is best reached from the parking area, off the Bakerton Road (WVA 27) on the west side of the Bolivar Heights section. Bakerton Road runs north to south between School House Ridge and Bolivar Heights. The foot trail of about a mile and a half is mostly undeveloped, so bring your hiking boots. Once atop the ridge, several interpretive markers discuss the battle, but unfortunately in general terms. The section of the ridge was occupied by Ewell’s/Lawton’s Division during the battle but no detailed discussion of the units or employment is provided. A lone 3-inch Ordnance Rifle is positioned to fire on Bolivar Heights:
Looking down it’s barrel, the snake rail fence in the distance is about half way back to Bakerton Road. But the eyes won’t see the road from here. The ground drops off enough through the valley, that it becomes dead space for this point of view. However, Bolivar Heights is the long wooded ridge running from left to right in the background. Looking almost center of the photo, just below the profile of Maryland Heights, is a strip cut out of the ridge. Armed with binoculars, or if one zooms into the photo for the same effect, there is a sister 3-in Ordnance Rifle on the Federal side of the valley:
From the Federal point of view, the gun in the previous photo is in the most distant “green” patch ground. Like the Confederate gun, Bakerton Road is also not visible directly from this gun’s muzzle. The ground drops off sharp enough to create dead space for direct fire. Indeed, none of the positions for the Federal skirmish line below the Heights are visible, only the Confederate positions on the far ridge. Looking at the map, the Federal gun is at about 610 feet in elevation. The Confederate piece is probably around 430 feet. The ground around Bakerton Road is 400 feet in elevation. Just looking at the topographical map, one would think there would be few blind spots. Once again, there is just no substitute to actually putting boots on the ground!
Of note, at the time of the battle, and later when Sheridan fortified the ridge line, the tree line was significantly thinner than today. While the direct line view is similar to that during the war, the panoramic view is not as accurate. Also, looking in the foreground of the Federal position are a line of trenches, probably dating to Sheridan’s 1864 fortifications, but no doubt in line with similar works built in 1862. From those trenches, just down from the crest, it is a bit easier to view the Federal Skirmish Line and Bakerton Road. Still, I’m reminded of Missionary Ridge overlooking Chattanooga. To fully defend this ridge line, the Federals needed weapons to fire down the valley at angles to cover the dead zone. Fort Duncan on the north side of the Potomac offered such a position. However without a good terrain walk it is hard to determine how effective that position would be. And today much of that terrain is private property.
The distance between the artillery pieces is just under a mile. Figuring the range of a 3-in Ordnance Rifle was about 2750 yards (Hotchkiss or Schenkl projectiles), or about one and a half miles. So the positions presented here are within the bounds of the weapons systems and offer an opportunity to study the “geometry” of the Civil War battle-space with regard to artillery employment.
