Oakland-Confederate Railroad Raid - Oakland, MD - Battlefields on Waymarking.com

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Oakland-Confederate Railroad Raid
On Sunday, April 26, 1863, a detachment of Confederate Capt. John H. McNeill's partisan rangers under Col. A. W. Harman attacked the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad facilities here in Oakland. They were part of Confederate Gen. William E. “Grumble” Jones’ incursion into West Virginia and Maryland to hamper the rail movements of Federal troops and supplies.

The town was defended by Company O, 6th West Virginia Infantry, a Preston County unit. The Confederates arrived about 11 a.m. and surprised the garrison. When Oakland's citizens emerged from church services, they found the town in possession of the Southerners. The Union commander, Capt. Godwin, was captured at the Lutheran Church on Green Street, and one by one, three more officers and fifty-seven soldiers were rounded up.

Apparently, only one shot was fired in Oakland, when Confederates who thought that a Union officer was recuperating at the Glades Hotel fired a warning shot from a small cannon past the building. After they turned the gun to face the hotel, the manager came out and begged them to inspect the interior rather than opening fire. They found no Federal officer in the building Meanwhile, a few Confederates rode west to the Youghiogheny River railroad bridge, where they captured the guards at Fort Alice, disarmed them, and burned the bridge.

Name of Battle: Confederate Railroad Raid at Oakland Name of War: U.S. Civil War Date(s) of Battle (Beginning): 04/26/1863 Entrance Fee: Not Listed Parking: Not Listed Date of Battle (End): Not listed

Visit Instructions:
Post a photo of you in front of a sign or marker posted at the site of the battle (or some other way to indicate you have personally visited the site.

In addition it is encouraged to take a few photos of the surrounding area and interesting features at the site.

Recent Visits/Logs:

Date Logged Log User Rating   03/29/2023 Don.Morfe visited it