The Battle of Salyersville, also called Battle of Ivy Point Hill (not to be confused with The Battle of Ivy Mountain, which took place in April 1861), also called The Battle of Half Mountain, was the largest of the many skirmishes in

Magoffin County, Kentucky Magoffin County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. As of the 2010 census, the population was 13,333. Its county seat is Salyersville. The county was formed in 1860 from adjacent portions of Floyd, Johnson, and Morgan Counties ...

, during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

. In April 1864,

Confederate Confederacy or confederate may refer to: States or communities * Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities * Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between 1 ...

Colonel Ezekiel F. Clay led his regiment of

mounted infantry Mounted infantry were infantry who rode horses instead of marching. The original dragoons were essentially mounted infantry. According to the 1911 ''Encyclopædia Britannica'', "Mounted rifles are half cavalry, mounted infantry merely specially m ...

on a raid to

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

. He was opposed by the forces of the Sub-District of Eastern Kentucky under

Union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

Colonel George W. Gallup, consisting of the 14th Kentucky Infantry and 39th Kentucky Infantry, and reinforcements under Colonel C. J. True consisting of the 40th Kentucky Infantry and the 11th Michigan Cavalry. On April 13, 1864, the Confederates attacked the Union position at

Paintsville Paintsville () is a home rule-class city along Paint Creek in Johnson County, Kentucky, in the United States. It is the seat of its county. The population was 3,459 during the 2010 U.S. Census. History A Paint Lick Station was referred to in ...

, but Colonel Gallup's 750 men held their position. On April 14, Clay and his exhausted troops and horses were trying to rest near the mouths of Puncheon and Little Half Mountain Creeks. Col. Clay didn't think Col. Gallup would pursue him, but that turned out to be a costly misjudgment. Some believe that Gallup was led by a young lade from Puncheon named Liza Whitaker through Ivyton and down Gun Creek to Brushy Fork. Col. Gallup split his troops at Brushy Creek, sending 300 with Orlando Brown down the ridge of Little Half Mountain, while leading the rest down the Fred Risner Branch in a move that trapped Col. Clay and his troops. Col. Gallup was assisted by Col. John S. Dils, Col. David A. Mims, Lt. Col. Stephen Meek Ferfuson, Lieut. E. J. Roberts, acting assistant adjutant-general, Col. Orlando Brown, and Capt John C Collins, who claims to have shot Clay. Near the end of the battle, Clay was shot through the eye and had to remove himself from battle. Col. Clay was eventually captured and taken to an Ohio Prison by Elijah Patrick where he was finally pardoned by President Lincoln near the end of the war. Clay refused to accept the pardon and waited for the war to end to gain his freedom. The CSA suffered casualties of 60 men and 200 horses. 400 saddles and 300 small-arms were taken. The USA sustained only slight losses.

References

*''The war of the rebellion: a compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate armies.'' / Series 1 - Volume 32 (Part III), especially pg. 393. Salyersville Salyersville, Kentucky Salyersville Salyersville 1864 in Kentucky Salyersville April 1864 events {{AmericanCivilWar-battle-stub

See also

References