July of 2023 will mark the 161st anniversary of the First Battle of Murfreesboro, with that Civil War battle having been fought on July 13, 1862.

Jim Lewis, a park ranger at Stones River National Battlefield, has spent the last 26 years lecturing guests on the historic events of Middle Tennessee. He sets the scene for the First Battle of Murfreesboro:

During the spring of 1862, Murfreesboro and the surrounding area became occupied by Union soldiers. The Union Army stationed here was comprised of the 3rd Minnesota Infantry Regiment and the 9th Michigan Infantry Regiment, with a small detachment from the 9th Pennsylvania Cavalry Regiment. An argument regarding which regiment got which camp location caused the Union Army to split up and set camp far away from each other, a decision that would later lead to their defeat.

Reunion image of the 9th Michigan Infantry, 1885

During this time, the Confederate Army was gathering its forces in preparation for a raid. The Confederate Army knew that Murfreesboro was a key area for the Union Army, serving as a supply and communication hub. The Confederates rallied their cavalry and put Nathan Bedford Forrest in charge of the raid.

It was during this point in the story that Lewis dispels a common myth about the battle. Some believe that the purpose behind the raid was to release prisoners of the Union army, and while this did happen, it was more of a result of the battle, but not the intended purpose.

In the early morning of July 13, 1862—coincidentally Forrest’s birthday—the Confederate Army began its attack on Union forces in Murfreesboro. Moving in from the east, the Confederate forces first ambushed the 9th Pennsylvania Cavalry Regiment. Quickly after, two cavalry detachments engaged the 3rd Minnesota and 9th Michigan Infantry Regiments. Because these regiments had camped far apart, little time was left for them to properly mount their horses and perform a counter-attack.

As quickly as the battle had started, it ended. After the ambush, Forrest employed a clever technique by ordering his cavalry to ride repeatedly around the town square, causing the remaining Union soldiers to greatly overestimate their numbers. Fearing they had no other choice, the Union Army surrendered. Forrest’s cavalry had captured between 800 and 1,200 Union prisoners.

The Confederates quickly destroyed the Union supplies and a bridge and greatly damaged the railroad, completing their mission. It was soon after that the Confederate Army rode out of Murfreesboro towards McMinnville, knowing a much larger Union force would be on its way.

Though the battle was quick and small, with casualties in the low hundreds, it would set the scene for the larger and better known Battle of Stones River, which was fought in December of that year.

___

To learn more about the First Battle of Murfreesboro, visit the Stones River National Battlefield in Murfreesboro and observe the exhibits or speak to a park ranger like Jim Lewis, who can tell the story as if he were there when it happened.