Stand Off at Raymond - July 1st

The Confederate 6^th Division under Major General Travis W. Garrett arrived at Raymond from Chalybeate Gap on the morning of July 1^st.  He centered his line on the abandoned redoubt at the junction located near Raymond’s Store. The area around the redoubt had been clear cut by previous occupants, artillery on the knoll at the redoubt their assigned position and occupied them, with their right flank resting on a branch of Bell Creek. The fortifications in the area were designed to defend against advances from the south, but Garrett’s men found them sufficient to defend from the north as well.

Later in the morning, a single regiment of Ohio cavalry came down the Greenville – Hot Springs Road and observed the Confederate line before sending couriers to the north and moving back to the Smith house, north of the junction. Garrett’s batteries fired an occasional shell at the cavalrymen, but the artillery fire did little damage at long range.

In the afternoon, the Federal cavalrymen began advancing towards the enemy line again in skirmish formation. When they reached a position about 300 yards north of Garrett’s line, they dismounted with the obvious intention of maintaining a skirmish line. The gunners from Hartley’s and Blair’s Alabama Batteries took this as an opportunity to practice their skills in earnest and began inflicting some loss on the horsemen with shrapnel. Before long, however, a new target appeared in the form of a Federal infantry division coming south down the Greenville – Hot Springs Road at 4:00 p.m.. It was the Army of the Arkansas’ 6^th Division under Brigadier General Benjamin Adams.

The Federal 6^th Division is entirely composed of United States Colored Troops (USCT), some of regiments being raised from Arkansas and others from other western states. The division has three brigades of infantry and includes a significant number of green regiments. The infantry is supported by Batteries A and C of the 3^rd Regiment Light Artillery (USCT). Adams deployed into a division battle line with reserves and his batteries in the center. An artillery duel began, with guns from both sides firing as rapidly as possible and inflicting casualties on infantry and artillery alike.

Darkness arrived and brought an end to the shelling, with the two 6^th Divisions facing each other across the fields immediately north of the junction at Raymond’s Store. Will the USCT Division attempt to storm the works and take Raymond Junction? Will Garrett’s Division move east to support the action at Midway? Will they continue where they left off with an artillery fight in the morning and watch and wait? Let’s see what July 2^nd will bring at Raymond….