Chancellorsville - Hooker's Last Line

The woods behind my house hold a mystery.

On 3 May 1863, the Union Army of the Potomac fell back to the area bounded by the Mineral Springs Road, Ely's Ford Road, and the U.S. Ford Road. Federal troops dug fortifications and constructed a military road to facilitate resupply and movement across what became known as Hooker's Last Line.

The mystery?

Some of these surviving trenches face north rather than south towards the Confederate position. Why would Union soldiers dig trenches that faced the wrong way? Some of the trenches are even constructed in a way that half face south and the other half face north, away from the known danger. There is scant, if any, evidence in the Official Records of the Battle of Chancellorsville. There is no known evidence in historic writings or soldier recollections.

Were the Northern Soldiers concerned with yet another Stonewall Jackson flank attack from behind? Were they concerned that JEB Stuart's Cavalry would seize Ely's Ford or cut the U.S. Ford Road, which was the Union's lifeline and only avenue of retreat? Why would a soldier knowingly place his back towards his enemy as these Union Soldiers did?

Maybe we will never know why these trenches face the wrong way. Maybe the answer lies hidden and awaits discovery.

When I gaze across these trenches and think about the events that unfolded on my property on 3-5 May 1863, I always ask myself, why? What was the danger? What was the Union Army's situational awareness? Did the Army of Northern Virginia possess the resources to seize the river fords or sever the roads?

Then again, maybe these trenches had their origins in Confederate defenses built to watch Ely's Ford and U.S. Ford and block or delay a Union attack on Chancellorsville. The evidence may lead to this conclusion.

Where is Indiana Jones when I need him?