The Battle of White Sulphur Springs, also known as the Battle of Rocky Gap or the Battle of Dry Creek, occurred in Greenbrier County, West Virginia, on August 26 and 27, 1863, during the American Civil War. A Confederate Army force commanded by Colonel George S. Patton defeated a Union brigade commanded by Brigadier General William W. Averell. West Virginia had been a state for only a few months, and its citizens along the state's southern border were divided in loyalty to the Union and Confederate causes. Many of the fighters on both sides were West Virginians, and some were from the counties close to the site of the battle.
The battle was a turning point for the first of three mounted expeditions into Confederate-held territory led by Averell in the latter half of 1863. The expedition had multiple targets, including a saltpeter works, a Confederate cavalry force in Pocahontas County, West Virginia, and the law books from the law library of the Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals in Lewisburg, West Virginia. Confederate leaders feared Averell's mission was to destroy sections of a railroad—either the Virginia and Tennessee Railroad or the Virginia Central Railroad. Both railroads were important to the Confederacy for moving materials and men, and one served a lead mine used for the army's bullets. Defending against Averell was a force of four Virginia regiments and an artillery battery at Lewisburg, temporarily commanded by Patton in the absence of Brigadier General John Echols, who was over away in Richmond.
Patton's Confederate force stopped Averell's Union brigade near White Sulphur Springs—about east of Lewisburg. Both sides made numerous charges in the battle, but neither gained much ground. The Union force was prevented from reaching its objective in Lewisburg, and was forced to make a difficult retreat north while being pursued by Confederate forces. The Confederate victory proved that Patton could ably command a large force of over 2,000 men, and (unknown to the Confederacy) saved the law library in Lewisburg. Confederate leaders mistakenly believed they had saved the Virginia and Tennessee Railroad and a lead mine. Averell achieved the first two of his three objectives, and his newly-mounted men also gained valuable experience in cavalry tactics in the mountains of West Virginia. The books from the law library were never captured, and they were eventually moved to Richmond, Virginia. As of 2011, the battlefield has not been preserved. Three small monuments are side by side near a fast food restaurant, and across the street on the other side of a small creek is a historical marker that calls the clash the "Dry Creek Battle".
Background and plans
West Virginia
Between December 20, 1860, and February 1, 1861, seven southern states seceded from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America. Fighting began on April 12, 1861, when American troops were attacked at Fort Sumter in South Carolina, and this is considered the beginning of the American Civil War. Four additional states, including Virginia, seceded during the next three months. On April 17, 1861, representatives of the Commonwealth of Virginia held the Virginia Secession Convention, and passed an Ordinance of Secession that declared secession from the United States. The ordinance was ratified by popular referendum on May 23, and Virginia later joined the Confederate States of America. In June of that year, residents of the northwest part of the state who remained loyal to the United States met at the Second Wheeling Convention. On June 19, they approved a plan to establish an alternative loyal state government that would be located in Wheeling. Virginians loyal to the United States declared their own statehood on October 24, 1861, and it officially became the state of West Virginia on June 20, 1863.