Boonsboro MD006
1863-07-08 to 1863-07-08 · MD · Gettysburg Campaign [June-July 1863] · frozen result: Inconclusive · NPS summary (as listed)
On July 8, the Confederate cavalry, holding the South Mountain passes, fought a rearguard action against elements of the Union 1st and 3rd Cavalry Divisions and infantry. This action was one of a series of cavalry combats fought around Boonsboro, Hagerstown, and Williamsport.
Dossier claims
Draft dossier, revision gettysburg-review-correction-2026-09-25. Claims are extraction records with their quoted passages, not historical adjudication. JSON
information
supportedunresolved Stuart's garbled OCR says he 'WaS infor.™ed that the enemy was heavily re-'; the continuation is unintelligible, so 'reinforced' is a probable but unverified reading.
One garbled report; no inspected message log.
WaS infor.™ed that the enemy was heavily re-or27-2-stuart-gettysburg-selections-v1, p.703 (OCR page markers; not checked against print) · snapshot
e67a3a524778…logistics
supportedunresolved Stuart's OCR is heavily garbled here; intelligible fragments mention ammunition 'by this protracted engagement' and an order to 'retire toward Tunkstown' (OCR; presumably Funkstown, not checked against print).
Only intelligible fragments are quoted; the surrounding text is not reliable.
ammunition, by this protracted engagement,or27-2-stuart-gettysburg-selections-v1, p.703 (OCR page markers; not checked against print) · snapshot
e67a3a524778…retire toward Tunkstown,or27-2-stuart-gettysburg-selections-v1, p.703 (OCR page markers; not checked against print) · snapshot
e67a3a524778…objectives
supportedunresolved Stuart says the cavalry advanced toward Boonsborough by a bold demonstration to threaten an advance and so cover the retrograde of the main body; NPS calls it a rearguard action. Humphreys says the cavalry of the two armies had spirited engagements on July 7–10 before the Union infantry advance.
Stated aims from the Confederate commander, a summary and an interested history.
by a bold demonstration’ to threaten an advance upon the enemy, and thus cover the retro- grade of the mam body.or27-2-stuart-gettysburg-selections-v1, p.703 (OCR page markers; not checked against print) · snapshot
e67a3a524778…the cavalry of the two armies had spirited engagements that preceded the advance of the infantry columns of the Army of the Potomac.humphreys-gettysburg-rapidan-selections-v2, p.5 (OCR page markers; not checked against print) · snapshot
00c3e0691eba…outcome
supportedpost_outcome The frozen result reads Inconclusive and the live result Indecisive. Stuart says the move succeeded as a demonstration and that, in a garbled passage, there was an order to retire toward 'Tunkstown' (OCR; presumably Funkstown); NPS calls it one of a series of cavalry combats around Boonsboro, Hagerstown and Williamsport.
Retain the original result and engagement interval; later movements and campaign contribution are different measures. No new probabilities or individual causal credit. Boonsboro lies inside Williamsport's frozen interval (MD004).
The move was successful,or27-2-stuart-gettysburg-selections-v1, p.703 (OCR page markers; not checked against print) · snapshot
e67a3a524778…retire toward Tunkstown,or27-2-stuart-gettysburg-selections-v1, p.703 (OCR page markers; not checked against print) · snapshot
e67a3a524778…This action was one of a series of cavalry combats fought around Boonsboro, Hagerstown, and Williamsport.nps-md006-v1, Description · snapshot
5a6ac3a36c6c…disputedpost_outcome The frozen casualty text reads 100 total; the live field reads 1078 total (US 158; CS 920;). No count is given in the inspected passages.
Original casualty returns were not inspected; preserve totals, categories, cutoffs and differences. No canonical reconciliation or casualty-based opening count; related actions must not be added without resolving population overlap. The live figure is roughly ten times the frozen one; neither is adopted, and neither is added to MD004.
responsibility
supportedunresolved Stuart says Jones's brigade led the advance and that McGregor's battery drove Union batteries from a hill. The frozen commanders are Stuart and Pleasonton, both Major Generals; the live heading gives Stuart no rank.
Subordinate roles from a garbled report; the frozen commanders do not receive automatic sole credit.
the advance under General Jones encountering the enemy on the Boonsborough road at Beaver Creek Bridge,or27-2-stuart-gettysburg-selections-v1, p.703 (OCR page markers; not checked against print) · snapshot
e67a3a524778…the Napoleons of McGregor’s battervor27-2-stuart-gettysburg-selections-v1, p.703 (OCR page markers; not checked against print) · snapshot
e67a3a524778…Major Generalarnold-cwsac-commanders, battle MD006, belligerent Confederate, fullname J.E.B. Stuart; column rank · snapshot
6c587c298717…Major Generalarnold-cwsac-commanders, battle MD006, belligerent US, fullname Alfred Pleasonton; column rank · snapshot
6c587c298717…strength
unknownunresolved
No inspected return establishes matched personnel at a common opening boundary. The frozen side-specific numerical strength bounds are blank (missing_numeric_strength). No figure in this pass is adopted as a simultaneous opening force.
supportedunresolved The frozen force field reads Divisions and the live field zero. NPS says Confederate cavalry fought elements of the Union 1st and 3rd Cavalry Divisions and infantry; Stuart says prisoners assured him the main Union cavalry force was in his front. No count is given.
No numerical opening figure is inspected. Live zeros are not measured absence.
fought a rearguard action against elements of the Union 1st and 3rd Cavalry Divisions and infantry.nps-md006-v1, Description · snapshot
5a6ac3a36c6c…Pris0nejs taken assured us the main cavalryor27-2-stuart-gettysburg-selections-v1, p.703 (OCR page markers; not checked against print) · snapshot
e67a3a524778…terrain
supportedunresolved Stuart says the fight from Beaver Creek Bridge to the verge of Boonsborough was principally on foot, 'the ground being entirely too soft from recent rains to operate successfulfy with' [rest garbled in OCR]. NPS says the Confederate cavalry held the South Mountain passes.
Ground from one garbled report and a summary; no map verification.
an animated fight ensued, principally on foot?or27-2-stuart-gettysburg-selections-v1, p.703 (OCR page markers; not checked against print) · snapshot
e67a3a524778…the ground being entirely too soft from recent rains to operate successfulfy withor27-2-stuart-gettysburg-selections-v1, p.703 (OCR page markers; not checked against print) · snapshot
e67a3a524778…Open questions
- Stuart's garbled OCR, Pleasonton's, Buford's and Kilpatrick's reports and the returns remain deferred.
- NPS/CWSAC is one family. Doubleday is an interested participant history (he commanded the First Corps at Gettysburg) and Humphreys an interested history by the Army of the Potomac's chief of staff in 1863–64, per his publisher's list; both drew on official papers. Lee's and Stuart's reports, printed in Official Records Series I, Volume XXVII, Part 2, are separate families of interested commanders' accounts; the volume is a shared container, not an additional witness. Report dates are not event times or proof of contemporary knowledge.
- No automatic commander attribution, causal campaign score, morale/readiness number or battle/campaign double counting.