Crampton’s Gap

Crampton’s Gap was the scene of one of a series of battles for control of the mountain passes in the Battle of South Mountain during the Maryland Campaign of 1862.

The Battle of Crampton’s Gap took place on September 14, 1862, when the Union VI Corps, commanded by Maj. Gen. William B. Franklin, attacked a smaller force of Confederates holding the eastern base of the mountain gap. The Confederates’ primary defensive position was established behind a stone wall along the east side ofMountain Church Road. As the Confederates began to give way, reinforcements under Gen. Howell Cobb arrived to slow the Union onslaught. The Confederates were soon surrounded on three sides and were forced to retreat up the mountain to the gap. The Union pursuit encountered and overcame a two-gun section of artillery planted in the road. The Confederates’ last stand was made behind a stone wall on the western side of the mountain, which was soon overwhelmed. The Federals captured more than 400 prisoners and took possession of one artillery piece that had been disabled. Having captured the summit,Franklinordered a halt to the Union advance. The Confederates, meanwhile, formed a defensive line across Pleasant Valley to slow the Union Army’s attempt to relieve the threatened Union garrison at Harpers Ferry.