Battle of Athens (1864)

For other uses, see Battle of Athens (disambiguation).
Battle of Athens
Part of the American Civil War
DateJanuary 26, 1864
Location
Athens, Alabama
34°48′12″N 86°58′20″W / 34.8033°N 86.9722°W / 34.8033; -86.9722
Result Union victory
Belligerents
United States United States(Union) Confederate States of America CSA (Confederacy)
Commanders and leaders
Emil Adams Moses W. Hannon
Units involved
9th Illinois Mounted Infantry 1st Alabama Cavalry
Strength
~150 ~700
Casualties and losses
~30 ~50

The Battle of Athens was fought in Athens, Alabama (Limestone County, Alabama), on January 26, 1864,[1] as part of the American Civil War. The Union force was a company under Captain Emil Adams from the 9th Illinois Mounted Infantry regiment. The Confederate force was the 1st Alabama Cavalry, under Lieutenant Colonel Moses W. Hannon.[2]

On the morning of January 26, 1864, at around 4:00 a.m., ~700 Confederate cavalrymen attacked Athens,[3] which was being held by a Union force of only 150. Even though the Union defenders had no fortifications and were outnumbered six to one, they were able to repulse the Confederate attack and force them into a retreat after a two-hour battle.[2]

  1. ^ "Civil War Timeline/Chronology for January 1864". Blue and Gray Trail.com. Archived from the original on August 8, 2016. Retrieved August 19, 2016.
  2. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference NPS was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference GMD was invoked but never defined (see the help page).