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Battles -
Battle Summaries
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| Battle Name: |
Wilson’s Creek |
| Other Names: |
Oak Hills |
| State: |
Missouri |
| Location: |
Greene County and Christian County |
| Campaign: |
Operations to Control Missouri (1861) |
| Dates: |
August 10, 1861 |
| Principal Commanders: |
Brig. Gen. Nathaniel Lyon and Maj. Gen. Samuel D. Sturgis [US]; Maj. Gen. Sterling
Price, Missouri State Guard, and Brig. Gen. Ben McCulloch [CS] |
| Forces Engaged: |
Army of the West [US]; Missouri State Guard and McCulloch’s Brigade [CS] |
| Estimated Casualties: |
2,330 total (US 1,235; CS 1,095) |
| Description: |
Brig. Gen. Nathaniel Lyon’s Army of the West was camped at Springfield, Missouri, with
Confederate troops under the commands of Brig. Gen. Ben McCulloch approaching. On August 9, both sides
formulated plans to attack the other. About 5:00 am on the 10th, Lyon, in two columns commanded by himself and
Col. Franz Sigel, attacked the Confederates on Wilson’s Creek about 12 miles southwest of Springfield. Rebel
cavalry received the first blow and fell back away from Bloody Hill. Confederate forces soon rushed up and
stabilized their positions. The Confederates attacked the Union forces three times that day but failed to break
through the Union line. Lyon was killed during the battle and Maj. Samuel D. Sturgis replaced him. Meanwhile, the
Confederates had routed Sigel’s column, south of Skegg’s Branch. Following the third Confederate attack, which
ended at 11:00 am, the Confederates withdrew. Sturgis realized, however, that his men were exhausted and his
ammunition was low, so he ordered a retreat to Springfield. The Confederates were too disorganized and
ill-equipped to pursue. This Confederate victory buoyed southern sympathizers in Missouri and served as a
springboard for a bold thrust north that carried Price and his Missouri State Guard as far as Lexington. In late
October, a rump convention, convened by Governor Claiborne Fox Jackson, met in Neosho and passed an
ordinance of secession. Wilson’s Creek, the most significant 1861 battle in Missouri, gave the Confederates
control of southwestern Missouri. |
| Results: |
Confederate victory |
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