| The Orange Plank Road runs from left to right to Chancellorsville, and
the Catherine Furnace Road runs off into the distance. Jackson's
troops marched along the Catherine Furnace Road past this point early in
the morning of May2.
The previous evening, this intersection had served as an impromptu headquarters,
with Lee and Jackson meeting here in the middle of the intersection, but
drawing off to a clearing south east (immediate left in the picture) to
avoid harassing sniper fire from a federal sniper who was targeting a
nearby Confederate battery. If I recall correctly, Lee also came
under some shell fire in this vicinity as well earlier in the day.
There, the two generals sat on a log and drew up a rough plan for
flanking the Army of the Potomac the next day.
That night, the two men and their staffs bivouacked across the road,
sleeping without fires, but arose in the middle of the night (actually
early morning) and started a small fire, and went over maps and plans
and worked out more details, while seated on the legendary abandoned
Yankee hard tack boxes and using one for a table.
Later that same morning, after 7:00 am, Lee and Jackson met as
Jackson rode at the head of his flanking column somewhere in the
vicinity of this intersection. They spoke briefly, before Jackson
rode off on his famous flanking maneuver.
They never met again.
A smoothbore volley from his own troops mortally wounded Jackson
that night, leading to his death from pneumonia eight days later.
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