s Ridge and Seminary Ridge merged to form Oak Ridge. Oak Ridge extended 80 feet above The flat ground. There was a road which cut through all three ridges and parallel to that road was an unfinished railroad bed twenty feet deep.The roads which came from Gettysburg went in this order clockwise starting from the Northwest part of Gettysburg: Chambersburg Pike, then North of the town the road leading the Heidlesburg, then Northeast of the town a road leading to York, then Southeast were roads going to Baltimore and Hanover and Taneytown, to the South of the town roads led to Emmitsburg and Hagerstown.The real fighting began at Willoughby Run when US General John Buford engaged CS General Heather. The union had 2748 soldiers while the Confederates had 7461 soldiers. The Union troops were able to hold off the CS troops for an hour. By that time the US I, XI, and III Corps arrived and the battle began to swing into the Unions favor. 2300 of the CS troops there were commanded by Jefferson Davis' nephew. US General Cutler ordered a charge on Davis' men. The charge was successful and of Davis' men were either captured or killed.At about 11:00 a silence fell over the battlefield. During the time between11:00 and 1:00, this time was just a race for reinforcements. Once the fighting began again the Union troops were slightly outnumbered until The XI corps under the command of General Howard arrived. The XI Corps ran all the way from Taneytown to arrive at Gettysburg.General Howard wanted to keep Cemetary Hill so he sent General Adolph Van Steinwehr to protect it. There General Adolph spread his men out into a very thin line. CS General Robert Rodes came out of the nearby woods with 7983 men. Rodes was sent a day before to keep tabs on the US troops in the area. Lee told him not to engage the enemy until the entire CS Army was at Gettysburg. When Rodes arrived he saw the right flank of the I Corps open and decided to attack. He began to shell the ...
