At the very last minute (because that's how I've been rolling since I had a kid), I realized I most likely will NOT be able to attend Geowoodstock XXI in Morgantown, a mere 90 minutes away! I had hoped to take some TBs with me - one that I found in a cache last week and one that we found 10 years ago and lost until we moved and I unpacked some of my daughter's old toys a few weeks ago.
Plenty of parking here, and only a few spots for an easy park and grab to be. Don't miss the Civil War Trails info plaque by the guardrail furthest from the entrance!
(from the Historical Marker Database)
Picket Post No. 1
McNeill's Raid to Steal Generals
In the predawn darkness of February 21, 1865, Confederate Lt. Jesse McNeill and his Partisan Rangers approached Cumberland from the west on this road. Unlike most guerrilla raiders, who targeted the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, McNeill had other targets in mind: Union Gens. Benjamin F. Kelley, who commanded the troops guarding the railroad, and George Crook. Jesse McNeill had taken command of the Rangers after his father John H. McNeill, was mortally wounded. The younger McNeill held a grudge against Kelley because of his relentless campaign against the Rangers and intended to settle the score with this raid.
At about 2:30 A.M., McNeill and his men encountered a Union picket here who demanded to know their identity. "Friends from New Creek," replied McNeill, who was then ordered to come forward and give the countersign. Instead, McNeill charged the guard and fired a shot at him that missed. The picket surrendered, and two of his comrades were captured a hundred yards down the road. The soldiers were German recruits in Co. B, 3rd Ohio Cavalry, who spoke heavily accented English and refused to give the countersign until the Rangers threatened to hang one of them. Finally, they uttered what sounded like "Bools Kap"—actually Bulls Gap. Armed with the countersign, the Rangers and McNeill rode on and surprised and overwhelmed the other picket posts. In Cumberland, they kidnapped Kelley and Crook from their beds in the Barnum Hotel and the Revere House. The daring raid stunned Federal officials, who quickly arranged a prisoner exchange for the two generals.