On January 19, 1862, Confederate and Union forces clashed in the now-forgotten Battle of Mill Springs. Armies of inexperienced soldiers chaotically fought in the wooded terrain of south-central Kentucky as rain turned bloodied ground to mud. Mill Springs was the first major Union victory since the Federal disaster of Bull Run. This Union triumph secured the Bluegrass State in Union hands, opening the large expanses of Tennessee for Federal invasion. From General Felix Zollicoffer meeting his death by wandering into Union lines to the heroics of General George Thomas, Civil War historian Stuart Sanders chronicles this important battle and its essential role in the war.

The Civil War in Kentucky and in particular the Battle of Mill Springs.

"Ben Hobbs is a resourceful, cunning boy of the Civil War era. His pa is a Confederate soldier while his cousin Josh's pa is with the Union Army--common for Kentucky, which was divided over the war. The Hobbs families are at odds but the boys are best friends and sneak off together when they can. This time it backfires, as Ben and Josh become Caught in the Crossfire of the Battle of Mill Springs, a small but decisive conflict affecting the outcome of the Civil War."--Cover back.

The American Battlefield Protection Program (ABPP) of the U.S. National Park Service presents the Civil War Sites Advisory Commission (CWSAC) battle summary of the Battle of Mill Springs in Kentucky, which was considered a Union victory. The summary notes other names for the battle, its location, the larger military campaign, dates, commanders, forces engaged, and estimated casualties.

Autograph letter signed. Colonel Fry, a Federal officer during the Civil War, writes about the Union victory at the battle of Mill Springs, Kentucky, January, 1862. Fry describes how he mistook the confederate general Zollicoffer for a Union officer who, in turn, appeared to have taken Fry for a Confederate officer. Once Fry realized his error, he was able to shoot Zollicoffer dead. Mill Spring's is also known as Logan's Cross-Roads and Fishing Creek.