Rhodes Industrial Revolution

In early September, Rhodes wrote that they headed back to Fairfax and how they were involved a skirmish with the Rebels. He later wrote that they battled not only with the Rebels, but also with nature. In the middle of the fighting a storm occurred and the loud thunder drown out the sounds of cannon shots. Similarly to the Battle of Bull Run, which was coincidentally close, Rhodes’ unit was tasked with covering the retreat and when the Rebels came into sight, Rhodes’ unit was already gone. Rhodes also wrote of his promotion in September to the rank of 2nd Lieutenant. He expressed his pride at the promotion and stated that he was grateful to the mercy that God had shown him.
Rhodes wrote of how his unit joined in on the Battle of Antietam on the morning of September 18. Rhodes painted a rather gruesome picture of dead and dying soldiers strewn about the field and that he had never, in his life, witnessed something like that (73). The Rebels asked for a temporary cease fire in order to bury their dead. The Union complied and ceased firing on the Rebel lines until the afternoon. On the morning of the 19th, the Rebels

He further stated that some of the other soldiers attempted to take the nearby hills, but were ultimately unsuccessful (82). During the afternoon, Rhodes’ Regiment was ordered to guard a battery, which the Company did not find pleasant as they had to stand around and get shot at by enemy shells. The fighting went on until nightfall, where both sides took a brief respite. The medics attempted to go onto the battlefield and help the wounded, but the Rebels would shoot at them, so they had to leave the wounded to suffer. Two days later, the battle ended in a Union loss and the men were forced to retreat across the Rappahannock River. Rhodes noted that not only was their loss grave, but that their gains were little