Jubal Early’s army had camped in Rockville, MD the night of July 10, 1864. The next morning, they set off for Washington DC. The infantry, under Early’s command, marched to Silver Spring and from there down today’s Georgia Avenue to the vicinty of Fort Stevens in the District of Columbia.
McCausland’s cavalry, which was called “mounted infantry,” rode towards Tenleytown and Fort Reno along today’s Wisconsin Avenue. Meanwhile, General Grant had sent 6,000 men from his seige of Richmond up to Washington by steamer. Both sides, Confederate attackers and Union defenders, arrived at the city simultaneously on the afternoon of July 11. By then, it was clear to the defenders that the principal attack was directed at Fort Stevens. In all likelihood they ordered men pulled from the forts on the northwest side of the city to reinforce those in Early’s path. Thus Fort Gaines might well have been temporarily abandoned, particularly since it was a less important, secondary position. Moreover, McCausland claimed he had looked down on the city from the fort. In 1864, one could see the Capitol from Gaines. It was one of the few forts with such a view. It was the only fort that might have been unoccupied from which the city could be seen.
This is Fort Gaines as it looked around 1862 when the 55th New York Regiment was garrisoned there. General Regis De Trobriand is looking down the gun. Tenleytown is in the distance although no buildings can be seen. The Loughborough’s Grassland is out of sight on the right about 1/4 mile.
