Fort Stevens was a Civil War engagement fought in District of Columbia, 1864. It was a Union victory.
On July 11, Lt. Gen. Jubal A. Early's exhausted Confederates reached the outskirts of Washington near Silver Spring. Skirmishers advanced to feel the fortifications which at the time were manned only by Home Guards, clerks, and convalescent troops. During the night, veteran units from the Union VI Corps disembarked from troop transports and marched north through the streets of Washington to bolster the defenses. On July 12, Early was finally in position to make a strong demonstration, which was repulsed by the veteran Union troops. In the afternoon, VI Corps units sortied against the Confederate skirmishers, driving them back from their advanced positions in front of Forts Stevens and DeRussy. President Lincoln watched the action from Fort Stevens and came under fire from Confederate sharpshooters. Recognizing that the Union Capitol was now defended by veterans, Early abandoned any thought of taking the city. Early withdrew during the night, marching toward White's Ford on the Potomac, ending his invasion of Maryland. "We didn't take Washington," Early told his staff officers, "but we scared Abe Lincoln like Hell."
Fought over July 11 and 12 in 1864, the clash at Fort Stevens took place in Washington County, D.C., within what is now Northwest Washington, D.C. It formed part of the Valley campaigns of that year, pitting Confederate Lieutenant General Jubal Early against Union Major General Alexander McDowell McCook.
Because Early pressed to within less than 4 miles (6.4 km) of the White House, alarm spread through the U.S. government. That danger eased thanks to reinforcements led by Maj. Gen. Horatio G. Wright and the formidable defenses surrounding the fort itself. After two days of skirmishing, and without launching any serious assault, Early pulled his forces back. During the engagement, President Abraham Lincoln watched the combat firsthand.
That evening Early's men pulled back, moving into Montgomery County, Maryland, before fording the Potomac River at White's Ferry on July 13 and reaching Leesburg, Virginia. All the supplies gathered by the Confederates in the preceding weeks made it safely across with them into Virginia. Following the engagement, Early quipped to one of his officers that although Washington had not fallen, Abe Lincoln had certainly been given a good scare. On the afternoon of the 13th, Wright assembled troops to chase after the retreating Confederates.
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