Bull's Gap was a Civil War engagement fought in Tennessee, 1864. It was a Confederate victory.
In November 1864, Maj. Gen. John C. Breckinridge undertook an expedition into East Tennessee, anticipating that Confederate sympathizers would join his force and help drive the Yankees from the area. The Federals initially retired in front of this force and, on November 10, were at Bull's Gap on the East Tennessee & Virginia Railroad. The Confederates attacked them on the morning of the 11th but were repulsed by 11:00 am. Artillery fire continued throughout the day. The next morning, both sides attacked; the Confederates sought to hit the Union forces in a variety of locations but they gained little. The next day firing occurred throughout most of the day, but the Confederates did not assault the Union lines because they were marching to flank them on the right. Before making the flank attack, the Union forces, short on everything from ammunition to rations, withdrew from Bull's Gap after midnight on the 4th. Breckinridge pursued, but the Federals received reinforcements and foul weather played havoc with the roads and streams. Breckinridge, with most of his force, retired back to Virginia. This victory was a temporary Union setback in the Federal plans to rid East Tennessee of Confederate influence.
Fighting broke out across Hamblen County and Greene County, Tennessee, when Union and Confederate forces clashed at Bulls Gap over a three day stretch, November 11 through 13, 1864, amid the ongoing American Civil War.
During November 1864, Maj. Gen. John C. Breckinridge led a Confederate expedition out of Virginia into East Tennessee, aiming to strip the countryside of food and forage while pushing Federal troops out of the region. Brig. Gen. Alvan C. Gillem had pushed his Federal command past Greeneville, but he pulled back once Breckinridge's larger force began moving from Jonesborough in that direction. Seeking to safeguard the rail connections leading to Knoxville, Gillem's men withdrew to Bulls Gap, a position east-southeast of Whitesburg along the East Tennessee & Virginia Railroad.
Fighting opened on the morning of November 11 when Confederate troops pressed forward, only to be turned back by eleven o'clock. Cannon fire went on for the rest of that day without pause.
The following day, November 12, both armies opened with dawn assaults. Confederate soldiers tried striking the Union defenders at several points along the line, yet they managed to seize only minimal territory for their efforts.
By November 13, the exchange of gunfire lasted nearly the whole day, though the Confederates chose not to launch a direct assault on the Union positions. Facing severe shortages in supplies, everything from bullets to food rations, the Union troops pulled back from Bulls Gap and headed toward Russellville as night fell.
On November 14, Breckinridge chased down the retreating Union troops and clashed with them close to Russellville, sending them into a rout. The beaten Federals pulled back toward Strawberry Plains, just outside Knoxville, and there Breckinridge's men caught up with them again. Before long, fresh Union reinforcements showed up, and worsening weather turned roads and streams into obstacles of their own. Faced with these conditions, Breckinridge withdrew the bulk of his command back into Virginia. What resulted at Bulls Gap was a Confederate win that stalled, at least for a time, the Federal effort to clear East Tennessee of Confederate forces, though the setback proved short lived once Breckinridge pulled out toward Virginia.
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