10/30/2026
For several days after Gettysburg, the Army of Northern Virginia was effectively trapped.
The Potomac River was too high to ford.
The pontoon bridge at Falling Waters had been damaged.
Thousands of wounded soldiers and a massive wagon train were also moving with the army.
Lee's retreat wasn't simply a matter of marching south.
His army had to move an enormous amount of equipment, supplies and wounded men while an enemy army was closing in behind them.
The retreat from Gettysburg became a race against time, weather and the river.