Summary:
In this letter, Union General Nathaniel P. Banks warns John C. Fremont of Confederate General Thomas J. Jackson's movements toward Staunton in the Shenandoah Valley in preparation for his May, 1862, offensive.

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Gen. FREMONT, Grafton:

NEW MARKET,

May 2, 1862

Thanks for dispatches received to-day. Jackson withdrew his army Wednesday afternoon to roads in the direction of Waynesborough or Staunton. He was seen to-day (2.30 p.m.) moving toward Port Republic, which is 20 miles from Staunton. His march is possibly a feint, possibly to join Johnson and attack Milroy near Staunton. Of that you will judge best. His force is not over 8,000, we think. Gen. Ewell, commanding rebel force near Rappahannock, is now said to be at Stanardsville with about 5,000. The three united cannot muster over 18,000. We rest here for the present. By order we occupy Harrisonsburg.

N.P. BANKS,
Maj.-Gen.

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Bibliographic Information : Letter Reproduced from The War of The Rebellion: Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Series 1, Volume 12, Serial No. 18, Pages 126-127, Broadfoot Publishing Company, Wilmington, NC, 1997.