The Battle of Marianna, Florida - The Battle of Vernon

Believing that Confederate forces
were en route and having achieved
their objective of capturing Marianna
and many of its defenders, the
Federals withdrew from the town
before sunrise on the morning of
September 28, 1864. They rode
south down the St. Andrews Bay
Road and then veered west onto the
Vernon road, crossing today's Orange
Hill into Washington County.

As the Union soldiers approached a
creek crossing near today's
Washington Cemetery, they ran head
on into Captain W.B. Jones and his
company of scouts from Vernon and
Holmes Valley. Alerted by a courier
that Marianna was facing attack,
these men were marching to help
their neighbors in Jackson County
when they unexpectedly encountered
the Federal column.

Accounts of what happened next are
extremely meager, but apparently
Jones and his men engaged in a
brief skirmish with the vanguard of
Asboth's column.

At least one of the Southern volunteers,
Stephen Pierce, was killed. According to
legend, he may have been executed but
state pension files simply mention that one
man was killed in the encounter. Another of
Jones' men was wounded and several,
including the captain, were captured. The
rest of his men retreated as best they could.

Pushing forward, the Federals reached
Vernon by nightfall on the 28th. Camping
there, they moved out again for
Choctawhatchee Bay before dawn the next
morning.

Moss Hill Methodist Church
in Washington County was a
gathering point for the people
of the Holmes Valley area.
Most of the men and boys of
the area marched off with
Captain Jones to help their
neighbors in Marianna.
Some, like Freeman Irwin,
never came home. Irwin was
captured in the fight on the
28th and died in Elmira
Prison.