San Augustin Spring
Date: July 26, 1861
Location: San Augustin Spring, Organ Mountains, Confederate-occupied New Mexico Territory
Following the Union defeat at Mesilla, Union forces in Fort Fillmore found themselves surrounded and facing an imminent Confederate attack. Rather than fight, Major Lynde ordered that all the supplies and provisions be burned to prevent them from falling into the hands of the Confederates, followed by an order to abandon the fort. Lynde was hoping to reach Fort Stanton, approximately 170 miles northeast of Fort Fillmore and located over the dry Organ Mountains.
Fort Fillmore, c. 1854
Fort Stanton, c. 1866
While burning most of the supplies and anything of importance within Fort Fillmore, most of the Union soldiers decided to fill their canteens with medicinal whiskey from the commissary rather than let it go to waste; a poor choice of beverage for an arduous trek through an arid mountain range.
With the Confederates in pursuit, Lynde's hot, dusty march through the Organ Mountains quickly turned into a disaster, with hundreds of Union soldiers dropping from extreme dehydration. Desperate for water, the remaining Union soldiers stopped at San Augustin Spring, one of the few sources of water in the Organ Mountains, which is where the Confederates finally caught up with them.
Union Major Isaac Lynde & Confederate Lieutenant Colonel John R. Baylor
Lieutenant Colonel John R. Baylor, leading the Confederate forces, demanded the Union forces' unconditional surrender. With most of his command scattered, dying of dehydration, and likely drunk, Major Lynde had no choice but to accept.
Lynde would later be removed from his post, disgraced, and nearly court-martialed for his abandonment of Fort Fillmore while under attack from the much smaller Confederate force and the bungling of the following retreat.
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