Edward Porter Alexander, Military memoirs of a Confederate: a critical narrative

Having crossed the bridge, Burnside's first task was to secure his possession of it, against any counter-stroke, by bringing over a number of batteries. With these he crowned the adjacent heights, while his infantry deployed under their crests. Meanwhile came urgent orders from McClellan to press his advance. But the three brigades of Nagle, Ferrero, and Crook, which had been engaged, reported their ammunition as nearly exhausted. Sturgis also reported Nagle and Ferrero as too exhausted physically to be fit for an immediate advance. On this Willcox's division, with an ammunition train, was ordered across the creek, and Willcox relieved Sturgis in the advance. These arrangements just consumed the time remaining in which an advance could have been opposed only with four of Jones's brigades, under Drayton, Garnett, Walker, and Kemper, and the fragments of earlier battles which could be rallied in the rear.

Wilcox's division formed the right wing of the line of battle, and Rodman's the left; Cox's division gave Crook's brigade to support Willcox, and Scammon's to support Rodman, while Sturgis in reserve held the heights near the bridge. At 4 P. M. the advance was made in handsome style, somewhat to the right oblique, so as to envelop the village of Sharpsburg. In front of this village it struck Jones's four brigades, which had been held all day unengaged, but exposed to the enemy's rifle fire across the Antietam. Though now scarcely numbering 2000 men, they made a desperate fight, as the casualties upon both sides attest; but the long Federal lines gradually overlapped their narrow fronts and the Federal progress, though slow, was sure. The Confederates hurried to oppose them with all the artillery and the fragments of infantry which could be drawn from their left, many of those going being already wounded. Before the advancing troops of A. P. Hill appeared upon the scene, the leading Federals had crossed the brook running east from the town into the Antietam, and were well up on the slope of Cemetery Hill, while others occupied the eastern part of the village.