On January 4, 1864 Union cavalry commanded by Brig. Gen. David Stanley encountered Confederates in heavy force at Lytle’s Creek on the Manchester Pike, 3 1/2 miles from Murfreesboro. The engagement lasted until near sundown, pushing the Confederates from one cedar-brake to another. When re-enforcements under Brig. Gen. James Spears’ brigade of East Tennesseans arrived, Stanley drove the enemy off the battlefield. The Union forces returned after dark and encamped on Lytle’s Creek. Stanley described the skirmishing as very severe.
Jefferson
As part of the Stone’s River campaign, Confederate General Joseph Wheeler’s cavalry brigade left Murfreesboro near midnight on a raid