The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad ran through Maryland and Virginia and had suffered from the very start of the war.  Union advances, such as on Manassas Junction and Harpers Ferry, made possible the repair and resumption of service along the entire line after a year's halt.  Trains left Baltimore and Washington DC and arrived safely in Wheeling, in western Virginia.  The B. & O. endured Confederate raids, however, through the rest of the war.  (By John Osborne)

The 28th Pennsylvania had been equipped for several weeks with the Ager Union Repeating Gun, a .58 drum-fed weapon firing 120 rounds per minute. They used it in open combat for the first time during the assault on Middleburg, Virginia, reportedly inflicting losses on retreating cavalry at a range of 800 yards.  Still, Colonel John White Geary, their commander, saw the weapon as ineffective and dangerous and returned it.  Machine guns, notably the Gatling, did go into action again during the war but their use was not widespread.  (By John Osborne)

After a landing at Hickman, Kentucky and a forced march the day before, Wisconsin and Illinois troops under Colonel Napoleon Buford reached the outskirts of Union City and attacked Camp Brown and its garrison of mostly Tennessee units.  Striking at dawn, the Union force achieved complete surprise, routed the defenders, and ate the breakfast Confederates had been preparing.  Prisoners and supplies were captured and the barracks at Camp Brown destroyed.  No Union casualties were reported and Buford's troops returned safely to Hickman.  (By John Osborne) 

Around midnight, a total eclipse of the Moon, the second of two during the year, was visible over much of the North American continent, including the United States Pacific states and territories.  In San Francisco, the eclipse was completed by eleven o'clock on December 5, 1862.  (By John Osborne)

A late night  total eclipse of the Moon, one of two during the year, was visible over much of the North American continent, including the United States Pacific states and territories.  In San Francisco, California, the eclipse was complete by eleven o'clock on the evening of June 11, 1862. (By John Osborne)