Toland's Raid
Historical highway marker KC-4 · Wythe County
Col. John T. Toland of the 34th Regiment Mounted Ohio Volunteer Infantry leading Federal cavalrymen, marched from Tazewell County, and raided Wytheville during the evening of 18 July 1863. Confederate troops under Maj. Thomas M. Bowyer and local citizens fortified in buildings at first withstood the attack, killing Toland. After the Confederates withdrew, Federal forces burned several buildings. After learning that Confederate troops were situated at present day Rural Retreat, the federals left Wytheville early the next morning initially headed north towards Walker Mountain.
Department of Historic Resources, 2005