After burning Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, Confederate cavalry under Generals John McCausland and Bradley Johnson camped in the South Branch Valley near Moorefield on August 6-7, 1864. Despite warnings about nearby Union forces, they stayed in a vulnerable position.

At dawn on August 7, Union Gen. William W. Averell launched an attack. The Union forces captured 500 Confederate soldiers and 400 horses, dealing a heavy blow to Gen. Jubal Early's cavalry. This defeat weakened the Confederates and contributed to Union victories in the Shenandoah Valley, which helped President Lincoln's reelection.

Later, on November 28, 1864, Confederate cavalry and local partisans repelled another Union raid, saving the South Branch Valley from destruction.