Links
Outdoor Sound Propagation in the U.S. Civil War
wesclark.com
Hooker, at Chancellorsville, was shielded from the sounds of battle by the dense forest known locally as “The Wilderness” and first became aware of the rout as panic-stricken Federal soldiers overran his position. There was undoubtedly a refractive effect at work on this day as well: Confederate Major General Cadmus Wilcox, 10 miles to the east near Fredericksburg, noted the sounds of battle clearly. This refraction may have been due to wind shear (high winds kept Union balloonists grounded).