The Battle of Petersburg, June 15-18, 1864

478 Pages·2015·6.639 MB·English

by  Sean Michael Chick

the battle of petersburg, june 15–18, 1864

The Battle of Petersburg,
june 15– 18, 1864
sean michael chick
Potomac Books
An imprint of the University of Nebraska Press
© 2015 by the Board of Regents of the University of Nebraska
All rights reserved. Potomac Books is an imprint
of the University of Nebraska Press.
Manufactured in the United States of America.
Library of Congress Cataloging-i n-P ublication Data
Chick, Sean Michael, 1982–
The battle of Petersburg, June 15–1 8, 1864 / Sean Michael Chick.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
isbn 978- 1-6 1234- 712-7 (cloth: alk. paper)
isbn 978- 1-6 1234- 737- 0 (epub)
isbn 978- 1-6 1234- 738- 7 (mobi)
isbn 978- 1-6 1234- 739- 4 (pdf)
1. Petersburg (Va.)— History—S iege, 1864–1 865. I. Title.
e476.93.c53 2015
973.7'37—d c23
2014048146
Set in Iowan Old Style by M. Scheer.
To William Joseph Chick and Patricia Dawn Chick
We loved each other then, Lorena,
Far more than we ever dared to tell;
And what we might have been, Lorena,
Had but our loving prospered well—
But then, ’tis past, the years are gone,
I’ll not call up their shadowy forms;
I’ll say to them, “Lost years, sleep on!
Sleep on! nor heed life’s pelting storms.”
—Lorena
valor, n. A soldierly compound of vanity, duty
and the gambler’s hope.
“Why have you halted?” roared the commander
of a division and Chickamauga, who had ordered
a charge; “move forward, sir, at once.”
“General,” said the commander of the delinquent
brigade, “I am persuaded that any further display
of valor by my troops will bring them into colli-
sion with the enemy.”
—ambrose bierce, The Devil’s Dictionary
contents
List of Illustrations ix
List of Maps xi
Preface xiii
Introduction 1
1. From the Rapidan to the Chickahominy:
March 10–J une 3, 1864 9
2. From the Chickahominy to the James:
June 4–1 4, 1864 52
3. Day One: Wednesday, June 15, 1864 98
4. Day Two: Thursday, June 16, 1864 152
5. Day Three: Friday, June 17, 1864 191
6. Day Four: Saturday, June 18, 1864 243
7. Ten Months at Petersburg:
June 19, 1864–A pril 26, 1865 291
8. Civil War Memory and the Battle of Petersburg 338
Appendix: Order of Battle 371
Notes 387
Bibliography 407
Index 437

illustrations
1. George Gordon Meade 18
2. Custis Lee, Robert E. Lee, and Walter Taylor 22
3. Grant and His Generals 34
4. Bermuda Hundred Camp 46
5. P. G. T. Beauregard 80
6. Meade and His Staff 86
7. The Crossing at Wilcox’s Landing 90
8. Attack at Baylor’s Farm 110
9. Artillery Gun Captured at Baylor’s Farm 114
10. View of the Dimmock Line 122
11. Attack on the Dimmock Line 127
12. Attack on Jordan’s Hill 129
13. The Dimmock Line near the Dunn House 139
14. Barlow, Birney, Hancock, and Gibbon 155
15. Benjamin Butler 175
16. Union Artillery on the Dimmock Line 177
17. Bushrod Johnson 195
18. Potter’s Assault 197
19. Union Bermuda Hundred Lines 206
20. Warren and His Staff 234