Walking the Surrender at Appomattox Court House

Visiting the site of Appomattox Court House today is a treat of mid-nineteenth century and Civil War living history interpretation. It’s not just a museum or a single house that’s been set up to rebuild the surrender scene. It’s a recreation of the sleepy town of Appomattox Court House, complete with homes, shops, and streets…

The Final Fight at Appomattox Court House

For a short preface on what the Union and Confederate armies were up to before arriving to Appomattox Courthouse, check out this post on the battle at Sailor’s Creek. After the Confederates under General Robert E. Lee abandoned Farmville to the Union forces under General Ulysses S. Grant, his next objective was to keep pushing…

Down By the Banks of Sailor’s Creek

In the first months of 1865, the Army of Northern Virginia had been whittled down to a mere 55,000 as it left the trenches of Petersburg. Desertion rates were high, driving General Robert E. Lee to accept volunteers and conscripts from southern Virginia, as well as a Naval Brigade full of sailors – not soldiers.…

Seven Days Battle, Touring All Six Battlefields – Part 2

To see Part 1 of this blog series, Click HERE Union General George McClellan had left the scene. Again. Defying the odds, newly appointed Confederate General Robert E. Lee had successfully pushed Fitz John Porter’s V Corps out of his secure position along the ridgeline at Gaines Mill. Now at dawn on June 28th, 1862,…

Seven Days Battle, Touring All Six Battlefields – Part 1

Richmond, along with holding the title of the former Confederate Capital, is absolutely packed with history, especially Civil War history. One could easily spend a week in this massive city and still have missed a few places. Three campaigns took place in and around the city between the years 1861 and 1865, most of the…

The Final Week of Bloodshed – Conclusion to Spotsylvania

The fight thus far at Spotsylvania had been nothing short of a slaughter house. The continuous fighting for twenty hours at the Bloody Angle was the pinnacle of that slaughter with 17,000 casualties in all. Who was to blame? Many pointed fingers at Lieutenant General Ulysses Grant’s “grit of a bulldog” as Abraham Lincoln called…

“Saturnalia of Blood” – May 12th, 1864, Spotsylvania

The morning of May 12th, 1864 at Spotsylvania Court House had begun with such promise. An early dawn attack upon the Army of Northern Virginia works that composed what was dubbed the “Mule Shoe” looked to be succeeding. By the end of the day, it would bear another name that echoes through the horrors of…

The Battle for Laurel Hill, May 8th 1864

At about eight in the morning on May 8th, the Army of the Potomac was hellbent on pushing their way south. After Sheridan failed to carry out his orders to clear the Brock Road of all Confederates, it was down to Gouverneur Warren’s corps to pave the way before the rest of the army arrived.…

Ellwood Manor – Connections in the Wilderness

There’s a saying that every human being on the planet is connected by just six degrees of separation. Nowhere is this more exemplified than in the case of Ellwood Manor, nestled in the heart of the Wilderness. The legacy begins with two brothers. William and Churchill Jones were the sons of Churchill Jones and Millicent…

“Lee to the Rear!” – Longstreet’s Rescue in the Wilderness, May 6th 1864

Finally, after marching through the early morning hours, James Longstreet’s First Corps finally appeared out along the Plank Road to face Union General Winfield Scott Hancock’s II Corps. In the lead was John Gregg and his brigade of Texans and Arkansans and were some of the first to witness this near rout of their fellow…