North Newport News , Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)
“Their Conduct was Worthy of Veterans”
1862 Peninsula Campaign
The Green Mountain boys waded into the Warwick and met a hail of bullets. Major General George McClellan reported that “their conduct was worthy of veterans.”
The Vermonters, dragging their wounded onto the bank, captured the Confederate rifle pits and waited for the expected counterattack. Pickets from the 15th North Carolina Infantry fell back, and Colonel Robert M. McKinney stopped his Tarheels from constructing earthworks and charged the soaked Vermonters. The counterattack soon faltered after Colonel McKinney fell with a bullet in the forehead, and the regiment received an unauthorized order to retreat. The Vermont troops, however, occupied a precarious position with wet ammunition and no sign of reinforcements.
Erected by Virginia Civil War Trails.
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: War, US Civil. In addition, it is included in the Virginia Civil War Trails series list.
Location. 37° 11.117′ N, 76° 32.357′ W. Marker is in Newport News, Virginia. It is in North Newport News. Marker can be reached from Constitution Way, on the left when traveling east. Marker is located in Newport News Park, on the Twin Forts Walking Trail, on the north side of Lee Hall Reservoir. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Newport News VA 23603, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. “Just Like Sap – Boiling, in the Stream” (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); “The Bullets Would Whistle Around my Head” (about 500 feet away); One-Gun Battery (about 500 feet away); “Every Kind of Obstruction was Skillfully Used” (about 800 feet away); Third Regiment Vermont Volunteer Infantry (approx. ¼ mile away); Battle of Lee’s Mill (Dam Number 1) (approx. ¼ mile away); Battle of Dam No. 1 (approx. ¼ mile away); Ten Pound Parrott Rifle and Limber (approx. ¼ mile away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Newport News.
More about this marker. The bottom of the marker contains a drawing of soldiers at a battery on the Warwick River, with the caption “Sketch of the Battle of Dam No. 1. Courtesy of the Virginia War Museum.” The top of the marker features a photograph of “Brig. Gen William T.H. Brooks, Courtesy of the Vermont Historical Society.”
Related markers. Click here for a list of markers that are related to this marker. Markers on the Twin Forts Walking Trail in Newport News Park.
Also see . . .
1. Yorktown. CWSAC Battle Summaries. (Submitted on September 7, 2008, by Bill Coughlin of Woodland Park, New Jersey.)
2. Tidewater Virginia, The 1862 Peninsula Campaign. Civil War Traveler. (Submitted on September 7, 2008, by Bill Coughlin of Woodland Park, New Jersey.)
Credits. This page was last revised on February 1, 2023. It was originally submitted on September 7, 2008, by Bill Coughlin of Woodland Park, New Jersey. This page has been viewed 1,536 times since then and 29 times this year. Last updated on June 15, 2022, by James Dean of Chesterfield, Virginia. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on September 7, 2008, by Bill Coughlin of Woodland Park, New Jersey. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.