Near Mechanicsville in Hanover County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)

Union Rifle Pits

Photographed By Bernard Fisher, February 23, 2009

1. Union Rifle Pits Marker

Inscription. These well-preserved rifle pits probably mark the far end of the Union line. The 16th Michigan Infantry or 44th New York Infantry likely built them on the morning of the battle to guard the western flank of the army. Although some Federal soldiers dug-in, none entrenched on this battlefield to the extent they did two years later at Cold Harbor.

“I am of the opinion now…that had our lines been better posted and entrenched…we might have been saved from defeat….Two years later the Army of the Potomac could not have been forced to spend idle hours…without running temporary lines of defence everywhere.”
Lt. Col. A. J. Warner
10th Pennsylvania Reserves

Erected by National Park Service.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: War, US Civil.

Location. 37° 34.38′ N, 77° 17.7′ W. Marker is near Mechanicsville, Virginia, in Hanover County. Marker can be reached from Watt House Road, 0.7 miles south of Cold Harbor Road (Virginia Route 156), on the right when traveling south. This marker is located on the walking trail along Boatswain Creek in the Gaines' Mill Battlefield unit of the Richmond National Battlefield Park. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Mechanicsville VA 23111, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers.

Paid Advertisement

Click on the ad for more information.
Please report objectionable advertising to the Editor.

Click or scan to see
this page online

At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Morell’s Division, USA (within shouting distance of this marker); Watt Farm Road (within shouting distance of this marker); Intensity of Battle (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Wilcox’s Alabama Brigade, (about 300 feet away); Wilcox’s Brigade, CSA (about 300 feet away); Pickett’s Brigade, CSA (about 500 feet away); Mistaken Identity (about 500 feet away); The Cavalry Charge (about 500 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Mechanicsville.

Also see . . .
1. NPS Gaines' Mill Battle Summary. (Submitted on February 23, 2009, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia.)
2. Gaines' Mill Battlefield Loop Trail. This marker is one along the loop trail in the Gaines' Mill Battlefield unit of the Richmond National Battlefield Park. (Submitted on February 26, 2009, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia.)

Photographed By Bernard Fisher, February 23, 2009

2. Union Rifle Pits Marker

Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. It was originally submitted on February 23, 2009, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia. This page has been viewed 1,066 times since then and 13 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on February 23, 2009, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia.