Near Petersburg in Dinwiddie County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)
Petersburg Battlefields
The Confederate Picket Line
"There is every indication that a heavy force is being massed in our front, and if a charge is made, this line cannot possibly be held by these few men."
—Unidentified North Carolina picket, CSA
"Nothing could be seen, nothing could be heard, to show that 14,000 troops in one solid wedge were swiftly moving to the assault of those formidable works ... save the sound of a deep distant rustling."
—Col. Hazard Stevens, Sixth Corps Staff Officer, USA
A thin scattering of sentries waited behind the new Confederate picket line in the pre-dawn gloom of April 2. In some places these men crouched in picket posts—small, half-moon-shaped earthworks—while along other sections of the line, the soldiers knelt behind more conventional linear works. Their job was to delay any serious assault against the main defenses, a task that would prove hopeless that morning.
Dawn barely illuminated the desolate landscape when Gen. Horatio G. Wright authorized the attack to commence. Capt. Romeo H. Start, 3rd Vermont Battery, pulled the lanyard on his gun at Fort Fisher, the signal for three divisions of Union troops to arise and move forward. "It was a great relief, a positive lifting of a load of misery to be at last let at them," thought one soldier as the great blue wave enveloped the Confederate pickets. In a few deadly moments the Federals reached the main Confederate earthworks and in forty five minutes it was over. At 5:15 A.M. on April 2, United States flags waved over the Confederate defenses—marking the end of the 292-day stalemate. Richmond and Petersburg were evacuated that night, and Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's surrender at Appomattox was but one week away.
(Captions)
Col. Thomas W. Hyde led the troops that crossed this ground on the morning of April 2, 1865. He commanded a brigade in the Second Division of the Sixth Corps. - Courtesy Library of Congress
Gen. James H. Lane commanded four North Carolina regiments directly in the path of the Sixth Corps attack. Lane survived the assault, but scores of his men were captured and others killed or wounded that fateful morning.
Courtesy Wikimedia Commons
The Sixth Corps attack that rolled over this ground on April 2, 1865, was one of the largest assaults of the Civil War—and, with the resultant fall of the Confederate capital, one of the most consequential as well.
Erected 2015 by Civil War Trust and 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. A significant historical date for this entry is April 2, 1865.
Location. 37° 10.671′ N, 77° 28.252′ W. Marker is near Petersburg, Virginia, in Dinwiddie County. Marker can be reached from the intersection of Church Road (Virginia Route 672) and Flank Road, on the right when traveling south. Marker is located at the end of the Civil War Trust Breakthrough Trail. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 6125 Boydton Plank Rd, Petersburg VA 23803, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. A different marker also named Petersburg Battlefields (here, next to this marker); a different marker also named Petersburg Battlefields (about 700 feet away, measured in a direct line); a different marker also named Petersburg Battlefields (approx. 0.2 miles away); The Hart Farm (approx. 0.2 miles away); “A Determination That Knew No Such Word as Fail” (approx. 0.2 miles away); A Mysterious Historic Feature (approx. 0.2 miles away); The Attack Begins (approx. 0.2 miles away); “A Great Struggle is Now Impending” (approx. ¼ mile away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Petersburg.
More about this marker. The marker is located on property owned by Pamplin Historical Park.
Also see . . .
1. Petersburg Breakthrough: The Fall of Petersburg. American Battlefield Trust (Submitted on October 24, 2021.)
2. Pamplin Historical Park. (Submitted on October 24, 2021.)
Credits. This page was last revised on February 2, 2023. It was originally submitted on October 24, 2021, by Bradley Owen of Morgantown, West Virginia. This page has been viewed 154 times since then and 28 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on October 24, 2021, by Bradley Owen of Morgantown, West Virginia. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.