Sutherland Station

Sutherland Station. Confederate Defense Crumbles. The Union attack that broke the back of the Confederate defense of Petersburg and forced Gen. Robert E. Lee to evacuate the Army of Northern Virginia from the city happened here April 2, 1865. You are standing at the end of the Confederate right flank, facing south toward the Federal left flank. The South Side Railroad, Lee’s last supply line, ran just behind you., On Sunday, April 2, as the main Union assault ruptured the Confederate defenses at Petersburg, ten miles east, a detachment under Gen. John R. Cooke tried to protect the railroad here. Cooke’s thin infantry line stretched from this point east along the road for almost a mile to Ocran Church, while a handful of artillery was posted here next to Sutherland Tavern. About 11:00 a.m., Union infantry under Gen. Nelson A. Miles began attacking from the south; three assaults failed, but a fourth that struck Cooke’s left flank near the church in mid-afternoon turned the tide for the Federals. Cooke lost about 600 men, mostly prisoners, and the South Side Railroad fell into Union hands. The surviving Confederates escaped north on Namozine Road.