The First Battle of Deep Bottom, also known as Darbytown, Strawberry Plains, New Market Road, or Gravel Hill, was fought July 27–29, 1864, at Deep Bottom in
Henrico County
Henrico County , officially the County of Henrico, is located in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 334,389 making it the fifth-most populous county in Virginia. Henrico County is incl ...
,
Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...
, as part of the
Siege of Petersburg
The Richmond–Petersburg campaign was a series of battles around Petersburg, Virginia, fought from June 9, 1864, to March 25, 1865, during the American Civil War. Although it is more popularly known as the Siege of Petersburg, it was not a cla ...
of the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...
. A
Union
Union commonly refers to:
* Trade union, an organization of workers
* Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets
Union may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment
Music
* Union (band), an American rock group
** ''Un ...
force under
Maj. Gens. Winfield S. Hancock
Winfield Scott Hancock (February 14, 1824 – February 9, 1886) was a United States Army officer and the Democratic nominee for President of the United States in 1880. He served with distinction in the Army for four decades, including service ...
and
Philip H. Sheridan was sent on an expedition threatening
Richmond, Virginia, and its railroads, intending to attract
Confederate troops away from the Petersburg defensive line, in anticipation of the upcoming
Battle of the Crater. The Union infantry and cavalry force was unable to break through the Confederate fortifications at Bailey's Creek and Fussell's Mill and was withdrawn, but it achieved its desired effect of momentarily reducing Confederate strength at Petersburg.
Background
Deep Bottom is the colloquial name for an area of the
James River in
Henrico County
Henrico County , officially the County of Henrico, is located in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 334,389 making it the fifth-most populous county in Virginia. Henrico County is incl ...
southeast of
Richmond, Virginia, at a horseshoe-shaped bend in the river known as Jones Neck. It was a convenient crossing point from the
Bermuda Hundred area on the south side of the river.
Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant began a siege of the city of
Petersburg, Virginia
Petersburg is an independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 33,458. The Bureau of Econ ...
, after
initial assaults on the
Confederate lines, June 15–18, 1864, failed to break through. While Union cavalry conducted the
Wilson-Kautz Raid (June 22 – July 1) in an attempt to cut the railroad lines leading into Petersburg, Grant and his generals planned a renewed assault on the Petersburg fortifications, an attack scheduled for July 30 that would become known as the
Battle of the Crater. Hoping to increase the chances for success at Petersburg, Grant planned a movement against Richmond that
Gen. Robert E. Lee would likely counter with troops taken out of the Petersburg line.
Grant ordered the
II Corps of the
Army of the Potomac
The Army of the Potomac was the principal Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. It was created in July 1861 shortly after the First Battle of Bull Run and was disbanded in June 1865 following the surrender of the Confede ...
, commanded by
Maj. Gen.
Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...
Winfield S. Hancock
Winfield Scott Hancock (February 14, 1824 – February 9, 1886) was a United States Army officer and the Democratic nominee for President of the United States in 1880. He served with distinction in the Army for four decades, including service ...
, and two divisions of Maj. Gen.
Philip H. Sheridan's Cavalry Corps to cross the river to Deep Bottom by pontoon bridge and advance against the Confederate capital. A division of the
X Corps (
Army of the James
The Army of the James was a Union Army that was composed of units from the Department of Virginia and North Carolina and served along the James River during the final operations of the American Civil War in Virginia.
History
The Union Department ...
), commanded by
Brig. Gen. Robert S. Foster, had previously crossed on a second pontoon bridge just upstream to secure a bridgehead on the north bank of the river. Grant's plan called for Hancock to pin down the Confederates at Chaffin's Bluff and prevent reinforcements from opposing Sheridan's cavalry, which would attack Richmond if practicable. If not—a circumstance Grant considered more likely—Sheridan was ordered to ride around the city to the north and west and cut the
Virginia Central Railroad
The Virginia Central Railroad was an early railroad in the U.S. state of Virginia that operated between 1850 and 1868 from Richmond westward for to Covington. Chartered in 1836 as the Louisa Railroad by the Virginia General Assembly, the railr ...
, which was supplying Richmond from the
Shenandoah Valley.
The Confederate fieldworks protecting Richmond were commanded by Lt. Gen.
Richard S. Ewell. When Lee found out about Hancock's pending movement, he ordered that the Richmond lines be reinforced to 16,500 men. The four brigades of Maj. Gen.
Joseph B. Kershaw
Joseph Brevard Kershaw (January 5, 1822 – April 13, 1894) was a prominent South Carolina planter and slaveholder. He was also a lawyer, judge, and a Confederate general in the American Civil War.
Early life
Kershaw was born on January 5, 182 ...
's division joined Col. John S. Fulton's brigade of the Department of Richmond and the brigades of Brig. Gens.
James H. Lane and
Samuel McGowan from Maj. Gen.
Cadmus M. Wilcox's division. The reinforcements moved east on New Market Road (present-day
Virginia State Route 5
Virginia State Route 5 (SR 5) is a primary state highway in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It runs between the independent cities of Richmond and Williamsburg. Between Charles City County and James City County, it crosses the Chickahominy River ...
) and took up positions on the eastern face of New Market Heights.
Opposing forces
Union
Confederate
Battle
July 27
Hancock and Sheridan crossed the pontoon bridge starting at 3 a.m., July 27. The II Corps advanced with the division of Maj. Gen.
John Gibbon on the left, Brig. Gen.
Francis C. Barlow in the center, and Brig. Gen.
Gershom Mott on the right. They broke through the Confederate rifle pits on the New Market Road, captured four cannons, and continued to advance towards the Long Bridge Road. After being distracted by Confederate artillery fire, which Mott's infantry was able to suppress, the II Corps took up positions on the east bank of Bailey's Creek, from New Market Road to near Fussell's Mill. Sheridan's cavalry rode to the high ground on the right, overlooking the millpond. The cavalry division of Brig. Gen.
Alfred T. A. Torbert captured the high ground near Fussell's Mill, but they were counterattacked and driven back by the 10th and 50th Georgia Infantry regiments. The Confederate works on the west bank of Bailey's Creek were formidable and Hancock chose not to attack them, spending the rest of the day performing reconnaissance.
While Hancock was stymied at Bailey's Creek, Robert E. Lee began bringing up more reinforcements from Petersburg, reacting as Grant had hoped. He assigned Lt. Gen.
Richard H. Anderson to take command of the Deep Bottom sector and sent in Maj. Gen.
Henry Heth
Henry Heth ( not ) (December 16, 1825 – September 27, 1899) was a career United States Army officer who became a Confederate general in the American Civil War.
He came to the notice of Robert E. Lee while serving briefly as his quartermast ...
's infantry division and Maj. Gen.
W.H.F. "Rooney" Lee's cavalry division. Troops were also hurriedly detailed from the Department of Richmond to help the man the trenches.
July 28
On the morning of July 28, Grant reinforced Hancock with a brigade of the
XIX Corps, which freed up Gibbon's division from its position on the New Market Road to assist in an attack on the Confederate left. Sheridan's men attempted to turn the Confederate left with an advance against Gravel Hill, but their movement was disrupted by a Confederate attack. Three brigades—Lane's, McGowan's, and Kershaw's (his original brigade before he became division commander)—attacked Sheridan's right flank. The Union cavalrymen formed a battle line in which they were lying prone just beyond a shallow ridgeline. The Confederates charged over the crest and encountered heavy fire from the Union repeating carbines. Mounted Federals in Sheridan's reserve pursued and captured nearly 200 prisoners; the Confederates were able to capture a single Union cannon before withdrawing to their earthworks.
Aftermath
By the afternoon of July 28, Hancock had repositioned his divisions to ensure that his force could return to the Deep Bottom crossing point without interference. No further combat occurred and the expedition against Richmond and its railroads was terminated. Satisfied that the operation had distracted sufficient Confederate forces from his front, General Grant determined to proceed with the assault against the Crater on July 30. He ordered Hancock to send Mott's division to the Petersburg trenches that night so that the
XVIII Corps could take up a position to support the assault. The remainder of the II Corps and the cavalry recrossed the James on July 31.
Union casualties at the First Battle of Deep Bottom were 488 (62 killed, 340 wounded, and 86 missing or captured); Confederate casualties were 679 (80 killed, 391 wounded, 208 missing or captured).
[ The ]Second Battle of Deep Bottom
The Second Battle of Deep Bottom, also known as Fussell's Mill (particularly in the South), New Market Road, Bailey's Creek, Charles City Road, or White's Tavern was fought August 14–20, 1864, at Deep Bottom in Henrico County, Virginia, durin ...
would be conducted in essentially the same area, August 13–20, 1864.
Battlefield preservation
The Civil War Trust
The American Battlefield Trust is a charitable organization (501(c)(3)) whose primary focus is in the preservation of battlefields of the American Civil War, the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812 through acquisition of battlefield land. T ...
(a division of the American Battlefield Trust) and its partners have acquired and preserved of the battlefield.
American Battlefield Trust "Saved Land" webpage. Accessed May 25, 2018.
Notes
References
* Bonekemper, Edward H., III. ''A Victor, Not a Butcher: Ulysses S. Grant's Overlooked Military Genius''. Washington, DC: Regnery, 2004. .
*
William C. Davis (historian), Davis, William C., and the Editors of Time-Life Books. ''Death in the Trenches: Grant at Petersburg''. Alexandria, VA: Time-Life Books, 1986. .
*
Grant, Ulysses S.br>
''Personal Memoirs of U. S. Grant'' 2 vols. Charles L. Webster & Company, 1885–86. .
* Horn, John. ''The Petersburg Campaign: June 1864 – April 1865''. Conshohocken, PA: Combined Publishing, 1999. .
* Kennedy, Frances H., ed. ''The Civil War Battlefield Guide''. 2nd ed. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1998. .
* Salmon, John S. ''The Official Virginia Civil War Battlefield Guide''. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 2001. .
External links
Maps, histories, photos, and preservation news (
CWPT)
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1864 in Virginia
July 1864 events