The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union And Confederate Armies. Series 1, Volume 34, In Four Parts. Part 1, Reports. Page: 19
This book is part of the collection entitled: War of the Rebellion and was provided to The Portal to Texas History by the UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
On the 7th, two divisions of cavalry, under General Sheridan, got
off on the expedition against the Virginia Central Railroad, with in-
structions to Hunter, whom I hoped he would meet near Charlottes-
ville, to join his forces to Sheridan's, and after the work laid out for
them was thoroughly done to join the Army of the Potomac by the
route laid down in Sheridan's instructions. On the 10th of June
General Butler sent a force of infantry under General Gillmore, and
of cavalry under General Kautz, to capture Petersburg if possible,
and destroy the railroad and common bridges across the Appomat-
tox. The cavalry carried the works on the south side, and pene-
trated well in toward the town, but were forced to retire. Gen-
eral Gillmore, finding the works which he approached very
strong, and deeming an assault impracticable, returned to Bermuda
Hundred without attempting one. Attaching great importance to
the possession of Petersburg, I sent back to Bermuda Hundred and
City Point General Smith's command by water, via the White House,
to reach there in advance of the Army of the Potomac. This was
for the express purpose of securing Petersburg before the enemy,
becoming aware of our intention, could re-enforce the place. The
movement from Cold Harbor commenced after dark on the evening
of the 12th; one division of cavalry, under General Wilson, and
the Fifth Corps crossed the Chickahominy at Long Bridge, and
moved out to White Oak Swamp, to cover the crossings of the other
corps. The advance corps reached James River, at Wilcox's Land-
ing and Charles City Court-House, on the night of the 13th.
During three long years the Armies of the Potomac and Northern
Virginia had been confronting each other. In that time they had
fought more desperate battles than it probably ever before fell to
the lot of two armies to fight, without materially changing the vant-
age ground of either. The Southern press and people, with more
shrewdness than was displayed in the North, finding that they had
failed to capture Washington and march on to New York, as they
had boasted they would do, assumed that they only defended their
capital and Southern territory. Hence, Antietam, Gettysburg, and
all other battles that had been fought were by them set down as
failures on our part and victories for them. Their army believed
this. It produced a morale which could only be overcome by des-
perate and continuous hard fighting. The battles of the Wilder-
ness, Spotsylvania, North Anna, and Cold Harbor, bloody and
terrible as they were on our side, were even more damaging to the
enemy, and so crippled him as to make him wary ever after of tak-
ing the offensive. His losses in men were probably not so great,
owing to the fact that we were, save in the Wilderness, almost in-
variably the attacking party, and when he did attack it was in the
open field. The details of these battles, which for endurance and
bravery on the part of the soldiery have rarely been surpassed, are
given in the report of Major-General Meade, and the subordinate
reports accompanying it.* During the campaign of forty-three days,
from the Rapidan to James River, the army had to be supplied from
an ever-shifting base by wagons, over narrow roads, through a
densely wooded country, with a lack of wharves at each new base
from which to conveniently discharge vessels. Too much credit
cannot, therefore, be awarded to the quartermaster and commissary
departments for the zeal and efficiency displayed by them. Under
To appear in Vol XXXVI.19
CEaP. XLI.]
GENERAL REPORT.
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This book can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Matching Search Results
View 21 pages within this book that match your search.Related Items
Other items on this site that are directly related to the current book.
The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union And Confederate Armies. Additions and Corrections to Series 1, Volume 34. (Pamphlet)
Errata sheets for the Records of the War of the Rebellion include additions and corrections to the text and the index for Series 1, Volume 34.
Relationship to this item: (Is Referenced By)
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Book.
United States. War Department. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union And Confederate Armies. Series 1, Volume 34, In Four Parts. Part 1, Reports., book, 1892; Washington D.C.. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth146033/m1/48/?q=Tappan%27s: accessed June 14, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.