BGuthrie Photos: VA -- Five Forks

BGuthrie Photos: VA -- Five Forks VA -- Five Forks:

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Copyrights: All pictures were taken by amateur photographer Bruce Guthrie (me!) who retains copyright on them. Free for non-commercial use with attribution. See the [Creative Commons] definition of what this means. "Photos (c) Bruce Guthrie" is fine for attribution. (Commercial use folks including AI scrapers can of course contact me.) Feel free to use in publications and pages with attribution but you don't have permission to sell the photos themselves. A free copy of any printed publication using any photographs is requested. Descriptive text, if any, is from a mixture of sources, quite frequently from signs at the location or from official web sites; copyrights, if any, are retained by their original owners.

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Specific picture descriptions: Photos above with "i" icons next to the bracketed sequence numbers (e.g. "[1] ") are described as follows:
1. 5FORKS_150601_04.JPG: The following pictures are from the page 2015_VA_Five_Forks VA -- Five Forks (3 photos from 2015)
  "Advanced...repulsed...charged again..." Union cavalrymen, under General Thomas Devin, advanced across this wooded ground twice on April 1, 1865. In the morning they tested the strength of the Southerners' defenses north of here along White Oak Road. The Union soldiers were thrown back by intense Confederate rifle and cannon fire. Waiting for the Union infantry assault on the east end of the Confederate line, these dismounted troopers advanced at the explosion of rifle fire at 4:15pm. The trees provided cover from Confederate fire as their seven-shot Spencer repeating carbines magnified their numbers. "We again moved toward, firing slowly from behind the trees," recounted E.M. Johnson, 2nd New York Cavalry. Roger Hannaford, 2nd Ohio Cavalry, said, "While dashing forward...I dropped behind a big pine. Never did I hug the ground closer: the musketry was deadly & terrific, yet it seemed as nothing to the grape and canister that swept thro' the woods, just skimming the ground." An image of dismounted cavalrymen in action. Union Brigadier General Thomas Devin, Cavalry Commander 1st Division, Army of the Shenandoah.
2. 5FORKS_120607_003.JPG: The following pictures are from the page 2012_VA_Five_Forks VA -- Five Forks (33 photos from 2012)
  Attack on the Angle "When we moved toward Five Forks…we were not expecting any attack that afternoon, so far as I know. Our throwing up works and taking position were simply general matters of military precaution." -- Major General Fitzhugh Lee, CSA You are standing on the left (east) flank of the Confederate line at Five Forks. Here the earthworks turned abruptly northward, forming an angle. Few of the 1,000 North Carolinians gathered behind these trenches on the afternoon of April 1, 1865, expected an attack. Neither did their commander, Maj. Gen. George E. Pickett, who had retired to the rear for a lunch of shad. At 4:15 p.m., Maj. Gen. Gouverneur K. Warren's Union Fifth Corps swarmed across what were open fields to your right. While two Federal divisions moved too far north and missed the Confederate line altogether, one division of 3,100 men struck the Confederates here. Brig. Gen. Matthew Ransom's North Carolina brigade resisted fiercely. Both the Federals rolled forward and vaulted the works. The Confederate line collapsed. The Union success at the Angle initiated the destruction of Pickett's division -– a disaster for Lee's Army of Northern Virginia.
3. 5FORKS_120607_053.JPG: Battle of Five Forks Here at Five Forks on April 1, 1865 10,000 Confederates, commanded by General Pickett, were overwhelmed by about 50,000 Federal troops, led by General Sheridan, thereby opening the way to the Southside Railroad making further defense of Petersburg and Richmond impossible. Withdrawal to Appomattox followed. Dedicated to the memory of the valiant Dinwiddie soldiers, as well as to all soldiers of the South and North, taking part in this encounter. Presented by the Dinwiddie Confederate Memorial Association and erected by the Dinwiddie Civil War Centennial Commission April 1, 1965
4. 5FORKS_120607_055.JPG: Five Forks Battlefield has been designated a Registered National Historic Landmark under the provisions of the Historic Sites Act of August 21, 1935. This site possesses exceptional value in commemorating and illustrating the history of the United States. 1961
5. 5FORKS_120607_058.JPG: Digging In Just before noon on April 1, 1865, 10,000 Confederates under Maj. Gen. George E. Pickett arrived here at Five Forks. They immediately started digging and by mid-afternoon had constructed a rough earthwork that extended along the White Oak Road for nearly two miles. You are standing at the center of that Confederate line. Weary, wet, and hungry, the Confederates waited – aware that if they yielded, nothing would stand between the Federals and the South Side Railroad, the last supply line into Petersburg. Until 4 p.m. the Confederates waited quietly behind the works. Then they saw them: men in blue, advancing astride the Dinwiddie Road. The rattle of musketry soon signaled the opening of the Battle of Five Forks. Most of the Confederate works built on April 1 have been obliterated. The best and most important surviving section is at the "Angle," on the extreme left of the line – about 3/4 mile to your left.
6. 5FORKS_120607_059.JPG: Death of Pegram Late afternoon, April 1, 1865. Confederate infantrymen waited behind rude, muddy earthworks lining the White Oak Road. Young Colonel William R.J. Pegram tended to his artillery: three guns in this field, three others farther to the west (your right). Then came the Federals. Sheridan's dismounted cavalry attacked frontally. Later, Warren's infantry swept down from the east. After fierce fighting, the Confederate positions around the intersection collapsed. In the melee fell Colonel Pegram, mortally wounded in the side. Just 23 years old, Pegram had survived all of the Army of Northern Virginia's major battles. He died only five miles from his ancestral home and just nine days short of the war's end. Colonel William R.J. Pegram – "the boy colonel" – whom one man described as "the most splendid soldier in all the world." Another considered him, "one of the few men who, I believe, was supremely happy in battle." Pegram fell somewhere near this spot. He died the next day at Ford's Depot, ten miles to the northwest.
7. 5FORKS_120607_074.JPG: Siege of Petersburg -- The Linchpin is Pulled March 29 - April 1, 1865 Five Forks Campaign By April 1, 1865, Five Forks, just north of where you're standing, had become a linchpin -- key to the Confederate capital at Richmond. To control the Five Forks intersection was to control the South Side Railroad and Richmond's last connection to the rest of the Confederacy. Loss of Five Forks would force Confederate General Robert E. Lee to abandon Petersburg and Richmond leading to the fall of the Confederate capital. April 1, 1865 -- Union forces sweep the Confederates off the intersection and by nightfall Grant plans his final assault on Lee's position the next day. March 29-31, 1865 -- In a series of battles, Grant severs the Boydton Plank Road and isolates Confederate General George Pickett's forces at Five Forks.
8. 5FORKS_120607_078.JPG: The Siege of Petersburg: "I would not believe before I came here that man was capable of enduring so much." -- Leverett Bradley, 1st Mass. Heavy Artillery If Petersburg fell, the Confederate capital at Richmond would fall too. Grant knew it; Lee knew it. And for nine months in 1864 and 1865, Union and Confederate armies waged a brutal campaign here that left the Confederacy on the verge of total defeat. Touring the Battlefield: Petersburg National Battlefield includes four major historic areas. A driving tour links the main park unit, Five Forks Battlefield, and Flank and Defense Roads. The City Point Unit is located eight miles northeast of the visitor center in the city of Hopewell. You can start your visit in the visitor center, where brochures and additional tour information are available. (1) The main park unit includes sites that span the entire siege, including the Union capture of part of the Dimmock Line in June 1864, the spectacular blast at the "Crater" in July, and Lee's last offensive, Fort Stedman, in March 1865. (2) Flank Road and Defense Road link fortifications and battle sites related to the Union's incessant efforts to cut the rail lines leading into Petersburg -- efforts that ultimately stretched the Confederate defense lines to their breaking point. (3) At Five Forks, on April 1, 1865, the Union army defeated and scattered one-fifth of Lee's entire force. Petersburg and Richmond fell within two days. (4) During the siege, City Point was one of the busiest ports in America. From his headquarters there, Ulysses S. Grant directed the movement of Union armies throughout the South. Converging rail lines made Petersburg the southern gateway to Richmond. By the end of the siege, more than 100 miles of earthworks marred the landscape around Petersburg. Petersburg Time Line: Nine Months and 18 days June 1864 -- Union attack on Dimmock Line June 1864 -- Federals sever Jerusalem Plank Road July 1864 -- Battle of the Crater August 1864 -- City Point wharf explosion August 1864 -- Federals sever the Weldon Railroad September 1864 -- Battle of Peebles's Farm October 1864 -- Battle of Boydton Plank Road February 1865 -- Battle of Hatchers Run March 1865 -- Confederate attack on Fort Stedman fails April 1865 -- Battle of Five Forks April 1865 -- Confederates evacuate Petersburg
9. 5FORKS_120607_087.JPG: (1) Sheridan's Battle Plan -- Warren's V Corps will attack the Confederate left flank at the "angle", while Custer's Cavalry division makes a feint on the Confederate right. The rest of the federal cavalry (Devin's Division) will press the southern infantry along their front, attacking when the V Corps becomes actively engaged.
10. 5FORKS_120607_091.JPG: (2) Attack on the Angle -- Around 4:15pm, Warren's Corps, having formed an echelon, move[s] forward. Ayres' Division hits the entrenched Confederates along the 150-yard long "angle" as Crawford's Division breaks away and swings to the north behind Pickett's battle line. Griffin's Division move to support the two advance Divisions. Custer's two brigades ride into position to attack the Confederate right flank.
11. 5FORKS_120607_095.JPG: (3) Griffin's Move -- Ayres's men capture about 1,000 prisoners at the "angle" from Ransom's and Wallace's Brigades while McGregor's four guns escape to Ford's Road. Crawford's Division, now supported by MacKenzie's Cavalry Division, continues it's [sic] westward sweep. Steuart's Brigade refuses their left flank at the edges of Sydnor's field and throws up hastily built breastworks. Chamberlain's Brigade attacks these. Custer's feint turns into a full attack that is successfully repulsed by WHF Lee's Cavalry.
12. 5FORKS_120607_099.JPG: (4) Crawford's Sweep -- Crawford's Division reaches Ford's Road at the Boisseau's field and wheels to the south, attacking Pickett's men from the rear. A stand is made by Mayo's and Steuart's Infantry who are dispersed, while some of McGregor's guns are captured. Pickett's force begins to withdraw from the battlefield.
13. 5FORKS_120607_104.JPG: (5) A Final Stand -- Crawford continues his westward sweep of the Confederate lines down White Oak Road, eventually attacking Corse's Brigade who have also fallen back behind a newly built line of works. Devin's Cavalry occupies the main Confederate breastworks along White Oak Road with Warren's infantry. Pickett's Infantry and Cavalry retreat northward to Church road [sic] Crossing on the South Side Railroad where they regroup at nightfall.
14. 5FORKS_120607_117.JPG: April 2-3: Assault Along the Lines: A member of General Ulysses S. Grant's staff, Lieutenant Colonel Horace Porter, witnessed the victory at Five Forks and rode back to Union headquarters at Dabney's sawmill with his report. After learning the news, Grant went into his tent. He soon emerged and announced to his anxious staff, "I have ordered a general assault along the lines." Artillery started bombarding the Confederate lines shortly after Grant made his plans. The Federal infantry attacks began at 4:30am on Sunday, April 2nd on Richmond and Petersburg. The thin Southern lines broke in places and held in others as fighting raged all around the cities. Leaving Petersburg: In a desperate attempt to keep the fighting out of the streets of Petersburg, General Robert E. Lee ordered that both Forts Gregg and Whitworth, and their hastily assembled defenders, were to hold off the wave of Union infantry. After several attempts, the Federal forces took both forts after fierce hand-to-hand combat, but more Southerners arrived in time to delay the occupation of Petersburg. Lee and the Confederate soldiers that had protected the city for more than nine months were forced to evacuate under the cover of darkness. The Burning of Richmond: As President Jefferson Davis, the Confederate government and the army moved out of Richmond and Petersburg, the supplies that could not be taken were ordered to be burned. Much of Richmond was lost that night as the fires burned out of control, but conversely, Petersburg was mostly spared from destruction. The next morning Union forces would enter the desperately fought over cities, beginning their occupation. One of the first tasks was to extinguish the fires and restore order. The flag of the United States of America was hoisted over both cities in triumph. General Grant entered Petersburg as well, and at the Market Street home of William Wallace he would meet with the President of the United States, Abraham Lincoln. The meeting was brief as Grant was anxious to begin the pursuit of his now fleeing foe. Lincoln's wishes of a hasty end to the fighting were expressed, as well as his hope for a lenient policy for dealing with the reconstruction of the nation.
15. 5FORKS_120607_120.JPG: April 4-5: Lincoln in Richmond: On Tuesday morning, after the fall of the Confederate Capital, Abraham Lincoln proceeded by boat from City Point to the docks of Richmond, where he and his son would take a tour of the city that was so important to both sides. Union soldiers now occupied the grounds around the historic Capitol and Lincoln visited the former residence of his southern counterpart who was now in Danville, Virginia. A Shortage of Provisions: Lee's soldiers were all ordered to Amelia Court House once the lines around Richmond and Petersburg fell. That small county seat village was on the Richmond-Danville Railroad where supplies could be issued to the army as it gathered itself for the days ahead. Once fed, resupplied and reorganized, Lee wished to move with his Army of Northern Virginia south toward Danville, as President Davis had done before them. The Union armies, however, were not just going to watch as the Confederates marched away from the battlefields of the last campaign. They were also resupplying and, as hastily as possible, following the retreating Confederates. As the two sides came across each other, fighting would sporadically break out and delay both side's movements. Once at Amelia Court House, it was revealed that, by some mistake, not all the supplies were waiting for the Southern army. There were plenty of rail cars with ammunition, and tack for the horses but no food. General Lee was forced to appeal to the surrounding community to help feed the men, causing a delay in his march by sending out wagons to gather the greatly needed rations. Any lead Lee had on Grant evaporated on Wednesday, April 5th dawned without a movement by the Southerners. This allowed Federal forces to move to the south of Amelia Court House and block the direct road to Danville. Trouble on the Road: The long wagon trains that moved the supplies for the Confederate army had been put on as many different roads as possible when leaving Richmond and Petersburg. As some of them were approaching their rendezvous with the main body of the army, they became prey for marauding Federal cavalry. Union cavalry had also deployed a network of scouts dressed in Southern uniforms that was gathering intelligence and deceiving and confusing their enemy. Lee's options were to fight or try to out-maneuver the Union army. He choose [sic] to move on and head further west into the interior of the Commonwealth.
16. 5FORKS_120607_125.JPG: April 6-7: Surrender at Sailor's Creek: As dawn of April 6th broke, the Confederate army, now reorganized, moved to the west toward Farmville. The front of the column made pretty good time as the men relished being out of the trenches that had been home for most of the last year. The rest of the line though was not as lucky. The middle of the column included the Marines, Sailors, and government clerks that had been forced out of Richmond and put in to the infantry. Then came the wagon train and finally more seasoned infantry to protect the rear. Union cavalry and infantry wasted no time in following the enemy, moving close behind and on parallel roads, taking every opportunity to strike the Southerners. This harassment created gaps in the marching order as the head of the column continued on without delay. The wagon train constantly was slowed down by the numerous creek crossings that feed the rivers through the Piedmont section of the state. The crossings were not very wide, but the extremely wet spring, combined with the sloped approaches, made crossing the fords or small bridges time consuming. While approaching another of these small waterways at Little Sailor's Creek, General John B. Gordon, commanding the end of the column, ordered the wagon train to a parallel road to try and protect it as he followed behind. This left the middle of the line with no protection. The Union forces wasted little time exploiting the move. Federal cavalry forced the middle of the southern column to halt at Marshall's Crossroads as Union infantry now suddenly appeared right behind them, just beyond the creek on the Hillsman farm. Union infantry also caught up to the rear guard of the wagon train as the wagons bogged down trying to cross the double bridges at the confluence of Big and Little Sailor's Creek. Collectively, the battle was a total Southern defeat costing Lee's army over 6,000 casualties, mostly men taken prisoner. Lee rode back to ascertain the condition of the column. Seeing the debacle, he exclaimed, "My God! Has the army been dissolved?" High Bridge: In front of the main column lay High Bridge, the South Side Railroad span across the Appomattox River. A detachment of Federal forces had been sent to destroy the bridge to deny its use by the Confederates. However, the Southerners caught up to the Union forces before they could accomplish their mission. A bloody exchange took place and ... were repelled and the bridge ... [???] Confederate forces entered Farmville on Friday to get supplies and to regroup from the losses of the last day's fighting. Before the issuance of rations could take place for all units, Union cavalry arrived and forced the Southerners to abandon the town. Grant sent a message to Lee asking him to surrender.
17. 5FORKS_120607_129.JPG: April 8-9: Headed to Appomattox: On Saturday morning the remainder of the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia plodded along to the west, still in search of supplies and trying to elude the Federal forces pursuing them. Lee ordered more supplies delivered to Appomattox Station on the South Side Railroad, while still trying to get his men to Danville. Flags of Truce: As the head of Lee's column -- mostly the reserve artillery and the remainder of the wagon train -- was nearing the station, Union cavalry under the command of General George Custer swooped in and captured the supply trains. A brief battle occurred as the cavalry made it's [sic] way from the station, searching for the Southern army which was now camped around the village of Appomattox Court House. Lee quickly learned that Northern forces were now across the road in front of him, and also moving up behind him, catching him in a vice. The next morning, to open the road, he once again ordered his men into battle but the Union roadblock was too strong, and flags of truce went out from the Confederate line. Discussion of Terms: On April 9th, Palm Sunday, Lee arranged to meet with Grant int the village, at the home of Wilmer McLean, to discuss the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia. Lee arrived first, as he was closest, and when Grant made his way to the meeting it was just past midday. Grant offered terms of surrender that were both lenient and generous, which was the wish of the President, and the subject of their meeting less than a week earlier in Petersburg. The War Ends: Lee read through the terms and had a letter of acceptance written in reply. After four years of fighting, the war was coming to a close for many of the combatants in Virginia. Lee left the house and rode back to his men to tell them of the meeting and that they would be going home.
18. 5FORKS_120607_134.JPG: April 10-? : Stacking of Arms: As news of the surrender traveled throughout both armies, some were jubilant and some were in despair, but as it sank in many felt relief from the fears of fighting and soldiering. The men came together no longer as antagonists, but to begin the healing process of binding the country back together. Grant required that the Confederate soldiers leave behind the instruments of battle before returning to their homes. The Southern cavalry surrendered first. The next day, the artillery relinquished their arms and finally on April 12th was the mass surrender of the infantry. The former Confederate soldiers were given passes to show they were paroled, and left the area with little more than the clothes on their back to return home, just a week after leaving the trenches of Richmond and Petersburg. Assassination: Grant was already headed back to Washington DC before the armies left Appomattox. He was invited to attend Ford's Theater with the President on Friday the 14th but declined the invitation. Abraham Lincoln would be assassinated that night, in his seat, by John Wilkes Booth, and news of his death the next morning made its way all over the nation he had tried so hard to mend. The Grand Review: As Confederate forces elsewhere were forced to capitulate, on May 10th a proclamation declared armed resistance was virtually over. The victorious Union armies made their way back to the Nation's Capitol where they were marched through the streets and reviewed by President Andrew Johnson. It would be August 20, 1866 before the President announced, "I do further proclaim that the said insurrection is at an end and that peace, order, tranquility, and civil authority now exist in and throughout the whole United States of America."
19. 5FORKS_091227_001.JPG: The following pictures are from the page 2009_VA_Five_Forks VA -- Five Forks (45 photos from 2009)
  The Union Cavalry Attacks: "I was exceedingly anxious to attack at once, for the sun was getting low, and we had to fight or go back." -- Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan On March 31, 1865, Union cavalry under Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan retreated down this road to Dinwiddie Court House, driven by Pickett's Confederates. On April 1, the Federal cavalrymen returned -- with a vengeance. Late that afternoon, Sheridan deployed his two divisions in a two-mile line on both sides of this road. A half mile in front stood Pickett's men, entrenched around Five Forks. As Warren's Union infantry swept down on Pickett's lines from the east and, eventually, the north, Sheridan's dismounted troopers charged the Confederate works from the south. Outmaneuvered and outnumbered, the Confederates gave way.
20. 5FORKS_091227_015.JPG: The new visitor center
21. 5FORKS_091227_029.JPG: The rain gutter collapsed in the first major snowfall
22. 5FORKS_091227_097.JPG: This isn't a historic structure either. They'll have to have it yanked down at some point.
23. 5FORKS_091227_101.JPG: The Five Forks intersection
24. 5FORKS_091227_114.JPG: The old visitor center used to be here. It was taken down when the new one was built.
25. 5FORKS_091227_118.JPG: Digging In "Hold Five Forks at all hazards…" Just before noon on April 1, 1865, 10,000 Confederates under Maj. Gen. George E. Pickett arrived here at Five Forks. They immediately started digging and by mid-afternoon had constructed a rough earthwork that extended along the White Oak Road for nearly two miles. You are standing at the center of that Confederate line. Weary, wet, and hungry, the Confederates waited – aware that if they yielded, nothing would stand between the Federals and the South Side Railroad, the last supply line into Petersburg. Until 4 p.m. the Confederates waited quietly behind the works. Then they saw them: men in blue, advancing astride the Dinwiddie Road. The rattle of musketry soon signaled the opening of the Battle of Five Forks.
26. 5FORKS_091227_120.JPG: Death of Pegram: Late afternoon, April 1, 1865. Confederate infantrymen waited behind rude, muddy earthworks lining the White Oak Road. Young Colonel William R. J. Pegram tended to his artillery, three guns in this field, three others farther to the west (your right). Then came the Federals. Sheridan's dismounted cavalry attacked frontally. Later, Warren's infantry swept down from the east. After fierce fighting, the Confederate positions around the intersection collapsed. In the melee fell Colonel Pegram, mortally wounded in the side. Just 23 years old, Pegram had survived all of the Army of Northern Virginia's major battles. He died only five miles from his ancestral home, and just nine days short of the war's end. Colonel William R. J. Pegram -- "the boy colonel" -- whom one man described as "the most splendid soldier in all the world." Another considered him, "one of the few men who, I believe, was supremely happy in battle." Pegram fell somewhere near this spot. He died the next day at Ford's Depot, ten miles to the northwest.
27. 5FORKS_091227_135.JPG: (Marble marker at the intersection) Battle of Five Forks: Here at Five Forks on April 1, 1865, 10,000 Confederates, commanded by General Pickett, were overwhelmed by about 50,000 Federal troops led by General Sheridan, thereby opening the way to the Southside Railroad, making further defense of Petersburg and Richmond impossible. Withdrawal to Appomattox followed. Dedicated to the memory of the valiant Dinwiddie soldiers, as well as to all soldiers of the South and North, taking part in this encounter. Presented by the Dinwiddie Confederate Memorial Association and erected by the Dinwiddie Civil War Centennial Commission, April 1, 1965.
28. 5FORKS_091227_140.JPG: (Metal marker at the intersection) Five Forks Battlefield has been designated a Registered National Historic Landmark under the provisions of the Historic Sites Act of August 21, 1935 this site possesses exceptional value in commemorating and illustrating the history of the United States. U.S. Department of the Interior National Park Service 1961
29. 5FORKS_091227_163.JPG: One of the residences within pieces of the park boundary
30. 5FORKS_091227_166.JPG: A Final Stand With their left at the Angle crashed and their center near the Five Forks intersection overrun, the Confederates made a final stand here, in and around Gilliam's field. Across the open ground to your right, Brig. Gen. George Armstrong Custer led two Union cavalry brigades in a wild charge against the Confederate right flank. Southern horsemen under Maj. Gen. W.H.F. Lee held off the Federals. Across the road to your left, infantrymen of Brig. Gen. Montgomery Corse's Virginia brigade struggled against an attack by Union infantry moving westward (toward you) along the White Oak Road. Though Corse's troops were overrun, their efforts allowed Pickett's remaining 7,000 men to escape to the north. Pickett's survivors would not rejoin the main Confederate army until three days later at Amelia Court House. The defeat at Five Forks forced Lee to abandon the Petersburg lines – and hence the capital at Richmond. Eight days later, caught in a vise pf Union troops, Lee surrendered his army at Appomattox Court House.
31. 5FORKS_091227_178.JPG: The five forks intersection is down the road beyond the treeline
32. 5FORKS_091227_188.JPG: Crawford's Sweep The decisive Union movement at the Battle of Five Forks was, for the Federals, a fortunate mistake. While one Union division struck the Confederate left at the Angle, Brig. Gen. Samuel W Crawford's division passed too far north and missed the Confederate line altogether. Instead, Crawford's lines swept westward to the Confederate rear, cutting the main Confederate escape route here along Fords Road. Crawford then pushed across the fields in front of you, toward the rear of the Confederate lines at Five Forks (to your left). His attack spelled doom for Pickett's command.
33. 5FORKS_091227_199.JPG: The site of the shad bake
34. 5FORKS_091227_276.JPG: The site of the Southside railroad crossing that the Five Forks' Confederates were protecting.
35. 5FORKS_091227_280.JPG: Note the bullet holes in the sign. The yahoos here must drink a fair amount. It's hard to imagine how much damage these bullets can do.
36. 5FORKS_091227_296.JPG: Attack on the Angle: "When we moved toward Five Forks... we were not expecting any attack that afternoon, as far as I know. Our throwing up works and taking position were simply general matters of military precaution." -- Major General Fitzhugh Lee, CSA You are standing on the left (east) flank of the Confederate lines at Five Forks. Here the earthworks turned abruptly northward, forming an angle. Few of the 1,000 North Carolinians gathered behind these trenches on the afternoon of April 1, 1865, expected an attack. Neither did their command, Maj. Gen. George E. Pickett, who had retired to the rear for a lunch of shad. At 4:15pm, Maj. Gen. Gouverneur K. Warren's Union Fifth Corps swarmed across what were open fields to your right. While two Federal divisions moved too far north and missed the Confederate line altogether, one division of 3,100 men struck the Confederates here. Brig. Gen. Matthew Ransom's North Carolina brigade resisted fiercely. But the Federals rolled forward and vaulted the works. The Confederate line collapsed. The Union success at the Angle initiated the destruction of Pickett's division -- a disaster for Lee's Army of North Virginia. General Philip Sheridan -- his headquarters flag in hand -- joined the Union charge on the angle. Of him, one man wrote, "It would be a sorry soldier who could help following such a leader."
37. 5FORKS_060319_001.JPG: The following pictures are from the page 2006_VA_Five_Forks VA -- Five Forks (26 photos from 2006)
  A Final Stand With their left at the Angle crashed and their center near the Five Forks intersection overrun, the Confederates made a final stand here, in and around Gilliam's field. Across the open ground to your right, Brig. Gen. George Armstrong Custer led two Union cavalry brigades in a wild charge against the Confederate right flank. Southern horsemen under Maj. Gen. W.H.F. Lee held off the Federals. Across the road to your left, infantrymen of Brig. Gen. Montgomery Corse's Virginia brigade struggled against an attack by Union infantry moving westward (toward you) along the White Oak Road. Though Corse's troops were overrun, their efforts allowed Pickett's remaining 7,000 men to escape to the north. Pickett's survivors would not rejoin the main Confederate army until three days later at Amelia Court House. The defeat at Five Forks forced Lee to abandon the Petersburg lines – and hence the capital at Richmond. Eight days later, caught in a vise pf Union troops, Lee surrendered his army at Appomattox Court House.
38. 5FORKS_060319_010.JPG: Five Forks: The Final Stand. Custer attacked from the fields on the left. White Oak Road is the one coming from the distance where an Union advanced forced the Confederates to retreat toward the left, where they would not join the main Confederate army retreating from Richmond-Petersburg until Amelia Court House.
39. 5FORKS_060319_016.JPG: An NPS photograph of the Five Forks intersection. The visitor center is the hunting lodge in the upper center. The roads taking off from the intersection are: (a) at 01:00, White Oak Road (heading east) -- this is where the Angle was -- all along this road were the Confederate defensive lines -- the main Union assault would come from the right as well as from troops swooping around the Angle and coming down from the left side of the road. (b) at 03:30, Court House Road, called Fords Road during the war (heading southeast) -- this is the direction that the holding attack from Sheridan's dismounted cavalry came from, (c) at 05:00, Wheelers Pond Road (heading south) -- Sheridan's dismounted cavalry also came this way in their holding attack, (d) at 06:30, White Oak Road (heading west) -- this is where the final fighting was in this battle, and (e) at 10:00, Court House Road (heading north) -- this is where the South Side Railroad was, as well as the shad bake site and the direction of the Confederate retreat.. The visitor center is at 11:00. The house at 04:00 was a 1950's era house which was torn down some time within the past five years. The house at 05:30 is used for farming.
40. 5FORKS_060319_023.JPG: The Battle of Five Forks Petersburg National Battlefield For nine months, an ever-lengthening fortified line had protected Petersburg. On April 1, 1865, at this obscure county crossroads, that Confederate line finally stretched to its breaking point. "In its Result, it was to our country as Waterloo to Europe." -- - General Thomas T. Munford, CSA The siege left the Confederate lines around Petersburg thinly manned -- barely able to protect the last remaining supply line into the city, the South Side Railroad. On April 1, 10,000 weary Confederates under Maj. Gen. George E. Pickett dug in here at Five Forks. Their objective; prevent Union General Philip Sheridan and 21,000 Union troops from moving up Fords Road to capture the South Side Railroad. What happened next that afternoon would determine not just the future of Pickett's command, but also the fate of Lee's army, Petersburg and Richmond -- and hence the Confederacy itself. This wartime sketch shows General Sheridan, holding a swallowtail flag (circled), lending the decisive Union charge on the "Angle," about a mile to your left. The Union plan: Sheridan's cavalry (9,000 men) would attack Pickett's lines frontally, while Maj. Gen. Gouverneur K. Warren's Fifth Corps infantry (12,000 men) would sweep down on the Confederates from the east. Though dug in, the Confederates here were isolated from the rest of Lee's army. Their nearest support was several miles away.
41. 5FORKS_060319_026.JPG: Digging In
42. 5FORKS_060319_043.JPG: The visitor center is on the other side of Courthouse (Fords) Road. The Confederate entrenchments ran along the road on the right -- we would have been in the middle of them. Pegram was fatally wounded here.
43. 5FORKS_060319_048.JPG: Battle of Five Forks: Here at Five Forks on April 1, 1865, 10,000 Confederates, commanded by General Pickett, were overwhelmed by about 50,000 Federal troops led by General Sheridan, thereby opening the way to the Southside Railroad, making further defense of Petersburg and Richmond impossible. Withdrawal to Appomattox followed. Dedicated to the memory of the valiant Dinwiddie soldiers, as well as to all soldiers of the South and North, taking part in this encounter. Presented by the Dinwiddie Confederate Memorial Association and erected by the Dinwiddie Civil War Centennial Commission, April 1, 1965.
44. 5FORKS_060319_053.JPG: We're looking northward to the Five Forks junction from Wheelers Pond Road. Courthouse (Fords) Road runs off in the distance in the far left. White Oak Road runs from the upper right to the lower left (the road is in front of the signs on the left). Courthouse (Fords) Road continues past the junction along a road that goes right, just after the rightside stop sign.
45. 5FORKS_060319_074.JPG: The Union Cavalry Attacks: "I was exceedingly anxious to attack at once, for the sun was getting low, and we had to fight or go back." -- Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan On March 31, 1865, Union cavalry under Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan retreated down this road to Dinwiddie Court House, driven by Pickett's Confederates. On April 1, the Federal cavalrymen returned -- with a vengeance. Late that afternoon, Sheridan deployed his two divisions in a two-mile line on both sides of this road. A half mile in front stood Pickett's men, entrenched around Five Forks. As Warren's Union infantry swept down on Pickett's lines from the east and, eventually, the north, Sheridan's dismounted troopers charged the Confederate works from the south. Outmaneuvered and outnumbered, the Confederates gave way.
46. 5FORKS_060319_075.JPG: This is Courthouse (Fords) Road pointing toward Five Forks. The dismounted cavalry would have attacked up this road.
47. 5FORKS_060319_082.JPG: Attack on the Angle: "When we moved toward Five Forks... we were not expecting any attack that afternoon, as far as I know. Our throwing up works and taking position were simply general matters of military precaution." -- Major General Fitzhugh Lee, CSA You are standing on the left (east) flank of the Confederate lines at Five Forks. Here the earthworks turned abruptly northward, forming an angle. Few of the 1,000 North Carolinians gathered behind these trenches on the afternoon of April 1, 1865, expected an attack. Neither did their command, Maj. Gen. George E. Pickett, who had retired to the rear for a lunch of shad. At 4:15pm, Maj. Gen. Gouverneur K. Warren's Union Fifth Corps swarmed across what were open fields to your right. While two Federal divisions moved too far north and missed the Confederate line altogether, one division of 3,100 men struck the Confederates here. Brig. Gen. Matthew Ransom's North Carolina brigade resisted fiercely. But the Federals rolled forward and vaulted the works. The Confederate line collapsed. The Union success at the Angle initiated the destruction of Pickett's division -- a disaster for Lee's Army of North Virginia. General Philip Sheridan -- his headquarters flag in hand -- joined the Union charge on the angle. Of him, one man wrote, "It would be a sorry soldier who could help following such a leader."
48. 5FORKS_060319_088.JPG: Note the bullet holes in the sign.
49. 5FORKS_060319_091.JPG: The Angle would have been here
50. 5FORKS_060319_096.JPG: We'd be behind the Angle now
51. 5FORKS_060319_100.JPG: Crawford's Sweep The decisive Union movement at the Battle of Five Forks was, for the Federals, a fortunate mistake. While one Union division struck the Confederate left at the Angle, Brig. Gen. Samuel W Crawford's division passed too far north and missed the Confederate line altogether. Instead, Crawford's lines swept westward to the Confederate rear, cutting the main Confederate escape route here along Fords Road. Crawford then pushed across the fields in front of you, toward the rear of the Confederate lines at Five Forks (to your left). His attack spelled doom for Pickett's command.
52. 5FORKS_060319_109.JPG: Crawford's Sweep would have come across here from the right and crossed Courthouse (Fords) Road here. Then they turned south and headed toward Five Forks behind us.
53. 5FORKS_060319_113.JPG: This construction vehicle is just to the north of Hatchers Run on Court House (Fords) Road. I'm not sure what this area will look like when I return again.
54. 5FORKS_060319_121.JPG: Hatchers Run
55. 5FORKS_060319_137.JPG: This is Hatchers Run. Pickett would have been having his shad bake in this area. We're about a mile from Five Forks itself.
56. 5FORKS_060319_143.JPG: Looking north from the bridge at Hatchers Run. The construction vehicle was in the left side area. It looks like a new house or something to me but I could be wrong.
57. 5FORKS_060319_151.JPG: These are the South Side Railroad tracks. This was the goal of the Federal attack, the last railroad lifeline into Petersburg.
58. 5FORKS_030425_04.JPG: The following pictures are from the page 2003_VA_Five_Forks VA -- Five Forks (7 photos from 2003)
  This is the five-road intersection that marks the location of the Five Forks battlefield. When I'd visited the battlefield several years previous, there was a large building standing behind the marker which the park service hadn't been able to take down because, despite it being added after the war, was now considered "historic" since it was over 50 years old. Finally, the building became decrepit enough that they were allowed to pull it down for safety reasons.
59. 5FORKS_990529_01.JPG: The following pictures are from the page 1999_VA_Five_Forks VA -- Five Forks (16 photos from 1999)
  Five roads join at this segment -- "five forks"
60. 5FORKS_990529_02.JPG: The building is an old hunting club house which is now the visitor center for the Five Forks part of the battlefield park.
61. 5FORKS_990529_04.JPG: Death of Pegram Late afternoon, April 1, 1865. Confederate infantrymen waited behind rude, muddy earthworks lining the White Oak Road. Young Colonel William R.J. Pegram tended to his artillery: three guns in this field, three others farther to the west (your right). Then came the Federals. Sheridan's dismounted cavalry attacked frontally. Later, Warren's infantry swept down from the east. After fierce fighting, the Confederate positions around the intersection collapsed. In the melee fell Colonel Pegram, mortally wounded in the side. Just 23 years old, Pegram had survived all of the Army of Northern Virginia's major battles. He died only five miles from his ancestral home and just nine days short of the war's end.
62. 5FORKS_990529_06.JPG: Digging In Just before noon on April 1, 1865, 10,000 Confederates under Maj. Gen. George E. Pickett arrived here at Five Forks. They immediately started digging and by mid-afternoon had constructed a rough earthwork that extended along the White Oak Road for nearly two miles. You are standing at the center of that Confederate line. Weary, wet, and hungry, the Confederates waited – aware that if they yielded, nothing would stand between the Federals and the South Side Railroad, the last supply line into Petersburg. Until 4 p.m. the Confederates waited quietly behind the works. Then they saw them: men in blue, advancing astride the Dinwiddie Road. The rattle of musketry soon signaled the opening of the Battle of Five Forks. Most of the Confederate works built on April 1 have been obliterated. The best and most important surviving section is at the "Angle," on the extreme left of the line – about 3/4 mile to your left.
63. 5FORKS_990529_08.JPG: This house was later removed. It was considered "historic" because it was over 50 years but it had nothing to do with the battle.
64. 5FORKS_980802_03.JPG: Five Forks; Abandoned Building
65. 5FORKS_980802_05.JPG: Five Forks; Shad Bake Pull-Off
66. 5FORKS_980802_06.JPG: Five Forks; Burnt Quarter
67. 5FORKS_980802_07.JPG: Five Forks; Angle Pull-Off
68. 5FORKS_980802_08.JPG: Five Forks; Approach Pull-Off
69. 5FORKS_980802_15.JPG: Five Forks; Monument and Building
70. 5FORKS_980802_17.JPG: Five Forks; Crossing; Abandoned Building. Originally, I was told they couldn't take down this building because it was "historic", having been around for about 50 years. The ranger said he was hoping someone would come with a match and take care of it. When I came back several years later, it was gone.
71. 5FORKS_980802_18.JPG: Five Forks; Visitor Center
72. 5FORKS_980131_05.JPG: Five Forks; Battle Of White Oak Road
73. 5FORKS_980131_06.JPG: Five Forks; Chamberlain's Bed
74. 5FORKS_980131_09.JPG: Five Forks; Evergreen
75. 5FORKS_980131_11.JPG: Five Forks; Chamberlain's Bed
76. 5FORKS_980131_14.JPG: Five Forks; Shad-Bake Site
77. 5FORKS_980131_22.JPG: Five Forks; Railroad Crossing
78. 5FORKS_980110_01.JPG: The following pictures are from the page 1998_VA_Five_Forks VA -- Five Forks (68 photos from 1998)
79. 5FORKS_980110_02.JPG: Five Forks; Crossing
80. 5FORKS_980110_03.JPG: Five Forks; Confederate Monument
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Wikipedia Description: Battle of Five Forks
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Battle of Five Forks was fought on April 1, 1865, southwest of Petersburg, Virginia, in Dinwiddie County, during the Appomattox Campaign of the American Civil War. The battle, sometimes referred to as the " Waterloo of the Confederacy," pitted Union Major General Philip H. Sheridan against Confederate Major General George E. Pickett of Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia. Pickett's loss at Five Forks triggered Lee's decision to abandon his entrenchments around Petersburg and begin the retreat that led to his surrender at Appomattox Court House on April 9.

Background:

Following the Battle of Dinwiddie Court House on March 31, Pickett learned of reinforcements arriving from the Federal V Corps and wanted to pull back to a position behind Hatcher's Run. However, Lee ordered Pickett to stop short of Hatcher's Run and hold the crossroads of Five Forks with his infantry division and three cavalry divisions. "Five Forks" referred to the intersection of the White Oak Road, Scott's Road, Ford's (or Church) Road, and the Dinwiddie Court House Road. Lee's dispatch stated:

Hold Five Forks at all hazards. Protect road to Ford's Depot and prevent Union forces from striking the Southside Railroad. Regret exceedingly your forces' withdrawal, and your inability to hold the advantage you had gained.

Pickett's troops built a log and dirt defensive line about 1.75 miles (2.8 km) long on the White Oak Road, guarding the two flanks with cavalry. Sheridan's plan of attack was to pressure the entire line lightly with his cavalry troopers, pinning it in position, while he massed all of the V Corps, under Maj. Gen. Gouverneur K. Warren, on the Confederate left flank. Faulty maps and intelligence led Sheridan to believe that the enemy's left flank was much farther east than it actually was.

Muddy roads and tangled underbrush slowed the Union approach, and Warren was not ready to attack until about 4 p. ...More...
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