VA -- Richmond Natl Battlefield Park -- Totopotomoy Crossing (Rural Plains):
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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:
- TOTO_141227_001.JPG: Richmond National Battlefield Park
Totopotomoy Creek Battlefield Rural Plains
- TOTO_141227_004.JPG: Marker from APVA:
1656: Totopotomoi:
Chief of the Pamunkey Indians, faithful ally of the English, killed in Battle of Bloody Run near Richmond.
1754: Rural Plains:
Built 1670, home of Sarah Shelton, married here to Patrick Henry.
1864: Battle of the Totopotomoi:
Preceding Cold Harbor.
- TOTO_141227_013.JPG: Visiting Richmond National Battlefield Park
The concentration of Civil War resources found in the Richmond area is unparalleled. The National Park Service manages 13 sites, giving visitors an opportunity to examine the battlefield landscapes, to hear the stories of the combatants and civilian residents, and to understand the complex reasons why Richmond came to symbolize the heart and soul of the Confederacy.
Regulations
This is a partial list of park regulations. Site is open sunrise to sunset. Report suspicious activities to any park employee or call 804-795-5018. In emergencies call 911.
Alcoholic beverages are prohibited.
All natural and cultural resources are protected by law.
Relic hunting is prohibited. Possession of a metal detector in the park is illegal.
Hunting, trapping, feeding, or otherwise disturbing wildlife is prohibited.
Weapons are prohibited inside all park buildings.
Pets must be on a leash.
Recreation activities like kite-flying, ball-playing, and frisbee throwing are prohibited.
Motor vehicles and bicycles must remain on established roads.
- TOTO_141227_015.JPG: 1864 Overland Campaign
The fourth spring of the war began when Union armies launched a series of offensives across unconquered portions of the South. The action in Virginia included three separate campaigns, each defined by aggressive advances from Union commanders. While smaller armies fought in the Shenandoah Valley and around the Bermuda Hundred region south of Richmond, Gen. Ulysses S. Grant sent the largest Northern army against Gen. Robert E. Lee's Confederates. The ensuing series of battles is known today as the Overland Campaign.
Costly stalemates at the battles of the Wilderness and Spotsylvania delayed Grant's progress. Confederates next blocked his southward drive at the North Anna River, and then along Totopotomoy Creek at the end of May 1864. Finally the armies collided at Cold Harbor, just eight miles from Richmond. There Grant's headlong assaults against Lee's entrenchments on June 1 and June 3 failed. Despite enormous losses, the Union army retained the initiative and marched south to Petersburg, where Grant began the long process of cutting Richmond's supply lines.
Wilderness May 5-6
Two days of close-quarters action in the thick woods west of Fredericksburg produced nearly 30,000 casualties and inaugurated a grueling campaign that saw the armies sweep across most of central Virginia.
Spotsylvania May 8-21
Grant ignored the indecisive results of the Wilderness and pressed southward toward more open ground. The Confederate army blocked him on May 8. For two weeks over 150,000 men fought for an advantage. The terrible combat at the Bloody Angle on May 12 defined this period and reenforced the campaign's grim tone set at the Wilderness the week before.
North Anna River May 23-26
When the Union army moved away from Spotsylvania, Confederate infantry fell back to the next defensible ground, south of the North Anna River. Actions on May 23 and 24 weakened Grant's momentum and forced him to look toward another movement to continue his campaign.
Totopotomoy Creek May 28-30
Hard marching and determination took the Union army away from North Anna and closer to Richmond.Just a dozen miles from the city, this creek saw the next collision of the armies. Aggressive probes up and down the creek valley ignited many small battles and proved to General Grant that the Confederates again blocked his direct path to Richmond.
Cold Harbor May 31-June 12
The armies revisited ground first contested during McClellan's 1862 campaign. This time the lines extended for nearly seven miles, with action beginning at the Old Cold Harbor crossroads and extending north and south from there. A major attack by the Federal army on June 1 partly succeeded; the larger follow-up attack on June 3 failed badly. The soldiers endured nine more days of sniping and misery in the entrenchments before both armies marched south toward Petersburg, ending the "overland" portion of the 1864 campaign.
- TOTO_141227_020.JPG: Rural Plains and Totopotomoy Creek Trail
For most of its history, Rural Plains abided the steady rhythm of farm life: sow, tend, harvest. For 275 years, this was the home of the Shelton family -- at least eight generations of Sheltons grew up here. Before the Civil War, slaves sustained the nearly 1,000-acre plantation and the lifestyle of their prominent owners.
On May 29, 1864, war shattered the rhythms of Rural Plains. Union officers took the house as a headquarters. Soldiers shoveled earthworks across the farm's fields The Shelton family took shelter in the basement, while the family's 37 slaves sought refuge where they could. The fighting that swirled around the house transformed this homeplace into a battlefield -- an identity that endures still.
The Sheltons remained here until 2006, when the land passed to the National Park Service. Today, 124 of the original 1,000 acres remain.
"On reaching the Shelton house, a fine southern mansion situated on and overlooking Totopotomoy Creek, our skirmish line came under fire from the enemy's skirmish line on the opposite bank?this looked as if serious work was before us, and we now commenced intrenching [sic] in earnest."
-- Lt. Robert Robertson, 93rd New York Infantry
- TOTO_141227_024.JPG: Rural Plains
"Give me liberty or give me death!"
-- Patrick Henry, March 23, 1775
Rural Plains, home of the Shelton family for nearly three centuries, stands on the northern bank of Totopotomoy Creek. Eighteen-year-old Patrick Henry married Sarah Shelton in 1754. Family tradition places the wedding ceremony in the first floor parlor located in the northwest corner of the house. The young couple soon moved a short distance away to Pine Slash, a small farm on a 300-acre tract of land.
The Shelton House received national attention in the spring of 1864 when Civil War armies clashed at Totopotomoy Creek as part of the Overland Campaign. For four days (May 29-June 1), parts of Union General Winfield Hancock's Second Corps occupied the plantation. Entrenchments criss-crossed the fields and incoming artillery shells riddled the historic house while the Shelton family huddled in the basement.
Few Civil War soldiers knew that the battle started on Henry's 128th birthday, and many mistook his nearby birthplace for his grave. Nevertheless, soldiers drew inspiration from the knowledge that they were fighting on ground where Patrick Henry had walked. "Halted for the night," a Pennsylvania soldier wrote in his diary, "near the tomb of the illustrious Patrick Henry." Another wrote more accurately that "we had a battle near the homestead of our old patriot and orator, Patrick Henry." The National Park Service acquired the Shelton House and 124 surrounding acres in 2006.
Patrick Henry (May 29, 1736 - June 6, 1799) was the leading Virginia statesman in defending the rights of Colonial America.
Following Henry's death, John Adams wrote to Thomas Jefferson singing his praises: "In the Congress of 1774 there was not one member, except Patrick Henry, who appeared to me sensible of the Precipice or rather the Pinnacle on which he stood, and had the candour and courage enough to acknowledge it."
Henry was the first elected governor of Virginia, a devoted father of 17 children, and the most famous orator of his day. Born in Hanover County, Henry made a name for himself as a young lawyer in the Parsons' Cause at Hanover Courthouse in 1763. His 1765 resolutions against the Stamp Act articulated the basic principles of the American Revolution. Henry is perhaps best known for his immortal words "Give me liberty or give me death," which he delivered during the Second Virginia Convention in a speech to fellow delegates George Washington and Thomas Jefferson at St. John's Church in 1775. His impassioned words helped move colonists toward American independence and they continue to inspire the cause of freedom around the world.
Known as the "Voice of the Revolution," Henry's political career included 26 years of service in the Virginia legislature and five terms as governor. He helped draft the Virginia Constitution of 1776 and its Declaration of Rights. A leading critic of the U.S. Constitution, Henry also strongly influenced the creation of the Bill of Rights. Following his death, Henry was buried at Red Hill Plantation, now the site of the Patrick Henry National Memorial.
- TOTO_141227_037.JPG: Shelton House Under Fire
May 30, 1864
- TOTO_141227_136.JPG: Attacking the High Ground
Totopotomy Creek separated the armies here between May 29 and 31, 1864. Twice the men of the Union 2nd Corps (Barlow's Division) charged down this slope. They hoped to cross the "deep morass" and seize the opposite heights. Darkness halted the first assault, on May 30, after partial success.
The next day heavier Confederate fire from rifle pits greeted the attackers. "The men fell like sheep," and the attack stalled. To the right and left of here, though, other Federal commands were able to establish permanent toeholds on the Confederate side of the creek. These troops shifted south toward Cold Harbor on June 1.
Lieutenant Robert Robertson's diary entry for May 31:
"As I went down the slope....I was struck by a bullet...and knew no more until I recovered and found myself lying on the ground, while my faithful horse was standing over me and licking my face....I thought I was dying, and never did the blue sky and green woods and field look half so beautiful as then...."
- TOTO_141227_196.JPG: Sarah Shelton wed Patrick Henry in 1754, purportedly while standing in front of the parlor fireplace. Patrick's uncle, the Rev. Patrick Henry, performed the ceremony.
- TOTO_141227_200.JPG: Famed Civil War artist Alfred Waud sketched the exterior of "Rural Plains" during the May 1864 battle. The image closely depicts the 18th-century appearance of the home, as the Sheltons made only a few exterior alterations to the structure.
- Wikipedia Description: Battle of Totopotomoy Creek
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Battle of Totopotomoy Creek (also called the Battle of Bethesda Church, Crumps Creek, Shady Grove Road, and Hanovertown) was a battle in Union Lt. Gen. Ulysses Grant's Overland Campaign against Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia. Attacks by Lee, primarily using the corps of Lt. Gen. Jubal A. Early, had little effect, and the Union army continued its moves to the southeast and the Battle of Cold Harbor.
Background:
After Grant's army escaped from the trap that Lee had set for it at the Battle of North Anna, it began to move again around the right flank of Lee's army, in a continuation of the maneuvering that had characterized the campaign throughout May 1864. It traveled southeast on the north bank of the Pamunkey River, hoping to find the appropriate place to break through Lee's lines. On May 27, Union cavalry established a bridgehead on the south side of the river, near the Hanovertown Ford. As Grant's infantry crossed, cavalry divisions from both armies fought to a standstill at the Battle of Haw's Shop on May 28.
Lee's army was in precarious shape as it lay in entrenchments behind Totopotomoy Creek. Although the cavalry action at Haw's Shop had given Lee valuable intelligence that indicated Grant's avenue of approach, the Confederates were short on supplies, due to the Union disruption of the Virginia Central Railroad. And they were also short on men. Lee requested that General P.G.T. Beauregard sent him reinforcements from his 12,000-man army, sitting relatively idle as they bottled up Maj. Gen. Benjamin Butler's army at Bermuda Hundred. Beauregard initially refused Lee's request, citing the potential threat from Butler. Lee was determined despite this disappointment, and despite the persistence of his recent dysentery at North Anna. He wrote to President Davis, "If General Grant advances tomorrow I will engage him with my present force." (On May 30, appeals to Confederate President Jefferson Davis caused Beauregard to relent and send 7,000 men, the division of Maj. Gen. Robert Hoke, to join Lee.)
The battle would be fought along Totopotomoy Creek, near the 1862 battlefield of Gaines' Mill, at Hanover, and at Bethesda Church, north of Gaines' Mill and Old Cold Harbor.
Battle:
On May 29, Grant's army advanced southwest to confront Lee. Since most of his cavalry was occupied elsewhere, he decided to use infantry for a reconnaissance in force. The II Corps of Maj. Gen. Winfield S. Hancock followed the Richmond-Hanovertown Road (also known as Atlee Station Road) to the creek. Finding that Lee was firmly entrenched on the far bank, Hancock's men began digging in. The V Corps, under Maj. Gen. Gouverneur K. Warren, extended the II Corps line to the left, placing Brig. Gen. Charles Griffin's division across the creek onto Shady Grove Road. Maj. Gen. Horatio G. Wright's VI Corps was sent northwest from Hanovertown toward Hanover Court House, led by Brig. Gen. David A. Russell's division. Maj. Gen. Ambrose Burnside's IX Corps was in reserve near Haw's Shop and Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan's Cavalry Corps was far to the Union left, near Old Church. The Confederate line, from left to right, were the corps of Lt. Gen. A.P. Hill, the independent division of Maj. Gen. John C. Breckinridge, just returned from the Shenandoah Valley, and the corps of Maj. Gen. Richard H. Anderson and Lt. Gen. Jubal A. Early. No action beyond minor skirmishing occurred during the day.
Grant began a general advance on May 30. Wright's corps was to move south against A.P. Hill on the Confederate left, while Hancock attacked across the creek against Breckinridge in the center, and Warren moved west toward Early along Shady Grove Road. Wright's advance became bogged down in the swampy land near Crump's Creek, delaying his VI Corps until late in the day. Hancock's skirmishers captured some of Breckinridge's rifle pits, but made little progress against the main Confederate line. Maj. Gen. George G. Meade (who commanded the Army of the Potomac under the supervision of Grant) ordered Burnside's reserve corps to assist Hancock, but they arrived too late in the day to have an effect on the battle. On the Union left, Warren moved the rest of his V Corps across the creek and deployed on Shady Grove Road. They began probing west along the road, Griffin leading, followed by the divisions of Maj. Gen. Samuel W. Crawford and Brig. Gen. Lysander Cutler.
Lee interpreted these movements as a continuation of Grant's campaign strategy to move around Lee's flank and toward the southeast. He ordered Early's corps, which was entrenched across Warren's path, to attack the V corps with the assistance of Anderson's corps. Early planned to send the division of Maj. Gen. Robert E. Rodes on a flanking march along Old Church Road, turning north at Bethesda Church, and follow paths that his cavalry had precut through the underbrush to smash into Warren's rear areas.
As the V corps moved forward slowly, Warren became concerned about the safety of his left flank. He directed Crawford's division to move south along a farm track to Old Church Road, where they erected simple breastworks. Crawford sent forward the brigade of Colonel Martin D. Hardin, men of the Pennsylvania Reserves whose enlistment was due to expire that same day. Rodes's men marched directly into Hardin's brigade at about noon and routed them. The retreat to behind Beaver Dam Creek was contagious and Crawford's entire division formation collapsed, exposing the V Corps' left flank. Unfortunately for the Confederates, Rodes lost control of his men, who ran beyond their objectives and descended into confusion. Rodes hesitated to continue with Early's plan, which called for him to push north into the rear area of Warren's corps. Much of Early's corps was still in march column. Also, Anderson's corps, which was supposed to support Early, was delayed in arriving. Warren began shifting his corps to face south toward Early and Crawford reformed at the farm lane. Griffin's division moved in to support him and the V Corps artillery, under Col. Charles S. Wainwright, arrived and set up several batteries north of Shady Grove Road, on Crawford's left. Griffin's division dug in on Crawford's right.
Maj. Gen. Stephen Dodson Ramseur, of Early's corps, newly promoted to division command, recklessly charged the Union artillery at 6:30 p.m. The assault was poorly conceived in many dimensions, and Early gave permission only reluctantly. Gordon's division was still deploying and could not support the attack. Rodes's men were too occupied with protecting the Confederate right to assist. Ramseur's brigade under Brig. Gen. Thomas F. Toon was pinned down by Federal fire on its open left flank. Therefore, the only brigade that actually attacked was Pegram's Brigade, commanded by Col. Edward Willis. They advanced heroically through a severe crossfire of rifle and cannon fire and were able to close within 50 yards of the Union position. Willis was mortally wounded and the brigade fell back to its starting point.
Ramseur’s attack was a costly repulse, but the Southern soldiers’ heroism earned the admiration of the Union soldiers who witnessed it. The historian of the 13th Pennsylvania Reserves recorded the event: "The slaughter was so sickening that Major Hartshorne leaped to his feet and called upon his assailants to surrender. Some hundreds did so. Rebels or no rebels, their behavior and bearing during the charge had won the admiration of their captors, who did not hesitate to express it." A surviving Virginian recalled, "Our line melted away as if by magic. Every brigade, staff and field officer was cut down, (mostly killed outright) in an incredibly short time."
Grant ordered a general assault across the line to relieve pressure on Warren, but none of his corps commanders were in positions to comply immediately. However, Warren's men had extricated themselves from their predicament without additional assistance. The repulse of Ramseur's division discouraged Early and he ordered his corps to withdraw a short distance to the west. He blamed Anderson for not arriving in time to assist, but the soldiers blamed Ramseur, who had ordered the charge without sufficient reconnaissance.
While the infantry battled at the creek and the church, the cavalry of the two armies clashed to the east in the Battle of Old Church.
Aftermath:
Federal casualties were about 750, versus 1,200 Confederates. Confederate Col. Edward Willis, a popular former member of Stonewall Jackson's staff, was mortally wounded during Ramseur's ill-considered assault. Brig. Gen. George P. Doles was killed by a sharpshooter near Bethesda Church on June 2. Confederate Brig. Gen. James B. Terrill was also killed at Bethesda Church.
Of more concern to Lee than Early's failed attack was intelligence he received that reinforcements were heading Grant's way. Just as Hoke's division was leaving Bermuda Hundred, the 16,000 men of Maj. Gen. William F. “Baldy” Smith's XVIII Corps were withdrawn from Butler's Army of the James at Grant's request and they were moving down the James River and up the York to the Pamunkey. If Smith moved due west from White House Landing to Cold Harbor, 3 miles southeast of Bethesda Church and Grant's left flank, the extended Federal line would be too far south for the Confederate right to deal with it. Lee sent his cavalry under Maj. Gen. Fitzhugh Lee to secure the crossroads at Cold Harbor.
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