The American Civil War - Chronologically

May 23-26, 1864 Battle of North Anna Caroline County and Hanover County, VA Grant vs. Lee * Both armies straggle out of Spotsylvania. Here, the Union is trying to cross the river to get to Richmond, and the Confederates are trying to stop them. We get across, but it is ugly and declared a "draw."  * I visited the North Anna Battlefield Park "accidently" while looking for Hanover Courthouse [Summer 2026]. I'll be back for more later. This site hosted multiple battles, and I got lost in the woods (on an unplanned hike) and missed some markers.  https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=21054 Attack at Ox Ford 24 May 1864 A half mile north, a brigade of Union infantry commanded by Brig. Gen. James H. Ledlie struck the center of Lee’s army, which blocked Grant’s approach to Richmond. Formidable earthworks hastily erected by Brig. Gen. William H. Mahone’s division anchored the Confederate battle line at Ox Ford on the North Anna River. Although instructed to use “utmost caution,”...

May 21, 1864 Hancock's II Corps passes through Bowling Green, VA Bowling Green, VA * The Union army occupied Bowling Green: that's about it. Part of the Grant vs. Lee - Overland campaign, which looms in my distant future [seen here March 2025 while tracing Lincoln's assassins] "In late May of 1864, 200,000 troops clashed as Lee's forces first met Grant's army. Grant had hoped to maneuver around Lee and make a run for the Confederate Capital of Richmond, but Lee diverted him across Caroline County into the heavily fortified banks of the North Anna River." Bowling Green, VA #NeverForget  https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=207703 Caroline County Courthouse Union Troops Filled the Roads to Richmond —Lee Vs. Grant - The 1864 Campaign— On May 21, 1864, Gen. Winfield S. Hancock’s Second Corps passed through Bowling Green. Union soldiers broke into stores, looted homes and freed prisoners from the jail. Documents from the ransacked courthouse littered the streets. A fe...

May 15, 1864 The Battle of New Market  New Market, VA General Franz Sigel vs. General John C. Breckinridge * " last Confederate victory in the Shenandoah Valley." Wow - I've documented a lot of firsts, so it's a big moment to record my first "last"  OK, here's the deal - on the way home from my epic journey to West Virginia completing the First Campaign [July 2024], I drove through a bunch of stuff that will be revisited another time for the Shenandoah Valley campaign(s). I also drove directly through the New Market battlefield, though it was closed on a Sunday; guess I'll need to ditch work and revisit on a weekday, but I grabbed a bunch of markers this first time anyway. To to be revisited and revised for sure!  https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=253507 The Night Before the Battle "We fired in their faces." —The Battle of New Market (May 14-15, 1864)— You're standing on Manor's Hill, a key position during the May 15, 1864, Battle of New...