March 16, 1865
Averasboro (AKA Averasborough)
Harnett County and Cumberland County, NC
Major General William T. Sherman: Brig. Gen. Hugh Judson Kilpatrick's cavalry kicks things off; left-wing of Maj. Gen. Henry W. Slocum; two divisions of Brig. Gen. Alpheus Williams’s XX Corps; finally two divisions from Maj. Gen. Jefferson C. Davis’s Union XIV Corps
vs.
Gen. Joseph E. Johnston: Lt. Gen. William Hardee’s corps (two infantry divisions commanded by Brig. Gens. William B. Taliaferro and Lafayette McLaws, and a division of cavalry under Maj. Gen. Joseph Wheeler)
* After a hearty penultimate battle in NC, the Confederates retreat, leaving their campfires burning. On to Bentonville...
* This entry will be the final one from the Driving Home While Very Sick tour of NC - Feb. 2026. Ironically, I covered more ground on this second (sick) day, going from Beaufort to Averasboro then home, then I did the first (well) day when I drove from home to Beaufort, slowly through Fort Macon and other sites. Next time I'll get out of the car more often.
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| https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=41994 |
Prelude to Averasboro
Late in 1864, two large Union armies, one in Virginia and the other in Georgia, were beginning to squeeze the Confederacy to defeat. Grant held Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia immobile at Petersburg, while Sherman, with 60,000 men, captured Atlanta and began the famous March to the Sea. Savannah fell by Christmas, 1864, and in mid-January, 1865, Sherman’s invasion of the Carolinas was begun. Columbia was captured on February 17th and Fayetteville on March 11th.
After leaving Fayetteville, Sherman sought to confuse General Joseph E. Johnston’s Confederate forces by making a pretended advance against Raleigh with the left wing of his army. This wing, commanded by General H. W. Slocum, began its march from Fayetteville along the Old Stage Road (present U.S. 401) which connected with Raleigh. Some 25 miles above Fayetteville the road branched near the village of Averasboro: one branch continued north to Raleigh, the other ran to the east towards Smithfield and Goldsboro. While Sherman’s left wing moved in the direction of Averasboro, his right wing advanced toward Goldsboro on a parallel road about 20 miles to the east.
The Confederates faced a difficult military situation in North Carolina by mid-March, 1865. General Johnston, ordered to stop Sherman, found his small army scattered over a wide area. It would take time to organize the various units into an effective fighting force. The only corps in position to hinder the Union advance was the 6,500 man force under General W.J. Hardee. This corps was ordered to resist Slocum’s advance, thus began the Battle of Averasboro.
Erected 1961 by Archives and Highway Departments. Confederate Centennial Commission.
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| https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=41993 |
Battle of Averasboro
Phase One – March 15, 16, 1865
You are standing near the center of the first phase of fighting in the Battle of Averasboro, March 15-16, 1865.
On March 15th the left wing of General Sherman’s Union army, commanded by General H.W. Slocum, was advancing along this road (A) from Fayetteville to Averasboro. General H.J. Kilpatrick’s cavalry division was in the lead, skirmishing with General Joseph Wheeler’s Confederate cavalry which contested the Union advance.
At 3:00 P.M. the Union forces struck a heavy Confederate skirmish line (B). General Smith Atkins’ 9th Michigan cavalry (C) drove the skirmishers back into the first of three lines of breastworks erected across the road (E-1). The Union cavalry then constructed heavy barricades (D) in front of the Confederate works.
At 6:00 P.M. Confederate General W.B. Taliaferro, whose division was holding position E-1, ordered an attack (F) along his line. The Union forces, though hard-pressed, were able to hold their position due to the arrival of reinforcements from the 14th Corps (G). Nightfall found the two armies in nearly the same positions they had held throughout the afternoon. General W.T. Sherman, Union commander, arrived on the field during the night.
At 6:00 A.M. on March 16th, the Union forces (H) attacked Taliaferro’s line, driving the Confederates before them. Then the Southerners launched a desperate counter-attack (I). A disaster for the Union forces was averted when portions of the 20th Corps arrived upon the field (J). Three batteries of artillery (K) were placed in position near the John Smith house (L). These began firing upon the Confederates, driving them back into their breastworks.
At 11:00 A.M. two newly-arrived Union brigades (M) engaged the Confederates in front, while the brigade of Colonel Henry Case (N) assaulted the Confederate right flank. This attack forced the Confederates to withdraw into their second line of works (E-2).
NOTE: For the remainder of the battle, drive two miles north on this road and read the map-marker on phase two of the battle.
Erected 1961 by Archives and Highway Departments. Confederate Centennial Commission.(Marker Number II-3.)
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| https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=211814 |
Federal Hospital
The 1865 home of Wm. Smith, 100 yds E., was used as a hospital for Union troops in the Battle of Averasboro, March 15-16, 1865.
Erected 1961 by Archives and Highway Departments, Confederate Centennial Commission. (Marker Number I-75.)
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| https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=31600 |
Federal Artillery
From a point 50 yards west three batteries of artillery under Major J. A. Reynolds shelled the Confederate first line of earthworks.
Erected 1961 by NC Archives and Highway Departments. Confederate Centennial Commission. (Marker Number I-74.)
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| https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=160946 |
"Oak Grove"
Plantation home of John Smith, used as a Confederate hospital during the Battle of Averasboro, March 16, 1865.
Erected 1961 by Archives and Highway Departments. Confederate Centennial Commission.(Marker Number I-73.)
*
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| https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=14735 |
Taliaferro’s Division
Elliott’s Brigade
22nd GA BN 28th GA BN
Hanleiter’s BN Manigault’s BN
2nd SC Heavy Arty BN
Gist Guard Arty
6th NC BN Armory Guards
Rhett’s Brigade
1st SC Inf (Reg)
1st SC Heavy Arty BN
Lucas’s SC BN
Artillery Batallion
LeGardeur’s Btry
Stuart’s Btry
[ Rear of Marker: ]
Dedicated to the
Confederate Soldiers
of
Taliaferro’s Division
who fought and died
during
the Battle of Averasboro
March 15-16, 1865
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| https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=211815 |
Rhett’s Brigade
The brigade of Colonel A.M. Rhett was repulsed 300 yds. W. on March 16, 1865, by Union troops under Col. Henry Case.
Erected 1961 by Archives and Highway Departments. Confederate Centennial Commission. (Marker Number I-71.)
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| https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=210221 |
Battle of Averasboro
Confederate First Defensive Line
— Carolinas Campaign —
The Carolinas Campaign began on February 1, 1865, when Union Gen. William T. Sherman led his army north from Savannah, Georgia, after the March to the Sea. Sherman's objective was to join Gen. Ulysses S. Grant in Virginia to crush Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia. Scattered Confederate forces consolidated in North Carolina, the Confederacy's logistical lifeline, where Sherman defeated Gen. Joseph E. Johnston's last-ditch attack at Bentonville. After Sherman was reinforced at Goldsboro late in March, Johnston saw the futility of further resistance and surrendered at Bennett Place near Durham on April 26, ending the Civil War in the East.
As Gen. William T. Sherman marched north from Fayetteville, Gen. Joseph E. Johnston positioned his army near Smithfield, uncertain whether Sherman's destination was Raleigh or Goldsboro. On March 15, 1865, the head of Sherman's Left Wing struck Confederate Gen. William J. Hardee's skirmishers guarding the road just south of Averasboro. Hardee struck back, and the fight began. After several bloody attacks and counterattacks on March 16, Hardee withdrew during the night, and Sherman turned toward Goldsboro.
This is the position of the first Confederate line when the Battle of Averasboro began on the afternoon of March 15, 1865. Col. Alfred M. Rhett's brigade manned the line, with skirmishers in front to engage Union Gen. H. Judson Kilpatrick's advancing cavalry division. The 9th Michigan Cavalry, at the head of Kilpatrick's column, drove the skirmishers back, but reinforcements delayed the Union advance. At nightfall, the Confederates held their ground here, although Rhett was captured. The next day at dawn, about 16,000 Federals under Sherman's direction attacked the 2,800 Confederates on their first and second defensive lines. Under a heavy artillery barrage and frontal and flank assaults, they withdrew under pressure to their third line.
John C. Smith's home, Oak Grove, stood in the line of Union brigades during the fight. Bullets and at least two cannonballs struck the house, which subsequently served as a Union hospital treating the wounded of both sides. It was moved across the highway from its original site in 2006.
Major funding for this project was provided by the North Carolina Department of Transportation, through the Transportation Enhancement Program of the Federal Transportation Efficiency Act for the 21st Century.
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| https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=14737 |
1st Division
1st Brigade 2nd Brigade
5th Conn. 46th PA. 2nd Mass. 13th NJ
123rd NY. 141st NY. 107th NY. 150th NY.
3rd Wisc
3rd Brigade
82nd Ill. 101st Ill.
61st Oh. 82nd Oh.
143rd NY. 31st Wisc
3rd Division
1stBrigade 2nd Brigade
70th Ind. 102nd Ill. 33rd Ind. 85th Ind.
105th Ill. 129th Ill. 19th Mi. 22nd Wisc.
79th Oh.
3rd Brigade
20th Conn. 33rd Mass.
136th NY
26th Wisc.
55th Oh. 73rd Oh.
Artillery
1st NY Light, Batteries I and M
1st Oh Light, Battery C
Pa Indpt Battery E Light Arty
[ Rear of Marker: ]
Dedicated to the
Union Soldiers
of the
20th Corps
who fought and died
during
the Battle of Averasboro
March 14-16, 1865
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| https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=14732 |
Confederate Second Line
On the morning of March
16, 1865, Taliaferro’s
division fell back
to earthworks which
crossed the road here.
Erected 1961 by Archives and Highway Departments. Confederate Centennial Commission. (Marker Number H-98.)
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| https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=161956 |
Gen. H. W. Slocum, commanding the Union forces, located his headquarters in this field, March 16, 1865.
Erected by Division of Archives and History. (Marker Number H-60.)
*
https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=34301
Chicora Cemetery
In grateful memory of
the brave men who sleep
in Chicora Cemetery.
They fought their last fight
March 16, 1865
on this third line breastworks
of Averasboro Battlefield.
Erected 1926 by United Daughters of the Confederacy – Chicora Chapter.
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| https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=161955 |
On this field March 15-16,
1865, men of South Carolina
stood with men of other
Southern states and
fought bloodily and
bravely for their beliefs
and way of life. In doing
so they wrote their
names in imperishable
letters in the book of
glory.
[Back of Monument: ]
Erected by
South Carolina
Confederate
War Centennial
Commission
Governor Donald S. Russell
Rep. John A. May, Chr. Dr. Daniel W. Hollis
Hon. Julian Metz, C. Chr. Mrs. W.A. King
Hon. Roddey L. Bell Col. S. Perrin Toole
Sen. John D. Long Mrs. Archie C. Watson
Sen. L.L. Hester Mrs. B.D. Wofford
March 20, 1965
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| https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=161952 |
McLaws Division
Blanchard’s Brigade
1st and 2nd BN SC Reserves
6th and 7th BN SC Reserves
Kay’s Co SC Reserves
Conner’s Brigade
2nd SC 3rd SC
7th SC 8th SC
15th SC 20th SC
3rd SC BN
Fiser’s Brigade
1st GA
5th and 6th GA Reserves
2nd GA BN Reserves
27th GA BN
Hardy’s Brigade
50th NC 77th NC
10th NC Heavy Arty BN
Harrison’s Brigade
5th GA 32nd GA
47th GA
Artillery
Brooks’ Btry
[ Rear of Monument:]
Dedicated to the
Confederate soldiers
of
McLaws Division
who fought and died
during
the Battle of Averasboro
March 15-16 1865
In loving memory
Mark St. John Clapp
Dec. 5 1961 – Nov. 23, 1999
NC RLA NO. 877
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| https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=161953 |
Battle
of
Averasboro
March 16,
1865
---------------
In
memory
of our
Confederate
Dead
who fell upon
that day.
----------------
The hearts
that were
true
to their
country
and
God
shall report
at the
Grand Reveille.
---------------
Dulce et Decorum
est pro
Patria Mori.
---------------
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| https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=15760 |
In memory of the
North Carolina Troops
that so valiantly
resisted the advance
of a superior
Federal army at the
Battle of Averasboro
March 15-16, 1865
Fiftieth North Carolina Regiment
Seventy Seventh North Carolina Regiment
Tenth Battalion North Carolina
Heavy Artillery
Local units engaged here
50th N.C. Regiment
Co. H Harnett County
Co. C Johnston County
Co. D Johnston County
10th N. C. Battalion
Co. B Harnett County
Farthest to the front at
Last at Appomattox
Back of Monument:
Erected by the
County of Harnett
Chicora Chapter United
Daughters of the Confederacy
Averasboro Battleground
Centennial Commission
1968
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| https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=5833 |
Battle of Averasboro
Phase Two – March 16, 1865
You are standing at the center of the second phase of fighting in the Battle of Averasboro, March 15,16, 1865.
On the morning of March 16th, after the fight of the preceding afternoon around John Smith’s house 2 miles south on this road, Union General H.J. Kilpatrick’s cavalry found a back road (A) circled to the rear of the Confederate position (E-2). The Union cavalry (B) attempted to use this road to flank the Confederates, but was stopped by Colonel G.P. Harrison’s brigade of McLaw’s division (C) after moving only a short distance.
General W.B. Taliaferro decided to abandon the Confederate second position (E-2) after finding his men in danger of being flanked. At 1:00 P.M. he withdrew to the third and final line of earthworks (E-3), where he was assisted by McLaw’s division on his left and Wheeler’s dismounted cavalry on his right. Rhett’s disorganized brigade (D) was held in general reserve behind the junction of this road (E) and the Smithfield road (F).
The Union forces soon advanced and established a strong line (G) immediately in front of the Confederate third line. From this new position they pressed the Confederates all afternoon and part of the evening, but were unable to break the line. At 8:00 P.M. General W.J. Hardee, commanding the Confederate forces at Averasboro, having accomplished his objectives, began withdrawing his corps along the Smithfield road. Wheeler’s cavalry was left behind to cover the retreat. By 4:00 A.M. on March 17th, all Confederate units had been withdrawn leaving the Union forces in control.
General Hardee wished to accomplish two things by contesting the Union advance at Averasboro. The first objective was to determine for General Joseph E. Johnston, commander of all Confederate forces in the Carolinas, whether Sherman’s army was advancing on Raleigh or Goldsboro. The second objective was to stretch out the distance between Sherman’s left and right wings (which were moving on parallel roads) in order to give General Johnston a chance to concentrate his smaller army and destroy the Union left wing before the right wing could come to its assistance. Both of these objectives were fully accomplished. The stage was now set for the greater Battle of Bentonville, fought 25 miles east on March 19-21, 1865.
NOTE: In order to better understand the battle it is best to read the large map-marker “Phase One” which is located two miles south on this road.
Erected 1961 by Archives and Highway Departments. Confederate Centennial Commission. (Marker Number HH-2.)
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| Fairly incredible experience here: I'm all alone, early morning on a battlefield. I press a button and this video starts playing - loudly, with the American Battlefield Trust's chief historian, Gary Adelman, walking where I am standing and explaining the area and the battle. I was stunned it still worked, and it echoed through the fields in the early morning stillness. Amazing. |
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| With all due respect, your hallowed ground is safe with me, but I drove at least 9.5 hours to reach this final destination of my NC tour. It's going to take more than a stop sign to prevent me from "collecting" those plainly visible historical markers. One could also argue that Sunday morning is "Before Hours," not "After Hours." So I wasn't really tressapping (again) - from a certain point of view.... |
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| https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=242819 |
The Model 1841 6-pounder gun was one of a "family of weapons" designed by the U.S. Army Ordnance Department in 1841. It was common to both armies in the early war year. The piece gradually fell into disfavor at the introduction of the Model 1857 Napoleon. However, in the western theater the 6-Pdr soldiered on until the end of the war.https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=31783
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| https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=210219 |
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| https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=3741 |
Battle of Averasboro
Third Confederate Defensive Line
— Carolinas Campaign —
The Carolinas Campaign began on February 1, 1865, when Union Gen. William T. Sherman led his army north from Savannah, Georgia, after the “March to the Sea.”
Sherman's objective was to join Gen. Ulysses S. Grant in Virginia to crush Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia. Scattered Confederate forces consolidated in North Carolina, the Confederacy's logistical lifeline, where Sherman defeated Gen. Joseph E. Johnston's last-ditch attack at Bentonville. After Sherman was reinforced at Goldsboro late in March, Johnston saw the futility of further resistance and surrendered on April 26, essentially ending the Civil War.
As Gen. William T. Sherman marched north from Fayetteville, Gen. Joseph E. Johnston positioned his army near Smithfield, uncertain whether Sherman's destination was Raleigh or Goldsboro. On March 15, 1865, the head of Sherman's Left Wing struck Confederate Gen. William J. Hardee's skirmishers guarding the road just south of Averasboro. Hardee struck back, and the fight began.
By the afternoon of Mar 16, 1865, Confederate Gen. William J. Hardee’s men had retreated from their first and second defensive positions to their third line of defense here. Col. Henry Case’s late morning flanking attack had pushed Col. Alfred M. Rhett’s South Carolina brigade 200 yards north from the first to the second line, held by the brigade of Gen. Stephen Elliott, Jr. Early in the afternoon, Elliott’s line collapsed under Federal attacks, and the Confederates withdrew 600 yards north to the third line. An increasingly heavy rain made the already muddy terrain even worse for troop movements, and Confederate Gen. Joseph Wheeler thwarted an attack on the right flank near the Cape Fear River before darkness ended the fighting. That night, while the Federals made plans to press the Confederates at dawn, Hardee withdrew his artillery and then his infantry, leaving campfires burning to disguise the maneuver.
Of about 12,000 Union troops engaged, 682 were reported killed, wounded, or missing, while the approximately 7,000 Confederates lost about 500. Hardee had delayed the Union advance for a day, buying precious time for Confederate Gen. Joseph E. Johnston, who was skillfully uniting his scattered forces for a more substantial attempt to stop Sherman’s progress. The stage was set for the Battle of Bentonville.
“The infirmary was here and – oh! It makes me shudder to think of the awful sights I witnessed that morning. ….I just felt like my heart would break when I would see our brave men rushing into battle and then coming back so mangled. …We could hear the commands and the groans and shrieks of the wounded … about four o’clock the Yankees came charging, yelling and howling. I stood on the piazza [porch] and saw the charge made. …The palings [fences] did not hinder them at all. They just knocked them down like so many mad cattle.” - Jane “Janie” Smith, 18-year-old daughter of Farquhard Smith, at Smith House on the map.
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Unless there is a warrant out for my arrest in NC,
I'm glad I was able to get this final pic of the Averasboro battlefield. |
Sources / Suggested Reading:
https://www.averasboro.com/
https://www.battlefields.org/learn/civil-war/battles/averasboro
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