Battle of Sutherland's Station
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Sutherland's Station was an American Civil War
conflict fought on April 2, 1865, in Dinwiddie, Virginia
during the Appomattox Campaign
.
Union
columns converged on Petersburg
on April 2, pushing through a large section of the Confederate
defensive entrenchments. As Robert E. Lee
desperately sought to buy time to allow his army to withdraw, Ulysses S. Grant
launched several other attacks. Stubborn Confederate resistance at Fort Gregg delayed Grant's progress. Meanwhile, Maj. Gen. Nelson A. Miles
's Union division battered Henry Heth
's Confederates near Sutherland's Station and drove them off the field. The Confederate defenders were scattered and driven northwestward. With this victory, the Federals possessed the South Side Railroad, Gen. Robert E. Lee
's last supply line into Petersburg. However, the lengthy defense of Fort Gregg and Grant's hesitation in aggressively following up on his success at Sutherland's Station permitted Lee to evacuate his army that night.
had besieged Petersburg for ten long months, but as April 1865 opened, the Army of the Potomac
under its commander, George G. Meade, was finally in a position to break through the entrenchments of the Army of Northern Virginia
. At 4:30 on the morning of April 2 on the Confederate earthworks west of Petersburg. Meade sent forward four Union corps
, with the VI Corps
succeeding in breaking through the thinly manned Confederate lines. Flushed with success, the Union troops poured through the breech and turned the Southern flanks, eventually gaining control of the entrenchments from Hatcher's Run to Boydton Plank Road.
Robert E. Lee, realizing that the loss of so much of his defensive perimeter had now doomed the city, issued orders to evacuate Petersburg. He sent word to his remaining commanders to hold as long as they could to allow an orderly retreat. Federal troops repeatedly attacked Fort Gregg (held by only 500 Confederate defenders), but failed to quickly seize the vital fort, allowing Lee time to establish an inner defensive line to protect his army's rear as it retired.
Grant turned his attention to the west, where the South Side Railroad had provided a vital last supply line for Lee's beleaguered troops. Maj. Gen. Andrew A. Humphreys
's II Corps
faced the forces of Maj. Gen. Henry Heth
running from Hatcher's Run to White Oak Road. Heth's men constituted the extreme right flank of Lee's army. Nelson Miles's division had been sent to reinforce Philip Sheridan
on the Union flank. Not needing the infantry support, Sheridan sent Miles back. Once the VI Corps
had broken through, Humphreys was ordered to attack along his front. When the order came for Humphreys to attack, Heth had already begun to fall back to a secondary line. Humphreys only had one division available to attack. Not far from the battlefield of Battle of Five Forks
, his only available division easily pushed forward through light resistance and seized a salient
in the Confederate line. When Miles' division of three brigades returned, it faced abandoned trenches. Humphreys wanted to immediately move against Heth, but Meade had ordered all the Union infantry to turn and face Petersburg. Humphreys responded by turning to the north, but left Miles behind to deal with Heth.
Miles pursued the retiring Confederates up the Claiborne Road as far as Sutherland's Station (nineteen miles from Petersburg). There, Heth had regrouped four Confederate brigades in an attempt to defend the South Side Railroad, their left flank anchored at Ocran Methodist Church. By now, Heth had learned that Lt. Gen. A. P. Hill
had been killed earlier in the day, and now he was in command of the Third Army Corps as its senior division commander. Dodging Federal patrols, he hastened to Petersburg, where he found that Lee had instead decided to disband the corps and give its units to James Longstreet
.
At 3:00 p.m., Miles struck north from White Oak Road and launched his initial attack under orders from Grant to follow-up on Humphreys's initial breakthrough. Heth's division repulsed two Federal attacks before Miles sent for reinforcements. As had been the case for the II Corps all morning, Humphreys backtracked to Sutherland Station to reinforce Miles. However, Miles launched a third assault and Heth's weary Confederates finally buckled, then broke. John R. Cooke's brigade stubbornly held up the Federals as the remainder of Heth's troops headed west. Miles's victorious men pushed ahead and captured nearly 1,000 prisoners and 2 artillery pieces. In the meantime, Grant had delayed the final attack on Fort Gregg while he awaited news regarding Miles' outcome, another delay that helped Lee evacuate more troops from Petersburg. By the time that the fort finally fell, Lee had bought enough time to successfully extricate the vast majority of his army.
In the savage fighting around Sutherland's Station, Miles reported 370 casualties, while the Confederates lost approximately 600 men killed or wounded, plus 1,000 taken as prisoners of war. Humphreys's II Corps had been made to wander back and forth all morning and the general later contended that, had his whole corps been allowed to move against the Confederates, Heth's whole command would have been destroyed.
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
conflict fought on April 2, 1865, in Dinwiddie, Virginia
Dinwiddie, Virginia
Dinwiddie is a small unincorporated community in and the county seat of Dinwiddie County, Virginia, United States. The town was the site of the Battle of Dinwiddie Court House, the Battle of Five Forks as well as the Battle of Sutherland's Station during the Appomattox Campaign.The town is near the...
during the Appomattox Campaign
Appomattox Campaign
The Appomattox Campaign was a series of battles fought March 29 – April 9, 1865, in Virginia that culminated in the surrender of Confederate General Robert E...
.
Union
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
columns converged on Petersburg
Petersburg, Virginia
Petersburg is an independent city in Virginia, United States located on the Appomattox River and south of the state capital city of Richmond. The city's population was 32,420 as of 2010, predominantly of African-American ethnicity...
on April 2, pushing through a large section of the Confederate
Confederate States Army
The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...
defensive entrenchments. As Robert E. Lee
Robert E. Lee
Robert Edward Lee was a career military officer who is best known for having commanded the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in the American Civil War....
desperately sought to buy time to allow his army to withdraw, Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
launched several other attacks. Stubborn Confederate resistance at Fort Gregg delayed Grant's progress. Meanwhile, Maj. Gen. Nelson A. Miles
Nelson A. Miles
Nelson Appleton Miles was a United States soldier who served in the American Civil War, Indian Wars, and the Spanish-American War.-Early life:Miles was born in Westminster, Massachusetts, on his family's farm...
's Union division battered Henry Heth
Henry Heth
Henry "Harry" Heth was a career United States Army officer and a Confederate general in the American Civil War. He is best remembered for inadvertently precipitating the Battle of Gettysburg, when he sent some of his troops of the Army of Northern Virginia to the small Pennsylvania village,...
's Confederates near Sutherland's Station and drove them off the field. The Confederate defenders were scattered and driven northwestward. With this victory, the Federals possessed the South Side Railroad, Gen. Robert E. Lee
Robert E. Lee
Robert Edward Lee was a career military officer who is best known for having commanded the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in the American Civil War....
's last supply line into Petersburg. However, the lengthy defense of Fort Gregg and Grant's hesitation in aggressively following up on his success at Sutherland's Station permitted Lee to evacuate his army that night.
Battle
Gen. Ulysses S. GrantUlysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
had besieged Petersburg for ten long months, but as April 1865 opened, the Army of the Potomac
Army of the Potomac
The Army of the Potomac was the major Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War.-History:The Army of the Potomac was created in 1861, but was then only the size of a corps . Its nucleus was called the Army of Northeastern Virginia, under Brig. Gen...
under its commander, George G. Meade, was finally in a position to break through the entrenchments of the Army of Northern Virginia
Army of Northern Virginia
The Army of Northern Virginia was the primary military force of the Confederate States of America in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War, as well as the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. It was most often arrayed against the Union Army of the Potomac...
. At 4:30 on the morning of April 2 on the Confederate earthworks west of Petersburg. Meade sent forward four Union corps
Corps
A corps is either a large formation, or an administrative grouping of troops within an armed force with a common function such as Artillery or Signals representing an arm of service...
, with the VI Corps
VI Corps (ACW)
The VI Corps was a corps of the Union Army during the American Civil War.-Formation:The corps was organized as the Sixth Provisional Corps on May 18, 1862, by uniting Maj. Gen. William B. Franklin's Division, which had just arrived on the Virginia Peninsula, with Maj. Gen. William F. Smith's...
succeeding in breaking through the thinly manned Confederate lines. Flushed with success, the Union troops poured through the breech and turned the Southern flanks, eventually gaining control of the entrenchments from Hatcher's Run to Boydton Plank Road.
Robert E. Lee, realizing that the loss of so much of his defensive perimeter had now doomed the city, issued orders to evacuate Petersburg. He sent word to his remaining commanders to hold as long as they could to allow an orderly retreat. Federal troops repeatedly attacked Fort Gregg (held by only 500 Confederate defenders), but failed to quickly seize the vital fort, allowing Lee time to establish an inner defensive line to protect his army's rear as it retired.
Grant turned his attention to the west, where the South Side Railroad had provided a vital last supply line for Lee's beleaguered troops. Maj. Gen. Andrew A. Humphreys
Andrew A. Humphreys
Andrew Atkinson Humphreys , was a career United States Army officer, civil engineer, and a Union General in the American Civil War. He served in senior positions in the Army of the Potomac, including division command, chief of staff, and corps command, and was Chief Engineer of the U.S...
's II Corps
II Corps (ACW)
There were five corps in the Union Army designated as II Corps during the American Civil War.* Army of the Cumberland, II Corps commanded by Thomas L. Crittenden , later renumbered XX Corps...
faced the forces of Maj. Gen. Henry Heth
Henry Heth
Henry "Harry" Heth was a career United States Army officer and a Confederate general in the American Civil War. He is best remembered for inadvertently precipitating the Battle of Gettysburg, when he sent some of his troops of the Army of Northern Virginia to the small Pennsylvania village,...
running from Hatcher's Run to White Oak Road. Heth's men constituted the extreme right flank of Lee's army. Nelson Miles's division had been sent to reinforce Philip Sheridan
Philip Sheridan
Philip Henry Sheridan was a career United States Army officer and a Union general in the American Civil War. His career was noted for his rapid rise to major general and his close association with Lt. Gen. Ulysses S...
on the Union flank. Not needing the infantry support, Sheridan sent Miles back. Once the VI Corps
VI Corps (ACW)
The VI Corps was a corps of the Union Army during the American Civil War.-Formation:The corps was organized as the Sixth Provisional Corps on May 18, 1862, by uniting Maj. Gen. William B. Franklin's Division, which had just arrived on the Virginia Peninsula, with Maj. Gen. William F. Smith's...
had broken through, Humphreys was ordered to attack along his front. When the order came for Humphreys to attack, Heth had already begun to fall back to a secondary line. Humphreys only had one division available to attack. Not far from the battlefield of Battle of Five Forks
Battle of Five Forks
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 Maj. Gen. Philip H. Sheridan against...
, his only available division easily pushed forward through light resistance and seized a salient
Salients, re-entrants and pockets
A salient is a battlefield feature that projects into enemy territory. The salient is surrounded by the enemy on three sides, making the troops occupying the salient vulnerable. The enemy's line facing a salient is referred to as a re-entrant...
in the Confederate line. When Miles' division of three brigades returned, it faced abandoned trenches. Humphreys wanted to immediately move against Heth, but Meade had ordered all the Union infantry to turn and face Petersburg. Humphreys responded by turning to the north, but left Miles behind to deal with Heth.
Miles pursued the retiring Confederates up the Claiborne Road as far as Sutherland's Station (nineteen miles from Petersburg). There, Heth had regrouped four Confederate brigades in an attempt to defend the South Side Railroad, their left flank anchored at Ocran Methodist Church. By now, Heth had learned that Lt. Gen. A. P. Hill
A. P. Hill
Ambrose Powell Hill, Jr. , was a career U.S. Army officer in the Mexican-American War and Seminole Wars and a Confederate general in the American Civil War...
had been killed earlier in the day, and now he was in command of the Third Army Corps as its senior division commander. Dodging Federal patrols, he hastened to Petersburg, where he found that Lee had instead decided to disband the corps and give its units to James Longstreet
James Longstreet
James Longstreet was one of the foremost Confederate generals of the American Civil War and the principal subordinate to General Robert E. Lee, who called him his "Old War Horse." He served under Lee as a corps commander for many of the famous battles fought by the Army of Northern Virginia in the...
.
At 3:00 p.m., Miles struck north from White Oak Road and launched his initial attack under orders from Grant to follow-up on Humphreys's initial breakthrough. Heth's division repulsed two Federal attacks before Miles sent for reinforcements. As had been the case for the II Corps all morning, Humphreys backtracked to Sutherland Station to reinforce Miles. However, Miles launched a third assault and Heth's weary Confederates finally buckled, then broke. John R. Cooke's brigade stubbornly held up the Federals as the remainder of Heth's troops headed west. Miles's victorious men pushed ahead and captured nearly 1,000 prisoners and 2 artillery pieces. In the meantime, Grant had delayed the final attack on Fort Gregg while he awaited news regarding Miles' outcome, another delay that helped Lee evacuate more troops from Petersburg. By the time that the fort finally fell, Lee had bought enough time to successfully extricate the vast majority of his army.
In the savage fighting around Sutherland's Station, Miles reported 370 casualties, while the Confederates lost approximately 600 men killed or wounded, plus 1,000 taken as prisoners of war. Humphreys's II Corps had been made to wander back and forth all morning and the general later contended that, had his whole corps been allowed to move against the Confederates, Heth's whole command would have been destroyed.