Petersburg 1864

• Target Property at Petersburg

  

  Located across the tracks from the National Park Service property, the Civil War Trust's 81-acre target property on Blandford Hill figured prominently in three of the Petersburg Campaign's key battles.

  Douglas Ullman, Jr.

• Earthworks on Blandford Hill

  

  These works on the Trust's target property were an extension of Gracie's Salient, which is preserved on the adjacent National Park Service property.

  Douglas Ullman, Jr.

• Blandford Hill

  

  In addition to being battleground for two of the Petersburg campaign's other key engagements, The Trust's current target property on Blandford Hill saw heavy action during the July 30, 1864 Battle of the Crater.

  Douglas Ullman, Jr.

• Norfolk & Petersburg Railroad

  

  The Crater Battlefield is bisected by the Norfolk and Petersburg Railroad, which did not exist during the Civil War. The site of tracks of the modern Norfolk and Petersburg Railroad--which did not exist during the Civil War--was a railroad cut at the time of the Civil War and figured prominently in the action on the Trust's target tract.

  Douglas Ullman, Jr.

• The Cockade City

  

  This historic photograph of Petersburg, with its spires rising against the horizon, depicts the city as it appeared during the 10-month siege.

  Library of Congress

• Battery 5

  

  United States Colored Troops from William "Baldy" Smith's corps captured this work during their June 15, 1864 assault on Petersburg.

  Rob Shenk

• Old Blandford Church

  

  With the rise of the Episcopal Church in the South, the Anglican Blandford Church was abandoned and had fallen into to disrepair by the time of the Civil War.

  Library of Congress

• Blandford Church

  

  This brick church, which was abandoned during the Civil War years, sat atop Wells Hill, the target of several of the Union Army's early attempts to capture Petersburg. After the war, the church was restored and became a memorial for Confederate soldiers that died in defense of the Cockade City.

  Rob Shenk

• Blandford Cemetery Arch

  

  This arch stands over the graves in Blandford Cemetery, the final resting place of roughly 30,000 Confederates who fought during the Petersburg campaign.

  Rob Shenk

• Earthworks & Obstacles

  

  In the summer of 1864 both Union and Confederate armies constructed these elaborate earthworks, with extensive obstacles to deter and retard any infantry attack, all along the Petersburg front.

  Library of Congress

• Bombproof Shelter

  

  During the course of the campaign, Union and Confederate troops devised a number of various shelters to protect them from the constant shelling they endured in the trenches. This bombproof shelter was erected at Union Fort Sedgwick, otherwise known as Fort Hell.

  Library of Congress

• The Dictator

  

  With this 13-inch mortar the Federals could lob 218-pound shells up to 4,200 yards away. Despite these impressive statistics, the evidence suggests that the Dictator did far less damage than its mighty name suggests.

  Library of Congress

• The Dictator Today

  

  Visitors to the Petersburg National Battlefield can still see the original site of the Dictator and marvel at its impressive size.

  Rob Shenk

• Grant's Headquarters

  

  General Ulysses S. Grant used this roughly-hewn cabin at City Point as his headquarters for most of the Petersburg campaign.

  Rob Shenk

• Grant's Staff at City Point

  

  General Grant's staff poses outside the cabin at City Point.

  Library of Congress

• The Wharf at City Point

  

  City Point was the supply hub for all Union forces at Petersburg, receiving and distributing tons of supplies to the troops surrounding the city.

  Library of Congress

• Petersburg Court House

  

  By the 1860s, this Greek Revival structure was a symbol of Petersburg's status as one of the largest and most affluent cities in the South.

  Library of Congress

• The Siege Museum

  

  This 1839 farmers' exchange building is now home to a museum which tells the story of life in Petersburg during the extensive siege.

  Rob Shenk

• Pontoon Bridges Over the Appomattox

  

  Federal pontoon bridges span across the Appomattox River near Petersburg.

  Library of Congress

• Old Town Petersburg

  

  Petersburg's historic district still retains much of its wartime character--so much so that it was used as the setting in Steven Spielberg's upcoming film about Abraham Lincoln.

  Rob Shenk

• Rifles on Bollingbrook Street

  

  Stacked arms line Bollingbrook Street in downtown Petersburg shortly after Confederate forces evacuated the city.

  Library of Congress

• Dead in the Trenches

  

  Following the Union Army's successful breakthrough on April 2, 1865, photographers descended upon the scene of carnage and captured some of the war's most graphic images of dead Americans.

  Library of Congress