Thomas Wright's Diary

The Crater

Petersburg was considered a siege, one not like most sieges that play out without minor battles along the lines. Most sieges try to bring the fortifications down and starve the Army and the people out. They have the tendency to last a year or more. Petersburg had multiple skirmishes and battles. The 9 months and a few weeks it lasted. Both sides meer yards apart, deadly Sharpshooters waiting to shoot any that dared show themselves. Cannon and mortar fire, like Thomas mentioned men probing for weakness along the line.

This was a battle to break Lee and his Army, to annihilate them.
Force the Confederacy to surrender nothing more. The Battle of the Crater is just one of many small battles during the siege. By February 1865 Sherman was already in Columbia South Carolina.
Working on advancing north to Virginia, Sherman would be the Anvil to Grants Hammer. If the War lasted that long, Petersburg didn't fall till March 1865.

The crater is still part of the Landscape, the explosion stunned the Union Forces that were, to attack where they lost precious time to advance. Some moving straight into the crater thinking it would work as breastworks. So just a little History here on the planning and attack, on the Battle of the Crater.

                                             The Plan

Lt Colonel Henry Pleasants commanding the 48th Pennsylvania Infantry, presented a plan to Major General Ambrose E. Burnside,
to break an opening in the line. Pleasants proposed digging a tunnel just under the Confederate position at Elliott's Salient a fortified position on the Confederate middle of the First Corp. line leaving a mine, and blowing a hole in it. Killing the defenders and letting the Union advance.

Burnside approved the plan, work started in late June. Grant and Meade thought it had no tactical value, but it was away to keep the Troops busy. Pleasants was left on his own having to forage for supplies lumber for supports of the shaft. These were found at a abandon wood mill and a old bridge was tore down.

As the shaft approached the Confederate line it elevated, to keep water from forming in the shaft. Pleasants a civilian Mining Engineer built a air circulation system, a canvas partition separated the mine entrance air supply they made a vertical exhaust shaft well behind the lines, kept a fire burning, that burnt up stale air and acted as chimney to draw fresh air in, a wooden duct sent air up the mine shaft or tunnel. With this method they didn't have to have vertical air shafts, to bring in fresh air. Also it kept the enemy from seeing the work in progress.

The mine was T shaped, the approach shaft was 511 feet long 3 feet wide about 4 1/2 feet high, at the end the perpendicular gallery of 75 feet it extended in both directions. This part ran under the Confederate position. The mine was filled with 320 kegs gunpowder totaling 8,000 pounds, the explosives were about 20 feet below the Confederate position. The side galleries were packed shut with 11 feet of dirt, the main shaft packed closed with 32 feet of packed to dirt to keep the blast from leaving the shaft, from the entrance. Pleasants  having to make due with supplies the fuse went out, two men went to fix the problem. Lt. Jacob Dowdy, and Sgt Harry Reese, they re-spliced the burnt out fuse and left at 4:44 in the morning the explosion went off.

        
                                           Preparation

Burnside trained a Division of USCT, under Brig. General Edward Ferrero to lead the assault. (USCT - United States Colored Troops)
The Division consisted of 2 Brigades, one to left of the crater one to go right. Two Regiments were to leave the assault and rush perpendicular to the crater opening the line further. The rest would rush through taking Jerusalem Plank Road, beyond the churchyard and Petersburg itself.

Burnside's two other Divisions made up of white troops would then move in supporting Ferrero's flanks and rush for Petersburg, two miles behind the lines.

For two weeks the USCT trained behind the lines, to not be seen. With all the planning and training, done and all prepared to go.
The day before the attack Meade stepped in, who lacked all confidence in the plan. Ordered Burnside not to use the colored troops to lead the assault. He claimed that if the attack failed, black soldiers would be killed needlessly, creating political repercussions in the north. ( I think Meade lacked confidence in the Black soldiers to lead the attack the Black soldier's abilities in combat, This is my thoughts.)

Burnside protested to Grant, who sided with Meade. When Burnside asked for volunteers for the attack no one came forward, Burnside had the Division commanders draw lots on who was to lead the attack. The First Division commanded by Brig. General James H. Ledlie was to lead. He failed to brief his men, on the plan and was reported to be well behind the line and drunk at the time of the battle. Ledlie was dismissed later.

 

                       The mine shaft and air shaft drawings.

                  Present-day entrance and view of the main shaft.

The Confederate Army did know something was going on, they thought the Union was mining in under the line. Lee thought it a stupid plan. Some officers did mine some to try and find out. They never found any evidence.

After the explosion, the crater left behind was, 170 feet long, 60 feet across, and 30 feet deep. This probably the biggest explosive event in history at the time. The sight of that had to be mind-numbing, I can understand the hesitation by the Union Army.

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Thanks for the support, and sorry for the delays updating. Thomas will tell the story of the Battle. I thought a little history about the plan in advance, would help bring the story to life.

With the events around the world, the Protests for Black Lives Matter. I thought maybe I should hold off on updating. That wasn't the hold up, I decided the story must go on to show that history was trying to correct the wrongs, it's my continued research and life getting in the way.

Please comment and vote, I do look forward to reading the comments. It tells me if I am giving something worth reading, if my history is understood and accurate.
Thanks again
Dram12, AKA Tim