BGES is proud to Present: The Bermuda Hundred Campaign May 29-June 1, 2013 In May of 1864, Union General in Chief, Lieutenant General US Grant unleashed an ambitious plan of campaign that stretched across the United States in an effort to finally bring the Civil War to a close. Key to the plan was the simultaneous operation of armies on the Peninsula of Virginia, in the Shenandoah Valley, in Northern Georgia and in Central Louisiana—all operating aggressively against their Confederate counter-parts while he and the Army of the Potomac pummeled the primary Confederate army, under Robert E. Lee, in Central Virginia. The plan was to prevent the Confederates from using internal lines of supply to bolster threatened areas by engaging those resources on their own fronts. History tells us that only the operations of Major General William T. Sherman succeeded and the occupation of Atlanta bolstered Abraham Lincoln’s claim to a second term as president in order to wrap up the war—a task which was accomplished early in the spring of 1865. While each of Grant’s operations offered attractive rewards the most coveted opportunity was a thrust up the Virginia Peninsula and an assault directly on Richmond and its southerly supply lines which ran through Petersburg. Responsibility for the operation was assigned to the Army of the James under the command of Major General Benjamin Butler. Butler had been a colorful figure whose Civil War journey had started at Fort Monroe and after a raucous and emotionally charged command in New Orleans had returned to the Peninsula and the Army of the James. Butler had earned seniority second only to Grant and his political connections, especially in a presidential election year, could not be ignored. Butler may have been militarily inept but he could cause less damage to Lincoln in the army than in Washington. Butler’s infamy and the ignominious and abbreviated progress of the Bermuda Hundred Campaign has relegated it to third tier status as a military operation and yet it is an important effort. It indeed was a dagger thrust at the heart of the political vitals of the struggling Confederacy and had it succeeded, the war may have ended in the spring of 1864. It didn’t and it didn’t. Since the region is heavily marked with National Park Service sites, the campaign has been overlooked until now. Just two books exist that describe the operations and local historians have attempted to do with few resources, what the NPS has generously accomplished at Richmond, Petersburg and elsewhere. Thanks to Chesterfield County officials and local historians the sites have been preserved, partially interpreted; but, infrequently visited. Indeed this is the only organized tour being done of this campaign in 2013. The last was many years ago. Several years ago the Blue and Gray Education Society engaged with the Chesterfield County Historical Society and the school system to field a teaching trunk for youth. Now at their request we will fund an additional 37 interpretive signs telling the story of the campaign and related sites. The people who are doing the heavy lifting: George Fickett and Scott Williams will be leading the tour. Supportive vendors are making this a very special event. You will see this campaign from both land and water—and for those of you interested, from the air. You can be part of the preservation, presentation and commissioning of this important but overlooked military operation. I hope you’ll sign up and be a part of making history in Chesterfield County, Virginia—welcome. Wednesday, May 29, 2013 Arrive at your leisure at the hotel of your choice. We have selected the Hampton Inn, Chester, Virginia for our headquarters and they have offered a very attractive rate to the group. We will open the formal program at 7 PM so you will want to either have an early dinner on your own or call in something to your room after the presentations. OPTIONAL: We have made arrangements for registrants to take a 30 minute aerial tour of the region in small private planes with a guide on board. The additional cost of $125 per person respects the limited capacity of the planes in both weight and numbers and pays for the fuel and use of the plane. Your flight will have only one other registrant on board plus the pilot and the narrator. The flight will be at 1000-1500 feet above ground level and will be conducted in visual flight rules although the pilots are certified to fly in the clouds and are experienced in working with air traffic control. This is optional and your flight schedule will be made known as we get closer to the event. If the weather does not permit us to fly then the aerial portion of this program will be cancelled and your money returned. At 7 PM, the program will open with a presentation on the Federal plans for 1864 and an introduction to the Bermuda Hundred Campaign and its principal players. We will finish by 8:30 PM. Thursday, May 30, 2013 Today we will start at 8:30 and will go to the dock at Hopewell for our 5 hour boat trip on the James and Appomattox Rivers. We will be sensitive to the weather and should it interfere with our plans we may adjust the dates and or times for this significant part of the tour. Over the years, I have found the boat trips have generated some of the most memorable episodes of our study programs. We of course know that Butler’s move up the James River was amphibious in nature and that once ashore he would need to move swiftly to consolidate his beachhead. We have heard that Butler mismanaged the operation and quickly found himself corked up in the folds of the river by an impenetrable Confederate defensive line. Our trip is going to give you a nautical perspective of riverine operations and the view of so many important sites which drove strategy along this front. We will not squander the opportunity to give you a comprehensive view of war operations on the river and you will hear of the Appomattox River raid of 1862; the battles of Drewry’s Bluff and the use of torpedoes in the river. Scott will talk about the sinking of the USS Commodore Jones and the use of pontoon bridges as we pass the sites at Aiken’s Landing and Deep Bottom. These help account for the operations north of the James River as well. There are a lot of things that can and will be discussed such as the Dix/Hill Cartel concerning the exchange of prisoners, Lincoln’s visits to the region and his review of the troops, the arrival and support of the Army of the Potomac from City Point. In addition to the landing at Bermuda Hundred we will also discuss the digging of the canal at Dutch Gap and the January 1865 naval scrap at Trent’s Reach. Traveling by pontoon boat we will be slow and shallow which will let us go in close to look at areas that need a closer look and will allow us to enjoy the natural beauty of a river in full summer regalia. There are numerous Bald Eagle nests and other wildlife which will make the slow ride very relaxing. We will lunch on board. You will also appreciate that as slow as the boat may be it is faster than the Civil War vessels that plied the same waters 150 years ago. When we re dock we will visit City Point and talk about the Federal occupation from June 1864 until April 1865. We will finish the day visiting the Petersburg National Battlefield Visitor’s Center to learn about initial attempts to take Petersburg. We then return to the hotel where you can have dinner on your own. Friday, May 31, 2013 Departing the hotel at 8:30, we will visit sites that most of you have never heard of but which were very real and significant to the men who were there. We will go to Butler’s beachhead and move inland stopping at his hospital site at Point of Rocks. There are over 25 sites corresponding to this campaign and we will hit most of them breaking in the middle for lunch. Your reading book will provide the detail you can carry away with you. Sadly, most are never seen because of the higher visibility of the Petersburg and Richmond sites. Look in your research books and try to find the three battles of Walthall Junction, or Swift Creek, Ware Bottom and Chester Station. I am sure many of you have heard of but never seen the Howlett line—we will take you there. We will also show you places like Fort Wead, Parker’s Battery and Battery Dantzler. It is a full day. Dinner is on your own. Saturday, June 1, 2013 This morning at 8:30 AM, we take up operations on the north side of the James River including Drewry’s Bluff, Fort Harrison, Fort Stevens and New Market Heights where a number of African American soldiers earned the Medal of Honor. These are very important stops because the study of the 1864 siege of Petersburg is heavily slanted towards the operations of the Army of the Potomac; but, Butler’s army continues to play a key role in this siege and these are their stories. The operations north of the river show the center of gravity of federal forces was closer to Butler’s region than Meade’s.