Connecticut 6th Volunteer Infantry (Union)

Fort Pulaski

Fort Pulaski, built between 1829 and 1847, was placed near the mouth of the Savannah River to block upriver access to the city. Brick and masonry fortifications such as Pulaski, called "third system" forts, were considered invincible, but the new technology of rifled artillery would soon change that. To shut down blockade running traffic from coastal Georgia and South Carolina, the Union army and navy mounted an expedition in November, 1861 to occupy the land area surrounding Savannah. Tybee Island, opposi…READ MORE

Secessionville

In early June 1862, the Union divisions of Brig. Gens. Horatio G. Wright and Isaac I. Stevens, under the overall command of Brig. Gen. Henry Benham, landed on James Island just southwest of Charleston, South Carolina. Benham entrenched at Grimball's Landing near the southern end of the Confederate defensive line around the city. On June 16th, Benham's 6,500 men from the 3rd New Hampshire, 8th Michigan, 7th Connecticut, 28th Massachusetts, and 79th New York "Highlanders" infantry regiments advanced toward C…READ MORE

Second Pocotaligo

The battle of Second Pocotaligo or Pocotaligo Bridge was fought in an effort to sever the connection between the Charleston and Savannah Railroads that would allow Union troops to isolate Charleston, South Carolina.READ MORE

Fort Wagner

Fort Wagner, part of the formidable Confederate defenses of Charleston Harbor, was built on Morris Island on the south edge of the bay. The fort's 30-foot high earth and sand filled walls protected 14 heavy artillery pieces that could bear on attackers or warships trying to enter the harbor. The Union Navy attempted to reduce the defenses of Charleston in early 1863 with little success. In early June, Brig. Gen. Quincy Gillmore attempted to capture the batteries on Morris Island and use them against Fort S…READ MORE

Spotsylvania Court House

Following the Battle of the Wilderness, Lieut. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant marched the Union army south with the hope of capturing Spotsylvania Court House and preventing Robert E. Lee's army from retreating further. Lee's Confederates, however, managed to get ahead of the Federals and block the road. Fighting began on May 8th, when the Union Fifth Corps under Maj. Gen. Gouverneur K. Warren and the Sixth Corps under Maj. Gen. John Sedgwick engaged Confederate Maj. Gen. Richard Anderson's First Corps at Laurel Hi…READ MORE

Fort Stevens

After his victory over Maj. Gen. Lew Wallace at the Battle of Monocacy in central Maryland on July 9th, Confederate Maj. Gen. Jubal A. Early pressed his advantage and moved south toward the Union capital in Washington, DC. On July 11th, Early's exhausted Confederates reached the outskirts of Washington near Silver Spring. Skirmishers advanced to feel the fortifications that encircled the city, which at the time were manned only by Home Guards, clerks, and convalescent troops. During the night, Union reinfo…READ MORE

Second Deep Bottom

As he had done in late July during the Battle of the Crater, Lieut. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant called upon Maj. Gen. Winfield S. Hancock and his Second Corps to attack Gen. Robert E. Lee's forces around Richmond to exploit suspected weaknesses in Lee's lines. In early August, Grant had detached the Sixth Corps from the Union lines around Richmond and Petersburg and sent them to the Shenandoah Valley under Maj. Gen. Phil Sheridan. Sheridan's new army there was to counter Gen. Jubal Early, then operating in the v…READ MORE

Major GeneralAlfred H. Terry

Cedar Creek

Also known as: Cedar Creek, Belle GroveREAD MORE

Fair Oaks & Darbytown Road

See also: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Fair_Oaks_%26_Darbytown_RoadREAD MORE

:Col. Alfred P. Rockwell

Second Fort Fisher

By January 1865, Fort Fisher on the North Carolina shore was the last coastal stronghold of the Confederacy. The fort protected blockade running vessels entering and departing Wilmington, the South's last open seaport on the Atlantic coast. Maj. Gen. Alfred Terry was placed in command of a Provisional Corps from the Army of the James, and was supported by a Navy and Marine Corps force of nearly 60 vessels under Rear Adm. David D. Porter. Terry's orders were to renew operations against the fort that had fai…READ MORE