84 



AEMY OPERATIONS. 



force of the enemy, approaching by railroad, 

 barely escaped capture. That night the com- 

 mand encamped at Greenwood, one mile from 

 Louisa Court House, through which the Vir- 

 ginia Central railroad passes, connecting Gor- 

 donsville with Richmond. On the next day, the 

 2d of May, a squadron of the 10th New York, 

 under Col. Irwin, was sent five miles above the 

 town, and another of the same regiment, under 

 Major Avery, was sent the same distance below, 

 to destroy the track of the road, while Col. Kil- 

 patrick took possession of the town. The track 

 was torn up for some distance, the telegraph 

 cut, and some commissary stores seized. In 

 the afternoon the' command moved to Thomp- 

 son's Four Corners. From this place, as head- 

 quarters, several expeditions were sent out. 

 On the next morning Col. Wyndham proceeded 

 to Columbia, on the James river, where the 

 Lynchburg and Richmond canal crosses the 

 river. An unsuccessful attempt was made to 

 destroy the aqueduct. Five locks Vere injured, 

 three canal boats, loaded with commissary 

 stores, and five bridges, were burned, and the 

 the canal lock cut in several places. A large 

 quantity of commissary stores and medicines in 

 the town were also destroyed. Another de- 

 tachment, under Capt. Drummond, of the 6th 

 cavalry, destroyed the bridge over the James 

 river at Centreville. Other small parties were 

 sent out in different directions, and some skir- 

 mishing took place with small parties of the 

 enemy. At the same time a force, consisting 

 of the 10th New York and 1st Maine, with 

 two pieces of artillery, was sent out under 

 Gen. Gregg, to destroy the railroad bridge at 

 Ashland, while Col. Kilpatrick, with the Har- 

 ris Light, and 12th Illinois, Lieut.-Col. Davis, 

 were to go between Ashland and Richmond, 

 destroying the railroad, bridges, &c. Gen. Gregg 

 destroyed the bridge across the. South Anna on 

 the road from Columbia to Spottsylvania ; 

 thence he moved east, and destroyed the road 

 to Beaver Dam Station. He then turned north 

 to the Richmond and Gordonsville turnpike, 

 sending out a detachment to burn the Ground 

 Squirrel bridge. That night lie bivouacked 

 eight miles from Ashland. A detachment sent 

 out to burn the bridge at Ashland found it too 

 strongly defended. Some portions of the rail- 

 road track, howeven, were destroyed. Leaving 

 Col. Kilpatrick and Lieut.-Col. Davis, Gen. 

 Gregg returned on the next day to Gen. Stone- 

 man. On the night of the 4th, Gen. Gregg 

 moved near Yanceyville, and was followed the 

 next day by Gen. Stoneman and Gen. Buford's 

 command. On the 5th, the retrograde movement 

 commenced, and crossing Racoon Ford, on the 

 Rapidan, the command arrived at Kelly's Ford, 

 on the North Fork. Meantime, the advance, 

 of Col. Kilpatrick was made, and thus subse- 

 quently reported by him : 



By directions from Maj.-Gen. Stoneman, I left Louisa 

 Court House on the morning of the 3d instant, with 

 one regiment (the Harris Light Cavalry') of my brig- 

 ade ; reached Hungary, on the Fredericksburg railroad, 



at daylight on the 4th ; destroyed the depot and tele- 

 graph \vires and railroad for several miles ; passed 

 over to Brook turnpike, drove in the rebel pickets ; 

 down the pike, across the brook, charged a battery, 

 and forced it to retire within two miles of the city of 

 Richmond ; captured Lieut. Brown, aide-de-camp to 

 Gen. Winder, and eleven men within the fortifications ; 

 passed down to the left of the Meadow bridge on the 

 Chickahominy, which I burned ; ran a train of cars 

 into the river ; retired to Hanovertown on the penin- 

 sula ; crossed and destroyed the ferry boat just in time 

 to check the advance of a pursuing cavalry force; 

 burned a train of thirty wagons loaded with bacon ; 

 captured thirteen prisoners, and encamped for the 

 night five miles from the river. 



I resumed my march at 1 A. M. of the 5th ; surprised 

 a force of three hundred cavalry at Aylett's ; captured 

 two officers and thirty-three men ; burned fifty-six 

 wagons, the depot, containing upward of twenty thou- 

 sand bushels 01 corn and wheat, quantities of clothing 

 and commissary stores, and safely crossed the Matta- 

 pony, and destroyed the ferry again just in time to es- 

 cape the advance of the rebel cavalry pursuit. Late in 

 the evening I destroyed a third wagon train and depot 

 a few miles above and west of the Tappahaunock on 

 the Eappahannock, and from that point made a forced 

 march of twenty miles, being closely pursued by a su- 

 perior force of cavalry, supposed to DC a portion of 

 Stuart's, from the fact that we captured prisoners 

 from the 8th, 1st, and 10th Virginia cavalry. At sun- 

 down discovered a force of cavalry drawn up in line 

 of battle about King and Queen Court House. Their 

 strength was unknown, but I at once advanced to the 

 attack, only to discover, however, that they were friends 

 a portion of the 10th Illinois cavalry, who had be- 

 come separated from the command of Lieut.-Col. Davis, 

 of the same regiment. 



At 10 A. M., on the 7th, I found safety and rest under 

 our own brave old flag within our lines at Gloucester 

 Point. This raid and march around the entire rebel 

 army a march of nearly two hundred miles has been 

 made in less than five days, with a loss of one officer 

 and thirty-seven men, having captured and paroled 

 upward of three hundred men. 



At the same tune, Lieut.-Col. Davis, of the 

 12th Illinois, was ordered to penetrate to the 

 Fredericksburg railroad, and, if possible, to the 

 Virginia Central, and destroy communications. 

 If ho crossed the Virginia Central ho was to 

 make for Williamsburg on the peninsula. Leav- 

 ing the main body on the South Anna, on 

 Sunday, May 3d, he passed down the bank of 

 that river, burning a bridge, and, dispersing a 

 mounted party of the enemy, struck the rail- 

 road at Ashland. Here he cut the telegraph, 

 tore up some rails, and burned the trestle- 

 work bridge south of the town. At the same 

 time a train of cars, filled with sick and 

 wounded, arrived, and was captured. The 

 prisoners were paroled, and the locomotives 

 disabled. Twenty wagons, with horses, were 

 destroyed, and several horses taken. Leaving 

 at 6 P. M., a train of eighteen wagons was 

 met and destroyed, and Hanover Station reach- 

 ed at 8 P. M. Here thirty prisoners were cap- 

 tured, and the railroad line broken. The depot, 

 storehouses, and stables, filled with govern- 

 ment property, were destroyed, also a culvert 

 and trestlework south of the station. Among 

 the property destroyed were more than one 

 hundred wagons, a thousand sacks of flour and 

 corn, and a large quantity of clothing and horse 

 equipments. The command then moved down 

 within seven miles of Richmond, and bivouack- 



