PETERSBURG 



460S 



PETERSBURG 



The development of electrical power at Pe- 

 terborough has coincided naturally with a de- 

 velopment of manufacturing. Between 1900 and 

 1910 the output of manufactured goods in- 

 creased from less than $4,000,000 to $11,000,000, 

 and in 1916 local estimates placed the annual 

 total at more than $20,000,000. Gold, silver, 

 lead, mica and iron are found near by, and the 

 last three are used in local industries. Of the 

 many manufactures the following are most im- 

 portant: lumber, flour, packed meats, agricul- 

 tural implements, dairy machinery, steel sashes, 

 electrical machinery and supplies, shovels, har- 

 irpets, clothing, yarn, canoes and cereals. 



PETERSBURG, pc'tcrzburg, SIEGE OF, a fa- 

 mous siege that marked the end of the War of 

 on. It began in June, 1864, and ended 

 in April, 1865, and was the last chapter in the 

 campaign against Richmond, Va., the capital of 

 the Confederacy. After the repulse at Cold 

 Harbor on June 3, 1864, Grant transferred his 

 army to Petersburg with the intention of cap- 

 turing the city and thus compelling Lee to 

 evacuate Richmond, twenty-one miles distant. 

 An assault made by General Butler on the fif- 

 teenth of June failed, and other assaults on 

 three following days were also unsuccessful. In 

 July a mine was run under the Confederate fort 

 by General Burnside, who planned to lead a 

 charge through the gap in the earth made by 

 the explosion, but inefficient leadership caused 

 the Federals to be trapped, and a loss of nearly 

 4,000 resulted. 



The Confederacy held out seven months 

 longer. As the siege drew near its close Gen- 

 eral Sheridan was sent by Grant to destroy the 

 railroad which carried supplies to Richmond, 

 and Lee in turn sent forces to meet him, but 

 the Confederates were defeated at the Battle 

 of Five Forks, on April 1, 1865. On the fol- 

 lowing day Grant ordered a final assault on 

 Petersburg, which fell after a gallant defense. 

 On April 3 the Federals drove Lee into hope- 

 less retreat and marched into Richmond, and 

 on April 9, 1865, Grant and Lee met at Appo- 

 mattox Court House and arranged terms of sur- 

 render. 



PETERSBURG, VA., a port of entry and a 

 city of historical interest, situated in the south- 

 eastern part of the state at the head of navi- 

 gation on the Appomattox River, about ten 



miles from its mouth, and on the upper Appo- 

 mattox Canal. Formerly it was included in the 

 county of Dinwiddie, but it is now independ- 

 ent of county authority, being located at the 

 point where Chesterfield, Dinwiddie and Prince 

 George counties meet. Richmond, the state capi- 

 tal, is twenty-two miles north, by rail. Trans- 

 portation is provided by the Norfolk & West- 

 ern, Seaboard Air Line and Atlantic Coast Line 

 railways and by an interurban electric line which 

 communicates with cities and towns north. In 

 1910 the population* was 24,127; by 1916 it had 

 increased to 25,582 (Federal estimate). At 

 City Point, nine miles northeast, E. I. du Pont 

 and de Nemours & Company established the 

 Hopewell Munitions Works after the outbreak 

 of the War of the Nations, and the Petersburg- 

 Hopewell district in 1916 had an estimated 

 population of about 50,000. 



Petersburg is located in a region well adapted 

 to the growing of tobacco, peanuts and lumber, 

 and these products, with fruits and vegetables, 

 are the chief articles of an extensive trade. The 

 falls of the Appomattox River immediately 

 above the city increase the facilities for manu- 

 facturing, which is here represented by cotton, 

 tobacco, clothing, trunk, silk and knit-goods 

 factories, and lumber mills. The State Central 

 Hospital for the Insane, harboring about 1,000 

 colored patients, is in Petersburg. The Virginia 

 Normal and Industrial Institute for both sexes, 

 the Southern Female College, the Y. M. C. A. 

 and the Benevolent Mechanics Association, with 

 a museum and library, are important educa- 

 tional institutions. Noteworthy buildings are the 

 Masonic Temple, Red Men's and Odd Fellows' 

 buildings and the city government buildings. 

 There are two recreation parks. 



In 1676 the site on which Petersburg is built 

 was a village of the Appomattox Indians. White 

 people made a settlement here in 1733, which 

 was incorporated as a town in 1748 and char- 

 tered as a city in 1850. Petersburg was con- 

 spicuous in the War of the Revolution and the 

 War of 1812, and during the War of Secession 

 it was the scene of much fighting, being a depot 

 for military supplies from the South. The ten 

 months' siege of Petersburg, which lasted from 

 June, 1864, until April, 1865, was an important 

 part of General Grant's campaign against Rich- 

 mond (see PETERSBURG, SIEGE OF). 



End of Volume Seven 



