Richmond Virginia Civil War Battle Sites

The magnitude of devastation wrought by this bloody conflict is evident on many Richmond Petersburg Civil War battlefields. One-fourth of the Civil War’s battles and 60 percent of its casualties occurred within a 75-mile radius of the Richmond Petersburg region. Hear chilling details about the Peninsula Campaign, the Bermuda Hundred Campaign and the skirmishes in between when you visit the Richmond Petersburg Region.

Captain Charles G. Gould

Just 20 years old, Captain Charles G. Gould, of Vermont and the Union’s Fifth Regiment, was the first to break through the thin Confederate lines that had protected Petersburg for more than nine months. His regiment was in the first line of the brigade, and in the charge he was far in advance of his command. Upon mounting the works he received a severe bayonet wound in the face and was struck several times with clubbed muskets, but bravely held his ground, and retiring from the works only after his comrades had come to his assistance and routed the enemy from their lines. Despite his serious wounds, he survived and was awarded the Medal of Honor for his bravery that day.

Private Lewis Martin

Private Lewis Martin

Private Lewis Martin enlisted with the Illinois 29th United States Colored Troops in order to fight for freedom. At the Petersburg Battle of the Crater, he and 43,000 comrades fought in one of the most spectacular events in Civil War History. The wounds he suffered changed his life forever. In 1994 Private Lewis Martin's photograph was uncovered by Civil War Conservation Corps (CWCC) and was an example of photos in which African American men display for the camera their wounds, proving their disability and their eligibility for discharge from the Union army. African Americans in the Union forces fought not only Confederate foes on the battlefield, but faced opposition within the Federal ranks.