CALENDAR OF EVENTS
Visitor Center HoursSummer Program ScheduleSpecial EventsSummer CampGrant's Headquarters at City Point
Hours of Operation: 9am-5pm Sunday-Saturday
Phone Number (804) 458-9504
For nearly ten months this site served as the main logistics and supply base
of the Union army surrounding Petersburg. Roam the grounds where General
Grant discussed both war and peace with President Lincoln. Site features video and ranger talks.
Eastern Front
Hours of operation: 9am-5pm Sunday-Saturday
Phone number (804) 732-3531 ext. 200
Touring this part of the battlefield offers you a chance to understand the
gambit of emotions soldiers experienced during their long and often traumatic
stay. Times of monotony gave way to times of terror. Moments of lonely
destitution were followed by charges of violent desperation. Freezing cold,
intense heat, disease, infection, fear and courage all awaited the common
soldier on the battlefields of Petersburg.
Five Forks Battlefield
Hours of operation: Sunday - Saturday 9am-5pm
Phone Number(804) 265-8244
By the end of March, 1865 the Union troops had successfully cut all but one
supply line - the South Side Railroad - into Petersburg. In order to protect
it the Confederates dig in at a crossroads known as Five Forks. Discover the
events that brought Warren, Pickett, Sheridan, Custer, Chamberlain, and
Fitzhugh Lee together on the same field in what was to be known as the
"Waterloo of the Confederacy."
SUMMER PROGRAMS
Summer 2006
Ranger staff from Petersburg National Battlefield will lead caravan tours which will enable
visitors to tour the battlefield in the comfort of their own vehicle. Tours will include
interpretive talks at various stops such as the Crater, Fort Stedman, Poplar Grove National
Cemetery, and other sites where significant events took place. Tours will take place from mid-June
through mid-August. Further information regarding times will be listed on the park's web site,
www.nps.gov/pete in early June. Information can also be obtained by calling Petersburg National
Battlefield at (804) 732-3531, ext. 203. The only charge is the park's entrance fee of $5 per
vehicle.
SPECIAL EVENTS
Confederate Sharpshooters at the Battle of Fort Stedman
Saturday & Sunday, March 25-26, 2006
All day Saturday & 9am-2pm Sunday
Ranger-led programs with living historians will demonstrate the role Confederate sharpshooters played in
Gen. Robert E. Lee's last grand offensive of the war. Demonstrations will be given throughout the weekend
reflecting what life in the lines was like during the siege. This program will take place in the Eastern Front
of the park. There is a $5.00 per vehicle entrance fee.
Contact: Grant Gates, (804) 733-3251, ext. 202. .
141st Anniversary of the Battle of Five Forks
Saturday, April 1, 2006
All day
Ranger led programs will describe the events that signaled the end of the Petersburg Campaign
and the beginning of the movements which led to Lee's surrender at Appomattox C.H. Location:
Five Forks Battlefield, intersection of Courthouse Road and White Oak Road in Dinwiddie County.
Contact: Tracy Chernault, (804) 265-8244. Free.
Bus Tour: An Engineer's View of the Petersburg Campaign
Saturday, May 20, 2006
TBA
Military engineering was a key element in the siege and defense of Petersburg. This bus tour will
begin and end at Grant's Headquarters at City Point. The tour includes visits to strategic sites
along the Petersburg battle lines as the ranger explains the significant role fortifications,
railroads, roads, and mining played during the siege of Petersburg. Reservations will be required.
For more information, please call ranger Randy Watkins at (804) 732-3531 ext. 205 after March 1,
2006. There will be a fee for this program.
Civil War Petersburg: Partnership Programs between the City of Petersburg and the National Park Service.
Summer 2006
Blandford Cemetery: Where else better to explain the toll of war than a cemetery that
includes the graves of over 30,000 Civil War soldiers. Historic Blandford Church and Cemetery
will be the setting of a number of summer programs which will honor both soldiers and civilians
who had to endure the tragedies of war. Further information will be available in the spring and
can be obtained by calling ranger Elizabeth Dinger-Glisan at (804) 732-3531 ext. 217. Programs are
free.
Siege Museum: A number of programs will depart from Petersburg's Siege Museum at 15 West
Bank Street. Programs will include various walking tours of Old Town Petersburg focusing on the
Battle of Old Men and Young Boys as well as civilian life within the City during the Siege of
Petersburg. For more information, please call ranger Randy Watkins or ranger Ann Blumenschine
at (804) 732-3531 ext. 200. Free.
Bus Tour: Lee's Retreat
Saturday, September 30, 2006
TBA
When the nine and a half month siege of Petersburg ended, Confederate forces under General Robert
E. Lee began their retreat. Although Southern troops made the necessary decision to evacuate
Petersburg, they were not ready to accept defeat. With General Grant's soldiers in pursuit, the
Confederates raced to reach supplies and hoped to join General Johnston's forces in North Carolina.
However, the Federals were determined to do everything they could to destroy Lee's Army. This bus
tour will visit some of the sites where fighting occurred between Petersburg and Appomattox Court
House such as Sutherland Station, Sailor's Creek, and Appomattox Court House. For more information,
please call Tracy Chernault at (804) 265-8244. There will be a fee for this tour.