On March 29, in the opening moves of Grant's spring offensive, Sheridan marched with the army's cavalry followed by the V Corps toward Dinwiddie Court House to turn the right flank of Lee's Petersburg defenses. The Union V Corps under Maj. Gen. G.K. Warren crossed Rowanty Creek, moved up the Quaker Road toward the Boydton Plank Road intersection, and encountered Johnson's Confederate brigades. A sharp firefight forced the Confederates back to their entrenchments on the White Oak Road.
