Charging Westward (Stop 8)

Historic drawing of the burial of dead after the Battle of the Crater in mass graves.

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Cellular Signal, Historical/Interpretive Information/Exhibits, Information, Scenic View/Photo Spot, Wheelchair Accessible

The Fourth Division of the Union 9th Corps, compromised of U.S.C.T. Regiments, was the last to enter the action. Swinging north of the Crater, they advanced further than any other Federal division.Within the hour of their assault, Confederate reinforcements led by Gen. Mahone counter-attacked and drove back the Fourth Division. The Confederates assaulted the Crater several more times before taking the hole itself. In the fiercest hand-to-hand combat of the siege, the U.S. troops who still outnumbered the Confederates surrendered to the determined defenders. After ten hours of fighting and a combined cost of almost 5,500 casualties, nothing had changed tactically. General Grant summed it up best for the Federal forces, saying the Battle of the Crater was "the saddest affair I have ever witnessed in the war."