Date
- September 29–30, 1864
Location
- Roughly 10 miles south and east of Richmond, Virginia
Campaign
Principal Union Commanders
- Major General Benjamin Butler
- Major General David B. Birney
- Brigadier General Charles J. Paine
- Brigadier General George Stannard
- Major General Edward O. C. Ord
Principal Confederate Commanders
- Brigadier General John Gregg
- Major General Charles W. Field
Union Forces Engaged
- 10th and 18th Corps of the Army of the James
- Kautz’s Cavalry Division
Confederate Forces Engaged
- Department of North Carolina & Southern Virginia
- Department of Richmond
- Gregg’s Brigade of the Army of Northern Virginia
Number of Union Soldiers Engaged
- Roughly 26,600
Number of Confederate Soldiers Engaged
- Roughly 14,500
Estimated Union Casualties
- 3,372 (391 killed, 2,317 wounded, and 649 missing/captured)
Estimated Confederate Casualties
- 2,000 (250 killed, 1,250 wounded, and 500 missing/captured)
Result
- Union victory
Significance
- Strategically, the Battle of Chaffin’s Farm and New Market Heights was a Union victory because it achieved Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant’s objective of drawing Rebel defenders away from the Petersburg area as he increased his stranglehold on the city by extending his lines farther west.
- During the assault on New Market Heights, Brigadier General Charles J. Paine’s division of United States Colored Troops lost one of every three men engaged, leaving little doubt about the willingness of black soldiers to face grave danger in service to the Union.
- On April 6, 1865, the War Department bestowed the Congressional Medal of Honor on 14 African-Americans who participated in the Battle of Chaffin’s Farm and New Market Heights.
Timeline of the Petersburg Campaign
These are the main battles and events of the Petersburg Campaign in order.
- June 9, 1864 — First Battle of Petersburg
- June 15 – 18, 1864 — Second Battle of Petersburg
- June 21 – 23, 1864 — Battle of Jerusalem Plank Road
- June 22–July 1, 1864 – Wilson-Kautz Raid
- June 25, 1864 — Battle of Staunton River Bridge
- June 28, 1864 — Battle of Sappony Church
- June 29, 1864 — First Battle of First Ream’s Station
- July 27–29, 1864 — First Battle of Deep Bottom
- July 30, 1864 — Battle of the Crater
- August 13–20, 1864 — Second Battle of Deep Bottom
- August 18-21, 1864 — Battle of Globe Tavern
- August 25, 1864 — Second Battle of Ream’s Station
- September 29–30, 1864 — Battle of Chaffin’s Farm and New Market Heights
- September 30–October 2, 1864 — Battle of Peebles Farm
- October 7, 1864 — Battle of Darbytown and New Market Roads
- October 13, 1864 — Battle of Darbytown Road
- October 27-28, 1864 — Battle of Fair Oaks and Darbytown Road
- October 27-28, 1864 — Battle of Boydton Plank Road
- February 5-7, 1865 — Battle of Hatcher’s Run
- March 25, 1865 — Battle of Fort Stedman