Overview
The Battle of Chester Station took place on May 10, 1864, during the Bermuda Hundred Campaign in Chesterfield County, Virginia. General Benjamin F. Butler and the Union Army of the James moved up the James River as part of a larger Union plan to support General Ulysses S. Grant’s Overland Campaign. Butler’s main goals were to cut the Richmond and Petersburg Railroad and threaten Richmond from the east.
After reaching Bermuda Hundred, Butler did not immediately attack Richmond. Instead, he ordered his troops to build trenches and sent forces west to test Confederate defenses. Union troops fought at Port Walthall Junction on May 6 and May 7, then at Swift Creek on May 9. These actions gave General P.G.T. Beauregard time to strengthen Confederate forces near Petersburg.
On May 10, Confederate troops under General Robert Ransom carried out a reconnaissance-in-force near Chester Station. Union troops under Major O.S. Sanford and Colonel C.J. Dobbs were destroying railroad tracks when the Confederates attacked. Union fire and reinforcements stopped the Confederate advance. As the day ended, Confederate forces returned to Drewry’s Bluff, and Union forces withdrew toward Bermuda Hundred. The battle ended without a clear winner.
Essential Facts
- Date: May 10, 1864.
- Location: Chesterfield County, Virginia.
- Participants: The United States of America (USA) and the Confederate States of America (CSA).
- USA Commanders: Benjamin Butler, C.J. Dobbs, and O.S. Sanford.
- CSA Commanders: P.G.T. Beauregard, Robert Ransom, and Seth Barton.
- Who Won: The outcome of the Battle of Chester Station was inconclusive.
- Campaign: Bermuda Hundred Campaign.
- Era: Civil War, 1864, May–August.
Statistics
United States of America
- Casualties: 280 killed, wounded, captured, or missing.
- Forces Engaged: 1st Division, 10th Corps.
- Troop Strength: Roughly 3,400.
Confederate States of America
- Casualties: 249 killed, wounded, captured, or missing.
- Forces Engaged: Seth Barton’s Brigade.
- Troop Strength: Roughly 2,000.
Significance
The Battle of Chester Station is important to American History because it formed part of the Bermuda Hundred Campaign, a Union effort to threaten Richmond and Petersburg while General Ulysses S. Grant pressed the Overland Campaign against General Robert E. Lee. The battle centered on the Richmond and Petersburg Railroad, a key supply line between the two cities. Union troops damaged the tracks near Chester Station, but Confederate forces later repaired the line.
History
On July 15, 1863, the United States War Department issued General Orders No. 217, merging the Department of Virginia with the Department of North Carolina to form the Department of Virginia and North Carolina. The order appointed Major General John G. Foster to command the new department. A few months later, on October 28, 1863, the War Department issued General Orders No. 350, appointing Major General Benjamin F. Butler to command the department and the 18th Army Corps. Butler arrived at Fort Monroe, Virginia, and assumed command on November 10.
Grant in Charge of Union Armies
The next spring, on March 10, 1864, President Abraham Lincoln issued an executive order appointing Lieutenant-General Ulysses S. Grant to command the armies of the United States. Grant assumed his new command on March 17. Upon his arrival in Washington, Grant drafted a plan to get the various Union armies in the field to act in concert. He also devised his Overland Campaign to invade east-central Virginia and to destroy the Army of Northern Virginia, which was under the command of Robert E. Lee.
Grant Meets with Butler
Grant’s operations against Lee incorporated the troops under Butler’s command. On April 1, 1864, Grant met with Butler, and they devised a plan for Butler’s participation in the spring offensive near Richmond and Petersburg, Virginia. On April 12, 1864, Grant ordered Butler to prepare for operations south of the James River in Virginia. Butler’s forces comprised roughly 20,000 soldiers from his 18th Corps, commanded by Major General William F. Smith, and about 10,000 men from the 10th Corps, commanded by Major General Quincy A. Gillmore. Butler subsequently referred to the merged forces under his overall command as the Army of the James.
Grant’s Instructions
In broad strokes, Butler’s orders were to move his army up the James River to its confluence with the Appomattox River. After securing the village of City Point, Virginia, the bulk of his army was to disembark farther upstream at the fishing village of Bermuda Hundred. From there, he would support Grant’s Overland Campaign, which pitted Major General George G. Meade’s Army of the Potomac against General Robert E. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia. Butler’s two main objectives were to sever the Richmond and Petersburg Railroad and to threaten Richmond from the east, forcing Lee to divert troops away from Meade’s main thrust.
Butler on the Move
By May 5, 1864 (the same day that the Battle of the Wilderness began), a flotilla of naval vessels started moving the roughly 39,000 troops Butler commanded up the James River. The next day, the soldiers began disembarking at City Point and Bermuda Hundred. Instead of immediately striking toward Richmond after his army disembarked at Bermuda Hundred, Butler ordered his soldiers to entrench as he sent Brigadier General Charles Heckman’s brigade west on a reconnaissance mission.
Beauregard in Command of Confederate Forces at Petersburg
On the same day that Butler’s army disembarked, General P. G. T. Beauregard assumed command of the Confederate defenses around Petersburg. During the first few days of Butler’s offensive, however, Beauregard was ill. The leadership of the Confederate troops in the field devolved to Major General George E. Pickett, whose reputation had suffered considerably at the Battle of Gettysburg in 1863.
Battle of Port Walthall Junction
Instead of immediately striking toward Richmond after disembarking at Bermuda Hundred, Butler ordered his soldiers to entrench as he began probing the Confederate defenses. On May 6, Confederate soldiers turned back Union reconnaissance forces at the Battle of Port Walthall Junction. The next day, a Union task force pushed the Confederate defenders to Swift Run Creek, where the Confederates spent the next two days digging rifle pits and awaiting reinforcements. After destroying about a quarter-mile of railroad track, some telegraph lines, a sawmill, and a stash of lumber, the Union forces returned to their main defensive line.
Battle of Swift Creek
On May 9, 1864, Butler deployed a large task force to confront the Confederates at Swift Run Creek. The two sides engaged in a series of minor engagements collectively known as the Battle of Swift Creek that bought more time for Beauregard to solidify his forces.
May 10 — Clash at Chester Station
By May 10, 1864, Beauregard had recovered from his illness and assumed command of his forces. On the same day, the Confederates conducted a reconnaissance-in-force mission near Chester Station. They found Butler’s troops deployed in two wings. The left-wing, commanded by Major O. S. Sanford, destroyed tracks along the Richmond & Petersburg Railroad as they moved toward Chester Station. When the right-wing, commanded by Colonel C. J. Dobbs, encountered the Confederates, Dobbs formed battle lines and requested reinforcements from Sanford.
When the Confederates approached, the Union troops unleashed a withering fire. As Sanford’s reinforcements arrived, the Confederates withdrew and regrouped. When the Greycoats advanced again, they stood little chance against the reinforced Federals. A sheet of hot lead and artillery fire drove the Confederates into nearby woods.
As the scorching heat neared 100 degrees, fires ignited the woods, endangering the lives of wounded Federals and Confederates alike. As darkness approached, the Confederates returned to Drewry’s Bluff, and the Federals withdrew toward Bermuda Hundred.
Aftermath
The Battle of Chester Station was an inconclusive minor engagement. Casualties were light and fairly even. The Union lost about 280 men (killed, wounded, and missing/captured) and the Confederacy roughly 249 soldiers. After the battle, Butler grew increasingly impatient with his lack of progress and issued orders for a concentrated move toward Richmond to begin in two days.
Timeline
- 1863, July 15 — The United States War Department issued General Orders No. 217 and created the Department of Virginia and North Carolina.
- 1863, October 28 — The United States War Department issued General Orders No. 350 and appointed Major General Benjamin F. Butler to command the department and the 18th Army Corps.
- 1863, November 10 — Butler arrived at Fort Monroe, Virginia, and took command.
- 1864, March 10 — President Abraham Lincoln appointed Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant to command the armies of the United States.
- 1864, March 17 — Grant took command of the Union armies.
- 1864, April 1 — Grant met with Butler to plan Butler’s role in the spring offensive near Richmond and Petersburg.
- 1864, April 12 — Grant ordered Butler to prepare for operations south of the James River in Virginia.
- 1864, May 5 — Union naval vessels started moving about 39,000 troops under Butler up the James River.
- 1864, May 6 — Union soldiers landed at City Point and Bermuda Hundred.
- 1864, May 6 — General P. G. T. Beauregard took command of Confederate defenses around Petersburg.
- 1864, May 6–7 — Confederate forces won the Battle of Port Walthall Junction.
- 1864, May 9
- Union forces won the Battle of Swift Creek
- P.G.T. Beauregard arrived in Petersburg with Robert Hoke and his division.
- 1864, May 10 — Confederate forces attacked near Chester Station at dawn.
AP US History
Definition
Battle of Chester Station (1864) — The Battle of Chester Station was fought in Chesterfield County, Virginia, on May 10, 1864, during the Bermuda Hundred Campaign. General Benjamin F. Butler’s Union forces moved against the Richmond and Petersburg Railroad, while General P.G.T. Beauregard sent General Robert Ransom Jr. toward Chester Station. Ransom attacked at dawn, but Union reinforcements helped stop the Confederate advance. Union troops withdrew toward Bermuda Hundred after damaging the railroad, and Confederate forces later repaired the line.
Alignment
The Battle of Chester Station is part of the following AP US History sections:
