Battle of Proctor's Creek Facts

May 12–16, 1864

Key facts about the Battle of Proctor's Creek, also known as the Second Battle of Drewry's Bluff.

Portrait of Ulysses S. Grant

Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant (pictured here) noted that after the Battle of Proctor’s Creek, Benjamin Butler’s Army of the James “was as completely shut off from further operations directly against Richmond as if it had been in a bottle strongly corked.” [Wikimedia Commons]

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Also Known As

  • Second Battle of Drewry’s Bluff
  • Battle of Fort Darling

Date

  • May 12–16, 1864

Location

  • Chesterfield County, Virginia

Campaign

Principal Union Commanders

Principal Confederate Commanders

  • General P. G. T. Beauregard
  • Major General Robert Ransom
  • Major General Robert F. Hoke
  • Major General William H. Whiting

Union Forces Engaged

  • Army of the James

Confederate Forces Engaged

  • Ransom’s Division
  • Petersburg garrison
  • Local militia

Number of Union Soldiers Engaged

  • Roughly 30,000

Number of Confederate Soldiers Engaged

  • Roughly 18,000

Estimated Union Casualties

  • 3,411 (300 killed, 1,721 wounded, and 1,390 captured/missing)

Estimated Confederate Casualties

  • 2,194 (364 killed, 1,610 wounded, and 220 captured/missing)

Result

  • Confederate victory

Significance

  • The Battle of Proctor’s Creek was the deciding engagement of the Bermuda Hundred Campaign.
  • Although the Battle of Proctor’s Creek is also known as the Second Battle of Drewry’s Bluff, the fighting did not actually take place on the bluff. It occurred south of the bluff near Proctor’s Creek.
  • Ulysses S. Grant noted in his memoirs that after the Battle of Proctor’s Creek, Benjamin Butler’s Army of the James “was as completely shut off from further operations directly against Richmond as if it had been in a bottle strongly corked.”
  • Drewry’s Bluff and Fort Darling are preserved as part of Richmond National Battlefield Park.

Timeline of the Bermuda Hundred Campaign

These are the main battles and events of the Bermuda Hundred Campaign in order.