NORTH ANNA RIVER, VA.
                                     MAY 23RD - 27TH, 1864

                     North Anna River, Va., May 23-27, 1864 Army of the
                Potomac.  The operations along the North Anna River on these
                dates constituted what is known as the Third epoch of the
                campaign from the Rapidan to the James.  (For the organization
                of the Army of the Potomac at the beginning of that campaign
                see Wilderness.)  On May 24, the 9th corps, commanded by Maj.-
                Gen. Ambrose E. Burnside and composed of the divisions of
                Stevenson, Potter, Willcox and Ferrero, joined the Army of the
                Potomac, which was under command of Maj.-Gen. George G. Meade,
                who was accompanied on the campaign by Lieut.-Gen. U. S.
                Grant.  The 6th corps, which had been commanded by Maj.-Gen.
                John Sedgwick until he was killed at the battle of
                Spottsylvania Court House, was now under command of Maj.-Gen.
                Horatio G. Wright.

                     On the night of May 22, Grant directed Meade to move his
                army south from Mount Carmel Church at 5 o,clock the next
                morning, and to follow across the North Anna river should it
                be found that the Confederates had crossed.  The 2nd corps was
                to move on the Telegraph road to the Chesterfield ford, near
                where the Fredericksburg & Richmond railroad crossed the
                river; the 9th corps to Jericho bridge, or mills, and the 5th
                corps, with the 6th in reserve to a point west of Jericho
                mills.  The distance between Jericho mills and the
                Chesterfield ford is about 4 miles.  Before the orders were
                executed they were changed, making the destination of the 9th
                corps the Ox ford, about a mile above the Telegraph road
                bridge at Chesterfield ford, while the 5th and 6th corps, the
                former in advance, moved toward Jericho mills.  At 1 p.m.
                Warren had reached the mills.  No enemy was to be seen on the
                opposite bank and Bartlett's brigade of Griffin's division was
                pushed over to secure the crossing.  By the time the entire
                division had waded across at the ford the bridge train came up
                and the remainder of the corps crossed on the pontoon bridge.
                Line of battle was formed half a mile beyond the river in a
                strip of timber.  At 6 p.m. the Confederates assaulted Cutler,
                who had succeeded to the command of Wadsworth's division after
                the latter's death in the Wilderness.  He was the last of the
                division commanders to cross the river and had not wholly
                formed his line when the enemy attacked.  The division fell
                back in some confusion, the Confederates following until they
                were checked by Griffin's artillery and compelled to withdraw
                to the Virginia Central railroad, about a mile and a half
                south, when Warren intrenched his position.  The 6th corps was
                hastened from. Mount Carmel church at the beginning of the
                action, but the fighting had about ended when it arrived on
                the north bank of the river at Jericho mills and it was not
                crossed until the next morning.  In the meantime Hancock
                formed his corps along the heights a mile north of the river,
                his left (Gibbon) resting on the Fredericksburg & Richmond
                railroad and his right (Birney) on the Telegraph road, Barlow
                occupying the center.  The Confederates were intrenched on a
                hill on the north bank of the river to guard the approach to
                the Telegraph road bridge.  Birney was of the opinion that he
                could capture the position and was ordered to attempt it.
                Egan's and Pierce's brigades, in a brilliant charge up the
                slope under cover of the 2nd corps artillery fire,
                successfully accomplished the movement, driving the enemy
                across the river, though the two brigades lost some 15O men.
                The Confederates still held the south end of the bridge and
                during the night made several attempts to burn it, but each
                time were driven back.  Burnside proceeded to Ox ford, but
                found the enemy so strongly intrenched on the south bank he
                deemed it unwise to attempt a crossing.  On the morning of the
                24th it was found that the enemy in Hancock's front had
                abandoned his advanced works on the south side of the river,
                when the 2nd corps was at once crossed and took possession of
                them.  Some reconnoitering was done during the day and it was
                discovered that the Confederate position was strongly
                intrenched in the shape of a V, the vertex resting on the
                river near Ox ford one side opposite Hancock's corps, while
                the other faced the 5th and 6th corps to the west.  About 6
                p.m. Gibbon's division, occupying Hancock's extreme left,
                became briskly engaged and though its outposts were hard
                pressed no material advantage was gained by the enemy.  The
                same day Burnside was ordered to seize Ox ford, but finding
                that it was impossible to make a direct attack as the salient
                of the V was directly opposite, he sent Crittenden's division
                (formerly Stevenson's) a mile and a half up the river, where
                it crossed at Quarles' mill.  On the south side of the stream
                Crittenden formed a junction with Crawford's division of
                Warren's corps and advanced toward the Confederate position at
                Ox ford with a view of driving the enemy out so that Willcox's
                division could cross, but the enemy was too strongly
                intrenched.  On the 25th the 5th and 6th corps with
                Crittenden's division of the 9th were thrown forward to within
                600 or 800 yards of the Confederate line which was found to be
                well intrenched and traversed to protect it from the
                enfilading fire of the 9th corps artillery on the north bank
                of the river.  The line extended from Ox ford on the North
                Anna to Anderson's mill on the Little river, a distance of a
                mile and a half.  The rest of the 25th and 26th were spent by
                the Federals in tearing up portions of the Fredericksburg &
                Richmond and Virginia Central railroads and on the 26th
                Wilson's cavalry division was sent from the Federal right to
                demonstrate on the enemy's position.  This led Lee to think
                that the Army of the Potomac was to be moved by the right
                flank.  At nightfall of the 26th that part of the Federal army
                on the south side of the North Anna was started on a northward
                movement across that stream and by noon of the 27th the whole
                of the Army of the Potomac was north of the river.  The
                Federal losses during the 4 days were 223 killed, 1,460
                wounded and 290 missing, though the report of Medical Director
                McParlin of the Army of the Potomac places the wounded at
                2,100.  The Confederate losses were not reported, but it is
                probable that they were somewhat lighter.

                Source: The Union Army, vol. 6

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