Driving Tour Stop 1- The Death of Major General John Sedgwick

The Sedgwick monument was dedicated on May 12, 1887, the 23rd anniversary of Hancock’s attack on the Mule Shoe salient. The festivities included not only the monument dedication but also a battlefield tour and reception by the then mayor of Fredericksburg, John Hazard. General Horatio Wright attended the ceremony along with thousands of others. The monument was designed by John Ferguson of Philadelphia. Members of Sedgwick’s VI Corps raised the funds for it after a visit to the battlefield in 1886. It is the oldest monument on the battlefield. Made of granite it stands nine feet tall with a five and a half square foot base.

Stop 1- Laurel Hill Trail

Text- Although not as famous as the “Bloody Angle,” the fighting at Laurel Hill played an important role in the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House. Here the battle began, and here more than 5,000 soldiers suffered or died. The Laurel Hill Trail leads to some key sites in that struggle. The trail begins across the road. Be careful in crossing—traffic here can be heavy and sight distance limited.

Text- The] Federal assaults were not only easily repulsed, but the forces making them were simply slaughtered. Private John Coxe, 2nd South Carolina Infantry.

Before you lies Laurel Hill, one of the most important but least understood areas of the Spotsylvania Court House battlefield. On three separate days—May 8, 10, and 12—Union troops charged across these fields, from right to left, in an effort to break the Confederate army’s hold on the wooded ridge to your left. Each attack ended in bloody failure. With each repulse, the Union soldiers’ enthusiasm for attacking the ridge diminished. “Every man in the ranks saw the folly of the attempt,” wrote a soldier in the 83rd Pennsylvania Volunteers, “and judging from the undercurrent of their conversation, it is not probable that they would have made a very determined effort, or gone far.”

In all, some 5,000 Union soldiers fell here—all to no purpose. On May 13, the Union army abandoned Laurel Hill and headed east. The Confederates followed.

Many Spotsylvania families lost property during the war, but Sarah Spindle nearly lost her life. The 36-year-old widow and her family had just sat down to breakfast on May 8, 1864, when the popping of rifles announced the presence of hostile troops. Confederate soldiers started digging protective earthworks on one side of the farm (in front of you). Minutes later Union infantry appeared on the other side of the farm, behind you. They soon charged into Mrs. Spindle’s yard and orchard. Fighting raged.

The Spindle house is consumed by fire in this painting by artist Conrad Freitag, a German immigrant who served in the 8th New York Infantry (14th Brooklyn). He was wounded here at Spotsylvania.

For the rest of the day Mrs. Spindle’s farm would become the most contested piece of ground in North America. Fearing that the Federals would use the house as cover, Confederate artillery pummeled it with explosive shells, setting it on fire. Mrs. Spindle and her family ran screaming into the bedlam outside. They dodged their way southward (to your right) and crossed the Po River to safety. The house burned to the ground. Sarah Spindle escaped with her life but lost everything else.

In the two images below the topography of the hill is nicely brought out by the corn growing on its fields. In the first the hill slowly rises from right to left. Toward the left are two swales better seen in the second image. The Confederates were behind earthworks at the crest of the hill in the woods.

The Maryland Monument- a small sign once stood next to the granite monument it read “Judge Charles E. Phelps of the Maryland Court of Appeals erected this granite monument shortly after the turn of the century. On May 8, 1864, Phelps, then colonel of the 7th Maryland, helped lead the headlong charge of the Maryland Brigade across these open fields west of the Brock Road. Confederate infantry and artillery concealed parallel to the existing road on your left, shattered the Federal attack. Phelps fell wounded near this spot, which marks the Union highwater point during the opening battle at Spotsylvania.” Judge Phelps bought the property in 1885 in order to prserve it and erect the monument. Phelps was subsequently awarded the Medal of Honor for gallantry here.

The Confederate earthwork line is located in the woods parallel to the road only a few feet from the monument.

The Warren’s Initial Line sign and earthwork are on Hancock Road which runs near the base of Laurel Hill which is not on the walking trail.

The earthwork shown below would have been much taller during the war.

Stop 2- Upton’s Road

Across the street from these signs is a shallow trench line from Wright’s VI Corps

The monument below erected in May of 1994 memorializes the 12 regiments that made up Upton’s attack force and on the opposite side the Confederate forces that defended Dole’s Salient.

Looking up at Dole’s Salient

Text- Confederate General Richard S. Ewell responded quickly to Upton’s breakthrough at Dole’s Salient. Wading into the melee, he shouted to the outnumbered defenders: “Don’t run, boys. I will have enough men here in five minutes to eat up every damned one of them!” Ewell was as good as his word. Within minutes, thousands of Confederate soldiers converged on this spot.

Although initially successful, Upton’s attack quickly turned into a fight for survival. Confederate lines coming across the fields behind you pressed against now-ragged Union battle lines. Without help, Upton’s men could not hold out for long. As darkness settled over the battlefield, the Southerners drove Upton’s men from the salient and recaptured the cannons they had lost earlier in the evening.

Text- Just before 6 p.m. on May 10, 1864, 5,000 Union soldiers led by Colonel Emory Upton—formed in deep masses rather than traditional battle lines—emerged from the woods ahead of you and dashed across this field. They reached the main confederate line here.

Leaping over the works, they began stabbing with bayonets and swinging their muskets like clubs. More than 900 Confederate prisoners and four cannon (marked by the guns 80 yards to your left) fell into their hands. The victorious Federals swept down the works, widening the breach.

“The struggle lasted but a few seconds. Numbers prevailed, and, like a resistless wave, the column poured over the works…The column of assault had accomplished its task…The enemy’s lines were completely broken….” -Colonel Emory Upton, USA

Text- But no one had made arrangements to support the attack, and without more men Upton could go no farther. Meanwhile, in the fields behind you, Confederate generals marshaled troops to recapture the works. As daylight faded to darkness, Upton would be in for the fight of his life.

The tree line, shown below, from which the Federals emerged is about 30 yards closer to the Confederate line than it was in 1864.

These two guns represent Smith’s Battery of the Richmond Howitzers that were supporting Dole’s Salient. The guns were captured for a short period by Upton’s men. They mark the furthest point of advance by Upton’s men.

Next- Battle of Spotsylvania Court House Driving Tour- Stop 1 Exhibit Shelter