When within two and a half miles of Williamsburg, at two o’clock on May 4th, General Stoneman’s advance came up with the enemy, who threw out a body of cavalry to check the pursuit. Captain Gibbon’s battery was brought to bear on the horsemen, who on their approach were met by a charge of the First and Sixth regular cavalry, who drove them back, capturing twenty-five of their number. Two of the Federals were killed, and about twenty wounded; and twenty of Captain Gibbon’s horses were killed.
THE BATTLE OF WILLIAMSBURG.
May 5, 1862.
The evacuation of Yorktown, which occupied several days, was completed on the morning of Sunday, the 4th of May, the main body of the retreating rebels taking the principal road through Williamsburg, and smaller portions of the army passing along the road near the banks of the York river. A line of entrenchments had been run about two and a half miles from Williamsburg, and became the scene of a fiercely contested engagement on May 5th.
The rebel forces had succeeded in passing through the city, and left a force of about five thousand men to engage and retard the advance of the Union army.
The approach to Williamsburg from the lower part of the peninsula is by two roads, one on the James river side, from Warwick court-house, and the other from Yorktown, on the York river side. Both these roads lead through a dense forest, broken only by occasional openings, and over alternate soils of sand, reddish clay and swamp. The heavy rains had saturated the soil, and the retreat of the rebels, with their ponderous trains, had cut the roads up to an extent that made them almost impassable. In very many places where they led over swampy ground, horses and wagons would sink together, and other teams were necessary to draw them out and place them upon soil that was firm only by comparison. This was the general character of both these roads. They gradually approach each other through the forest, and meet at a sharp angle about forty rods beyond the edge of the forest, in a large open plain, which stretches away on either side, and lies directly in front of the village of Williamsburg, at a distance of about two miles. Beyond this intersection of the two roads, and directly ahead, was a long earthwork, some hundred rods in advance, called Fort Page, (also called Fort Magruder,) commanding with its guns and the infantry who were concealed behind its walls both these converging roads. Looking to the right, the eye ranges over a broad open field, stretching a mile or more away, with a rolling surface, backed by a swamp, and dotted with five separate earthworks, placed to command the plain in advance and concentrate their cross-fire upon the troops approaching by the roads. Looking to the left, there are three other works of a similar character, commanding the approaches on that side. Here the woods came closer up to the road, and for a space of some twenty or thirty acres lying along the James river road, the trees had been cut down, and the ground in part had been filled with rifle-pits.
BIRDS-EYE VIEW OF THE COUNTRY FROM RICHMOND TO YORKTOWN.
1. Richmond.—2. Manchester.—3. Hanover C. H.—4. Mechanicsville.—5. Beaver Dam.—6. Gaines Mills.—7. New Bridge.—8. Cold Harbor.—9. Garnetts.—10. Golding.—11. Trent.—12. Couch.—13. Savage’s Station.—14. Fair Oaks.—15. Seven Oaks.—16. Bottoms Bridge.—17. White Oaks Bridge and Swamp.—18. Charles City Roads.—19. Malvern Hills.—20. Turkey Bridge.—21. Turkey Creek.—22. Turkey Island Bend.—23. Berkeley.—24. Harrison’s Landing.—25. City Point.—26. Fort Darling.—27. Dispatch Station.—28. Summit.—29. White House.—30. Cumberland Landing.—31. New Kent C. H.—32. West Point.—33. Williamsburg.—34. Yorktown.—35. Gloucester Point.—36. James River.—37. Chickahominy River.—38. York River.—39. Pamunky River.—40. Mattapony River.—41. Riemkatank River.—42. Rappahannock River.—43. Richmond and York Railroad.—44. Virginia Central Railroad.—45. Richmond and Fredericksburg Railroad.—46. Richmond and Danville Railroad.—47. Petersburg and Richmond Railroad.—48. Appamotox.
As soon as the evacuation of Yorktown was ascertained, on Sunday morning, General Stoneman, with several regiments of cavalry, followed by light field batteries, including horse artillery, started in pursuit of the enemy. About noon General Hooker’s division left the camp in front of Yorktown, followed by General Kearney’s division, both belonging to General Heintzelman’s corps, and marched towards Williamsburg, to support General Stoneman, and assist him in cutting off the enemy’s retreat. The cavalry followed close upon the rear guard of the enemy, and during the day there was occasional skirmishing between them. After having advanced about six miles the cavalry halted to await the arrival of the infantry. The divisions of Generals Smith and Hooker met at a crossing of the roads, and continued on their routes, and met again at the junction below Fort Page. It was now late in the day, and General Sumner, who desired to engage the enemy, was compelled to defer an attack until the morning.
The troops bivouacked at night in the best positions they could secure. General Hooker’s division was in front of the centre of the enemy’s works. General Smith’s infantry, and General Stoneman’s artillery and cavalry were on the right. Generals Kearney and Couch had also come up, and halted in the rear, while other divisions took position where they could be disposed to the best advantage. Rain had fallen almost constantly during the day, and now a stormy night drew its dark mantle over them, while the wearied army lay upon the wet earth, and sought repose.