On February 5th another move was made for the purpose of extending our lines to the left. At 7 a. m., with the division, we broke camp and marched to the Vaughn road crossing of Hatcher's run. Skirmishers from our 1st brigade and the cavalry having effected the crossing, our brigade—temporarily commanded by Colonel West, of the 17th Maine—crossed over and began to throw up a slight breastwork, forming the arc of a circle, the right of the 1st, and the left of the 2d brigade resting on the run. Our brigade (the 2d) remained in this position till about 5 p. m., when it was hurriedly moved to the right to support McAllister (3d brigade), who was being fiercely attacked by the enemy on the north side of the run. We started off on the double quick for a mile or more—the 57th leading—and reaching McAllister's position the 57th Pennsylvania and the 5th Michigan formed line on his left and charged the enemy, who would have driven back McAllister without our assistance. Company E, of the 57th, was not with the regiment in this fight, having been sent on picket duty before the brigade was ordered to the right. The regiment had two men wounded in this affair. The rest of the fighting during this expedition was confined to the 5th corps and the cavalry, who were on our left.
The 7th was a very disagreeable day, as it began to snow and continued to do so all day. On the 9th we were supplied with axes and began to slash the timber in front of our new line of works.
Our army now held a line extending from Armstrong's mill on Hatcher's run on the left to the Appomattox river below Petersburg on the right, a distance of about sixteen miles. This line with the natural and artificial obstructions in its front, was almost impregnable, and could be held by a small portion of our troops, leaving the main body of our army free for operations elsewhere.
On March 10th the regiment proceeded to lay out a new camp, which proved to be the last one among the many we occupied along the Petersburg lines, From this time until March 25th we lay quiet in our camp with the exceptions of drill, camp and picket duty.
A heavy detail for picket duty in our front was sent out on the morning of March 24th. It was a beautiful spring day and everything remained quiet along our part of the line, until an hour or so before daylight on the 25th, when a prolonged and heavy artillery fire was heard far away on our right. About 7 a. m. a staff officer of our division rode out to our picket line, with orders to advance our line and feel of the enemy. After crossing a narrow swamp in our front we advanced through the woods and were soon exchanging shots with the enemy's pickets. We were ordered to cease advancing, so we remained quiet until the relief came out and took our places at 9 o'clock. During our advance Lieut. R. I. Campbell, of Company C, and several of our men, were slightly wounded.
On our arrival in camp we learned that the heavy artillery fire on our right which we heard in the morning, was caused by an attack on our lines by the enemy, under Gen. J. B. Gordon, at Fort Steadman. The enemy was temporarily successful, but were finally driven back with heavy loss by the 9th corps under General Parke. Many of the enemy were killed and wounded in trying to get back to their own lines; 1,949 prisoners, including 71 officers and nine stands of colors, fell into General Parke's hands.
About 3 p. m. of the same day our whole division was sent to the front for the purpose of driving back the enemy's picket line near the Watkins house. Arriving near the ground to be contested, General Pierce placed Colonel Pulford, of the 5th Michigan, in charge of the right wing near the Watkins house, and Colonel Zinn of the left wing, consisting of the 57th, 105th and 141st Pennsylvania. As soon as Colonel Zinn's line was formed, he sent out details from each regiment to connect the enemy's rifle-pits which had been captured in the morning. While these details were at work, a brigade of rebels charged them and drove them back to the main line. Colonel Zinn at once ordered a countercharge of the regiments under his command, when they went forward with a cheer, and retook the pits and captured six commissioned officers and 167 enlisted men. In this charge Corporal Wolford Case, of Company E, 57th, ordered a rebel lieutenant to give up his sword. The rebel refused to do so at first, but, on seeing the state of affairs, yielded without further comment.
Our regiment lost in this engagement 1 officer and 5 men wounded. The brigade loss was 4 enlisted men killed and 1 officer and 29 men wounded.
Gen. A. A. Humphreys, in his book entitled "The Virginia Campaign of 1864-5," says of this engagement: "It was this capture of the entrenched picket line of the enemy that made it practicable for General Wright to carry the enemy's main line of entrenchments by assault on the morning of the 2d of April."
We remained on the ground wrested from the enemy until after dark, when other troops relieved us and we returned to our camps.