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Rebel generals unite to attack Pittsburgh...
Rebel generals unite to attack Pittsburgh...
Item # 716528
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August 07, 1864
NEW YORK HERALD, Aug. 7, 1864
* Battle of the Crater - Gen. Burnside
* Last attempt for Northern invasion
Among the front page column heads on the Civil War are: "GRANT" "A Rebel Mine Exploded Under Our Works" "Expeditions Into North Carolina & Up the Rappahannock" "The Rebel Raid" "Reported Evacuation of Hagerstown by the Rebels" "Johnson's, McCausland's, Jackson's, Imboden's and Early's Forces United" "Their Plan to Capture Pittsburgh and Wheeling then to Advance on Cincinnati" and more.
Eight pages, very nice condition.
background: The Battle of the Crater, fought on July 30, 1864, during the Siege of Petersburg in the American Civil War, was a bold but disastrously executed Union attempt to break Confederate lines. Union engineers, many of whom were experienced coal miners, dug a long tunnel beneath the Confederate trenches and packed it with around 8,000 pounds of explosives. When detonated, the blast created a massive crater, obliterating a key section of the Confederate defenses and offering a potential breakthrough. However, poor planning and leadership decisions turned the opportunity into a catastrophe. Instead of quickly moving around the crater to exploit the breach, Union troops—particularly a division of African American soldiers—charged directly into the crater itself, becoming trapped and disorganized. Confederate forces quickly rallied and launched a fierce counterattack, resulting in heavy Union casualties and the loss of many prisoners. The battle exposed severe flaws in Union command and coordination and marked a missed chance to hasten the end of the Petersburg siege, while also underscoring the brutal realities faced by Black soldiers in the war.
Category: Yankee
No Longer Available
