Army of the James Memorial - Hopewell, VA
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archway
N 37° 18.337 W 077° 17.856
18S E 296375 N 4131251
An obelisk dedicated to the Army of the James. Located in City Point National Cemetery.
Waymark Code: WM7ZX2
Location: Virginia, United States
Date Posted: 12/31/2009
Views: 6
This obelisk was constructed at City Point National Cemetery in 1865. The project was supervised by Maj. Gen. Benjamin F. Butler, a former commander of the Army of the James. On top of the obelisk are the carvings of a draped cloth and a cannon ball. The inscriptions on the sides read as follows:
Sacred
to the
Lamented Dead
of
The Army
of the James.
_____________
Erected
by the direction of
Maj. Genl. B.F. Butler,
George Suckley,
Surg. U.S. Vols.
Colonel and Medical Director
H.B. Fowler,
Surg. 12. N.H. Vols.
Surgeon in Charge of
Point of Rocks Hospital.
Geo. Jones,
Hospital Chaplain
1865.
~~~
Background:
The town of City Point, now part of Hopewell, was the Union base of operations for the siege of Petersburg in late 1864 and early 1865. The port at the confluence of the Appomattox and James Rivers was the busiest in the world, bakeries provided 100,000 loaves per day to feed soldiers, and several hospitals treated the sick and injured. One of the burial sites beside a hospital became what is now City Point National Cemetery.
The Army of the James landed at Bermuda Hundred, a location two miles west of City Point. Led by Maj. Gen. Benjamin F. Butler, the army attempted to cut communication and transportation lines between Richmond and Petersburg, but only managed to do so temporarily. Once Butler fell back, the Confederate army kept him bottled up at Bermuda Hundred. Butler's only success was a victory at the Battle of Chaffin's Farm. Eventually, though, Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant relieved Butler of command and replaced him with Maj. Gen. Edward Ord. Under Ord's command, the Army of the James was present at the fall of Petersburg and was the first unit to enter Richmond. Additionally, Ord pursued Gen. Robert E. Lee to Appomattox, cut off escape routes, and was on-hand for Lee's surrender.