Cold Harbor | June 7, 1864

Hanover County, Va.

Grant shortened his lines the day after the June 3 assault, but both sides remained mostly in position for the next nine days. Some men were pinned between the lines, barely yards from the enemy. Sharpshooters picked off scores of unlucky survivors of the carnage, and artillery batteries traded long range fire. On June 7, four days after the heaviest fighting, Lee and Grant agreed to a two-hour truce to allow the Federals a chance to retrieve their wounded. However, by then few of the wounded were found alive as thousands had died under the summer sun.

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Gaines’ Mill Cold Harbor Saved Forever: The Final Push

After 25 years, the American Battlefield Trust is in the final stretch of one of the most ambitious preservation campaigns in its history. Every gift...

Related Battles

Hanover County, VA | May 31, 1864
Result: Confederate Victory
Estimated Casualties
17,332
Union
12,737
Confed.
4,595