Beyond the Crater
A criminally neglected campaign, methodically documented.
The Richmond–Petersburg Campaign was not a true siege but a series of nine Union offensives against the Confederate defenses of Petersburg and Richmond. Over 295 days it cost 50,000 Union and 32,000 Confederate casualties — and it has never received the scholarly attention it deserves. This site exists to change that.
Every regiment, battery, and ship. Every official report, tagged and cross-referenced. Thousands of newspaper articles, letters, and diaries. One campaign — reconstructed source by source.
A spectacular website — whose collection of material is simply unequaled. Anyone remotely interested in the Petersburg Campaign should avail themselves of Schulte’s digital archive.
— A. Wilson Greene, A Campaign of Giants: The Battle for Petersburg, Vol. II (University of North Carolina Press, 2025)
There are several great sites that compile source material on various regiments or battles — Harry Smeltzer’s Bull Runnings and Brett Schulte’s Siege of Petersburg Online come to mind.
— John J. Hennessy, former Chief Historian, Fredericksburg & Spotsylvania National Military Park, Foreword to The Chancellorsville Campaign Papers, Vols. 3–4, ed. M. Chris Bryan (Savas Beatie, forthcoming)
Start here
Begin with the shape of the campaign
If you’re new to the siege, the fastest way in is through the nine-offensives framework. Each page explains what happened, when, and why it mattered.
- What Petersburg actually was 5 MIN
- The Nine Offensives, briefly 12 MIN
- The Battle of the Crater 8 MIN
- How to use this site 3 MIN
Jump straight to sources
Looking for a specific unit, battle, or document? The archive is fully cross-referenced — every tagged report surfaces on the relevant unit, date, and battle pages.
- Official Records (tagged) 1,000+
- Petersburg-era newspapers GROWING
- SHSP, MOLLUS, Nat. Tribune ONGOING
- Letters, diaries & regimentals GROWING
Looking for an ancestor?
Give me a soldier’s name and unit and I’ll retrieve his full Compiled Military Service Record from Fold3 — Union or Confederate — as images, a summary, or a full transcription.
- Raw record images $10
- Images + written summary $20
- Images + summary + full transcription $30
The Nine Offensives
We need your help
If you hold primary source materials — letters, diaries, rosters, photographs — from soldiers who fought in the Siege of Petersburg, we’d like to feature them here. Descendants have already contributed meaningfully to this archive. Proper attribution and copyright protection are strictly enforced.
My great-great grandfather, Adj. William Beynon Phillips of the 2nd. Pa. Provisional Heavy Artillery was one of 6 officers of the regiment captured at the Battle of the Crater. The 2nd. Pa. Provisional “Heavies” were the first regiment to enter the Crater and emerge out of it as a unit. Prior to his capture he participated in the Union charge of June 17th. and the Siege of Petersburg. Following his capture he was imprisoned at Camp Asylum, Columbia , S.C. I have published 40 of his letters on my blog commemorating his service to his adopted country. Of particular interest is his letters of July 4, 1864 in which he describes the charge of June 17th. 1864 and June 20, 1864 in which he describes in very great detail a night artilley exchange. I invite you to read these great letters.
Greg Taylor
My 2 x great-grandfather, Confederate Corporal David Land, Company I 13th NC. Infantry served in the Petersburg trenches until his capture April 2,1865. Also serving were two of his nephews, Private John Land Co.B 11th NC. Infantry and Private James Jefferson Land Company D 63rd TN. Infantry. John was mortally wounded on April 2nd and captured while hospitalized in Richmond on April 3rd. He died while still in Federal custody on July 9,1865. James was surrendered and paroled at Appomattox. He was one of 28 remaining of the 63rd TN. One of only 7 remaining of Company D.
My great grandfather Luther Rice Blair of Pittsylvania Co. Virginia was with Capt. Sam Wright’s Company Halifax Va. Heavy Artillery(Also Young’s) and spent most of the war defending Richmond and Petersburg,Rockett’s Landing,Drewery’s Bluff,The Crater. He was on roll at Appomattox for the surrender,so he must have been fighting all the way from Petersburg retreating to Appomattox,one of his brothers,George W. Blair died at Five Forks with the 38th Pittsylvania Co. Vindicators Va. He had another brother Suter F Blair with the 38th that died at Gettysburg in Pickett’s Charge,George was a POW at Gettysburg also in Pickett’s Charge sent to Ft Delaware,then to Point Lookout and eventually exchanged back to Ft Lee. One other brother Samuel Brittain Blair jr. was with the 53rd Inf. Virginia,he and my great grandfather survived the war
I know of letters from Delaware soldiers at Petersburg, but they belong to the state of Delaware and I would have to get permission to use or share them.
My GG Grandfather was Seth Gardner who fought with the 185th Infantry, Company C out of New York. He was from Onondaga County N.Y. He fought at the Battle of Five Forks and was present when Lee surrendered to Grant. Seeking a photograph of his Company and Or of him.