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Petersburg VA Daily Express

PetersburgDailyExpress

The front page of the Petersburg Daily Express, July 1, 1864.

The Daily Express (Petersburg, VA)

The Petersburg Daily Express was one of two daily papers still publishing when Grant’s Union armies confronted Lee’s Confederate veterans during the Petersburg-Richmond Campaign of 1864-65, and the only one to publish through the entirety of the Siege.  As such, it is a fascinating source for instantaneous (for 1864-65 anyway) eyewitness accounts from the Siege of Petersburg, including details found nowhere else. The paper lasted from 1852-1869, with a short break after Petersburg and Richmond fell in early April 1865. As far as I know, as of early 2021 it is unavailable online other than a few scattered transcribed articles here and there and via this web site.

All articles from the Express which have been published here at the Siege of Petersburg Online appear below, with many, many more planned.  I hope to publish these in chronological order from June 1864 to the end of March 1865, allowing readers to follow along through the entire Siege of Petersburg.

Can YOU Help With These MISSING DAYS?

Note that there are sometimes quite a few missing days below.  I was only able to publish what survived and was reproduced on microfilm. I am still missing the issues below and would love to gain access to digital reproductions wherever possible.  Click here to see the details of what is on microfilm versus what I still need. If you can help me obtain copies of the following list, please CONTACT US or comment below:

June 1864: MISSING June 10, 11 , 13, 15, 16, 18, 20, 24, 25, 27, 28, 29

July 1864: MISSING July 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 15, 16, 21, 26, 27, 30

August 1864: MISSING August 24, 25, 27

September 1864: MISSING September 1, NOT PUBLISHED: 14

October 1864: COMPLETE!

November 1864: MISSING November 17

December 1864: MISSING December 27

January 1865: COMPLETE!

February 1865: MISSING February 10

March 1865: MISSING March 8, 11, 25

April 1865: MISSING April 1, 2

 

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Petersburg Daily Express Articles Published at the Siege of Petersburg Online: