Benson J. Lossing, Pictorial Field Book of the Civil War. Volume 3.

[35] once. General Warren arrived at two o'clock in the morning

May 3, 1863

to hasten it, but it was daylight before the head of Sedgwick's column entered Fredericksburg. He was soon afterward joined by General Gibbon, of Couch's corps, with about six thousand troops, who had been left at Falmouth, and had crossed on pontoons just below the rapids and ford at that place.

General Early, with his own division, and Barksdale's brigade of Mc-Laws's division, were on the heights to oppose Sedgwick. Barksdale occupied a position on Marye's Hill and behind a stone wall at the foot of it, precisely as he had done in December, when Burnside's troops were there repulsed.¹ On the crest were three companies of the Washington artillery, and Early occupied the range to the right of them. They felt quite secure in their advantageous position, and their sense of safety was increased when a portion of Newton's division, sent by Sedgwick to attack Barksdale, was repulsed, and driven back into the town in shattered columns. A flanking movement by General Howe on the left, and General Gibbon on the right, was equally unsuccessful, but not so disastrous, when Sedgwick determined to form powerful assaulting parties, and storm the Confederate works along their entire occupied line. Two storming columns were formed from Newton's division, one of four, and the other of two regiments;² and another, of four regiments, under Colonel Burham, of the Sixth Maine, was directed to move up the plank road, and to the right of the others, directly against the rifle-pits at the foot of Marye's Hill. General Howe, with three storming parties under the command, respectively, of General Neil and Colonels Grant and Seaver, was ordered to move simultaneously upon the Confederate works on the left, near Hazel Run.

The storming parties moved at near eleven o'clock in the morning. The onset was furious, and was gallantly resisted. Steadily the Nationals moved on, in defiance of a galling fire from artillery and small arms, driving Barksdale from his shelter at the stone wall, scaling Marye's Hill, seizing the rifle-pits and batteries, and capturing full two hundred prisoners, at the cost to Sedgwick of about a thousand men, the Sixth Maine first planting the National flag upon the captured works in token of triumph. Howe had, at the same time, carried the Confederate works on the left, under a heavy fire of artillery; and in a short time after the movement began, the entire ridge was in possession of the Nationals, Early and his shattered columns were flying southward, and the plank road was opened to Sedgwick from Fredericksburg to Chancellorsville. This was the startling intelligence that reached Lee, just as he was about to attack Hooker in his new position.

Sedgwick immediately re-formed his brigades after his victory, and leaving Gibbon at Fredericksburg, marched along the plank road toward Chancellorsville. Lee, at the same time, ventured again to divide his army while in front of his foe, and sent General McLaws with four brigades to meet Sedgwick. Wilcox had already hastened from Banks's Ford, and throwing