William Swinton, Campaigns of the Army of the Potomac

The action at Williamsburg was very unfortunate, though General McClellan cannot be held responsible for it, unless he may be blamed for remaining behind at Yorktown to superintend the getting off of Franklin's expedition. But to blame him for this would be hardly warrantable. He was within easy communication with the advance, which was placed under orders of his lieutenant, General Sumner; and he had a right to suppose that he would be kept informed of every thing of importance occurring in the front. Yet he was left entirely unaware, till the afternoon, that any thing but a trivial affair of the rear-guard had taken place. Sumner, that model of a soldier though not of a general, had too much the fire of the vietux sabreur to allow his head to work coolly and clearly in situations where that temper of mind was most needed; and his conduct of affairs at Williamsburg was marked by great confusion. So contradictory were his orders, that with thirty thousand men within three or four miles of the position, the division of Hooker was left to bear alone the brunt of successive severe attacks; and the result was the loss of above two thousand men,¹ without any corresponding gain. Hooker's fight was really quite unnecessary; for the difficult obstacles against which he had to contend might have been easily turned by the right. This was actually done at last by the flank movement of General Hancock, who, with slight loss, determined the issue.

On the retreat of the Confederates from Williamsburg, the Army of the Potomac was pushed forward as rapidly as the horrible condition of the roads would permit, on a line parallel with the York and Pamunkey; and on the 16th of May headquarters and the advance divisions reached White House, at the head of navigation of the latter stream. From that point the York River Railroad runs due west to Richmond, distant eighteen miles. Great depots were established at