by Rosie Court
Guest Writer
In the South many men were buried in mass graves. At the Second Battle of Bull Run, 3,000 wounded still lay on the battlefield three days after the fighting. After five days, 600 soldiers were still alive. Many of the mass graves eventually washed away, leaving bodies uncovered.
The Battle of Petersburg on April 28, 1865 was the key to taking Richmond. This nine-month struggle, the largest siege ever, included for the first time trenched-warfare. It was a crushing defeat for the South as Lee’s five railroads were cut to his supply lines. After an all-out assault on March 25, Lee’s army retreated and Richmond fell to the Union.
The Civil War ended with the fall of Atlanta. On Nov. 15, Union Gen. William T. Sherman began his devastating “March to the Sea” total war campaign. First he burned Atlanta, leaving it in ruins. Then marching 300 miles from Tennessee to Georgia, they left a trail of destruction destroying virtually everything. They torched farmhouses and plantations, tore up railroads, killed livestock and burned crops. Supply lines were cut that provided food rations to the South. Living off the land they mercilessly pillaged every step of the way. On Dec. 25, 1865 they captured Savannah, Ga., which chose to surrender rather than be destroyed. Lowering of the Confederate flag and raising the “Stars and Stripes” signaled the defeat of the South. Much of the South was burned, left in ruins, leaving a bitterness still existing today.
Sherman then advanced into the Carolinas. The Second and Fourth Minnesota Regiments and First Minnesota Battery marched with Sherman 480 miles through the Carolinas.
With the fall of Richmond and Atlanta, Confederates’ food supply was low. Lee’s Army was surrounded on all sides. On April 9, 1865, Lee surrendered his Army to Gen. Grant at Appomattox Courthouse in Virginia. Surrendering with dignity, he stated “he would rather die 1,000 deaths than to surrender.” To his ragged, starving troops Lee stated “We have fought the war together, and I have done the best I could for you. You will be paroled and go to your homes until exchanged.” As tears swelled in his eyes, he said “Goodbye.” Since all railroads were destroyed, they had a long walk home to waiting loved ones. Some returned to burned-down homes or entire towns left in ashes.
On Dec. 15, 1865 the 13th Amendment was adopted abolishing slavery or involuntary servitude except as punishment for a crime. Finally African-Americans were no longer tied to the soil under cruel slave masters. They may have been free from bondage but not totally. Still treated as second-class citizens, many blacks would experience prejudice and limited freedom until the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. Now the challenge was to deal with democracy and find jobs to support their families.
Grant became known as a hero for the Union. He assisted with the construction efforts in the South. In 1868, he was elected president of the United States.
This painting shows the Fourth Minnesota Regiment entering Vicksburg, Miss., on July 4, 1863. The Fourth Regiment originally mustered into federal service between Oct. and Dec., 1861. In November John Sanborn was named as the regiment’s colonel. At first the Fourth Regiment was retained in Minnesota to garrison the state’s frontier posts. But the regiment saw action in the battle for Vicksburg, as well as Sherman’s march to the sea. The regiment returned home and was discharged at Fort Snelling on Aug. 7, 1865.
