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The Battle of Stony Creek Depot
June 28, 1864 in Sussex County, Virginia
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was the supply centre for the Confederate capital of Richmond, and was under siege by Union forces under the command of General Ulysses S. Grant. Petersburg was supplied by rail along two rail lines, the South Side and the Richmond & Danville. On June 22, Grant dispatched a 5000 strong cavalry force under the command of Brigadier General James H. Wilson and Brigadier General August V. Kautz to cut the rail lines. This lead to a series of raids which led to the destruction of 60 miles of rail track and culminated with the Battle of Staunton River Bridge on 25 June, where the raiders were defeated and began a retreat back to Union positions.
Since the outset of the raid, the Union force had been pursued by Confederate General William Henry Fitzhugh Lee. Lee's forces had finally been able to catch up to the Union cavalry at Staunton Bridge, and had attacked them in the rear and then continued to pursue them as they retired to Union lines.
On June 28, the Union cavalry crossed the Nottoway River and reached the Stony Creek Depot on the Weldon Railroad. Here, they were attack by Confederate Major General Wade Hampton and his cavalry division. During the resulting battle, Lee arrived on the field with his own forces and attacked the Union raiders. By nightfall, Kautz and Wilson ordered their forces to fall back in an attempt to reach Reams Railway Station to the north. During the retreat, a large number of slaves who had been accompanying the Union forces were left behind.
