Reconstruction of a Civil War-era fortification at the Eastern Front unit of Petersburg National Battlefield

EASTERN FRONT DRIVING TOUR

STOP 3:  CONFEDERATE BATTERY 9

Allow 20 minutes for a visit

The third stop on the Eastern Front Driving Tour at Petersburg National Battlefield is at the location of the former Confederate Battery 9. This is one of many batteries along 1.5 miles of the Confederate’s defensive line around Petersburg, the Dimmock Line, that were overrun by Union troops when fighting broke out on the evening of June 15, 1864, the first day of the Battle of Petersburg. Like Battery 8, it was captured by U. S. Colored Troops.

Reconstruction of a Civil War-era fortification at the Confederate Battery 9 stop on the tour of the Eastern Front Unit of Petersburg National Battlefield

All of the captured Confederate batteries were subsequently manned by Union troops for the duration of the fighting at Petersburg, though many were demolished and replaced by more substantial forts. What you see today at Stop 3 on the Eastern Front Driving Tour is a recreation built by the National Park Service of typical entrenchments during the Civil War. Forts and batteries were connected together by trenches, so imagine this mess of raw, upturned earth that you see here going on for miles. One soldier of the time called it “an immense prairie dog village.” Other earthworks you see in the park are covered in nicely manicured grass, but this was planted long after the Civil War to help stop erosion. During the war, all fortifications would have been exposed earth.

Reconstructed Civil War-era fortification at the Confederate Battery 9 stop on the tour of the Eastern Front Unit of Petersburg National Battlefield

Reconstructed Civil War-era fortification at the Confederate Battery 9 stop on the tour of the Eastern Front Unit of Petersburg National Battlefield

In addition to the earthen fortifications, log huts were built to house the soldiers during the winter. A few replicas of a typical cabin are also on display at this tour stop.

Cabin typical of those used by Union soldiers during the Siege of Petersburg, Petersburg National Battlefield

Three trails begin at Confederate Battery 9. All of them are gravel paths that follow former roads, so bikers are welcome on them as well as hikers. See the Eastern Front Trails web page here on National Park Planner for details on all the trails in this unit of Petersburg National Battlefield.

Trails at the Confederate Battery 9 stop on the Eastern Front Driving Tour of Petersburg National Battlefield

Just down the road is a picnic area with its own parking lot. There is also a fancy outhouse—a “portable toilet” in a permanent building.

Confederate Battery 9 Picnic Area at the Eastern Front Unit of Petersburg National Battlefield

Stop 4: Harrison Creek | Stop 2: Confederate Battery 8 | Eastern Front Tour Home Page

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