Battle of the Wilderness-Wilderness Exhibit Shelter - Locust Grove VA
Posted by: 
Don.Morfe
N 38° 19.053 W 077° 45.378
18S E 259029 N 4244644
The Army of the Potomac-Throughout the winter of 1863-1864, the armies rested and refitted on opposite sides of the Rapidan River.
Waymark Code: WM134B0
Location: Virginia, United States
Date Posted: 09/12/2020
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Battle of the Wilderness-Wilderness Exhibit Shelter— East Wall--
The Armies
The Army of the Potomac
Throughout the winter of 1863-1864, the armies rested and refitted on opposite sides of the Rapidan River. The ranks of the Union army swelled with thousands of new draftees and recruits - soldiers whose commitment to the cause many questioned.
"Never in a war...did the rank and file feel a more resolute earnestness for a just cause, and a more invincible determination to succeed...."
Wilbur Fisk, 2nd Vermont Infantry, April 7, 1864
Commander: Major General George Gordon Meade
Strength: 120,000 men and 275 cannon
The Army of Northern Virginia
The Confederates struggled to keep their existing regiments full. In the Wilderness they would bring to the battle 13,000 fewer men than they had fielded at Gettysburg the year before.
"The troops are all in excellent spirits, and eager for the fray. Gen. Grant's glory will soon vanish away, and his great name buried along with those of his unfortunate predecessors."
Samuel Clyde, 2nd South Carolina Infantry, April 28, 1864
Commander: General Robert E. Lee-Strength: 60,000 men and 226 cannon.
LOCATION: Marker is near Locust Grove, Virginia, in Orange County. Marker is on Constitution Highway (State Highway 20), on the right when traveling west. Located at stop two of the driving tour of Wilderness Battlefield. Post office area: Locust Grove VA 22508
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