Grant's Headquarters - Wilderness VA
N 38° 19.364 W 077° 44.043
18S E 260992 N 4245161
When Union Gen. U. S. Grant came to Virginia, he set up his command post near the Wilderness battlefield.
Waymark Code: WM8TBV
Location: Virginia, United States
Date Posted: 05/10/2010
Views: 8
When President Lincoln appointed Ulysses S. Grant general-in-chief over the entire Union army, rather than stay in Washington, D.C., Grant joined Gen. George Meade's Army of the Potomac in Virginia. Meade was battling Gen. Robert E. Lee's Confederate troops in Wilderness. Gen. Grant set up his headquarters on a knoll above the Orange Turnpike (modern-day Rt. 20) near the battlefield.
From May 5-7, 1864, Grant and Meade stayed there sending and receiving dispatches from the battlefront, plotting strategies, and reviewing maps. They could see little of the actual battle that raged less than two miles away, instead relying on daily intelligence reports.
Gen. Grant was more aggressive than Gen. Meade and insisted on pounding relentlessly at the Confederate army. Even though Grant did not want to interfere with Meade's handling of the troops, Grant increasingly clashed with him over his conservative methods. Grant told Meade, "Lee's army will be your objective point. Wherever Lee goes, there you will go also".¹
Today, there is a pull-off on Rt. 20 with a historical display. A short trail leads to the knoll where Grant and Meade had their command post. The pull-off and parking is located at:
- N 38° 19.335' W 077° 44.026'
¹From historical placard at site