Artillery Emplacements Outside Petersburg

Union soldiers man artillery emplacements atop a hill near Petersburg in late June 1864. Confederate forces had controlled this artillery position until June 15, 1864, when they were forced to flee. Called Confederate Battery 5, it had been one of fifty-five artillery batteries that were part of the Dimmock Line of fortifications around Petersburg. This glass-plate image was probably taken by one of Mathew Brady's field photographers approximately a week after Union forces had taken control of the site.