The Battle of White Oak Road

After their success at Lewis Farm, Union troops gained a foothold on the Boydton Plank Road, one of Robert E. Lee’s supply routes from North Carolina, making Federal control of the road strategically important. On March 30, General Warren pushed his men as close as possible to the Confederate defense line along White Oak Road and had them build slight earthworks. Concerned by the Federal movement, Lee ordered reinforcements to assist General Anderson along White Oak Road, including the 60th Alabama, which reached the road and spent March 30 in expectation of battle while only heavy skirmishing continued through the day. On the morning of March 31, 1865, Lee rode to the White Oak Road sector of his line and, after meeting with General Anderson and Major General Bushrod R. Johnson, learned that the Federal troops opposite them had the left part of their lines unprotected, leading him to decide to strike that vulnerable point.

Virginia · United States