On September 28, 1781, as General Washington’s army marched within a mile of Yorktown, the various brigades were assigned locations for their camps, hospitals, and artillery parks, and some of those camps filled these woods as soldiers carried out essential activities for the siege. Lieutenant William Feltman of the Pennsylvania Battalion wrote that the American troops encamped in a wood within a mile of the enemy’s left line, while the French troops encamped on their right. Before construction of the First Allied Siege Line, much effort went into unloading and transporting stores, cannon, and other materiel from Trebells Landing, six miles away on the James River, to camp, a process that moved heavily for want of teams, while soldiers also prepared fascines and gabions for the siege. Routine duties such as guard duty, repairing equipment, setting up tents, and preparing meals occupied the soldiers’ days as they readied for a prolonged siege.
