A Diversion
The Second Battle of Fredericksburg
3 May 1863. During the Chancellorsville Campaign, Brigadier General John Gibbon deployed his Union division in this area in support of other federal units in Fredericksburg.
On the morning of May 3, Gibbon’s troops rushed forward to assault the heights in front of you. The attack faltered at this canal when the soldiers discovered that planks for the bridge had been removed. While the Northerners pulled boards from a nearby house, Confederate artillery went into battery on the high ground and opened fire. Southern infantry also arrived to take up defensive positions.
Gibbon’s opportunity to seize an undefended hill had passed, but this Federal demonstration caused the Confederates to overextend themselves. When the Southern troops shifted to confront Gibbons, another Union column broke through at Sunken Road (1¼ mile south of here). The victorious Federals headed toward Chancellorsville, but were turned back by Confederate reinforcements at Salem Church.
Marker is on Jefferson Davis Highway (U.S. 1) north of Mary Washington Blvd, on the right when traveling south.
Courtesy hmdb.org
