A Lethal Occupation
From this advanced Confederate line, constructed after the grand Union assault of June 3, Lee’s sharpshooters searched for targets. They were near enough to the Federal line that enemy voices could be heard.
Between June 3 and June 12 constant skirmishing, artillery firing, and the deadly business of the Union and Confederate sharpshooters characterized the Cold Harbor fighting. Up and down the lines soldiers feared the work of these marksmen with their long range rifles. One Virginia artilleryman considered the sharpshooter “little better than a human tiger lying in wait for blood.”
Marker can be reached from the intersection of Anderson-Wright Drive and Cold Harbor Road (Virginia Route 156).
Courtesy hmdb.org
