Editing Siege of Petersburg (section)

===Wilson–Kautz Raid (June 22 – July 1) {{anchor|Wilson-Kautz}}===
{{Further|Wilson–Kautz Raid|Battle of Staunton River Bridge|Battle of Sappony Church|First Battle of Ream's Station}}
[[File:Wilson-Kautz Raid.pdf|thumb|right|upright=1.5|Wilson–Kautz Raid, June 22 – July 1]]

In parallel to Birney's and Wright's infantry action at the Jerusalem Plank Road, Wilson was ordered by Meade to conduct a raid destroying as much track as possible south and southwest of Petersburg. Grant considered Wilson's 3rd Division of the Cavalry Corps too small to conduct the operation alone, particularly since Meade required Wilson to leave 1,400 men behind for picket duty, so he directed Butler to contribute Kautz's small division (2,000 troopers) to the effort. Early on the morning of June 22, 3,300 men,<ref>Longacre, p. 289; Salmon, 397; Kennedy, p. 303, and Salmon, p. 410, cite 5,500 men.</ref> and 12 guns organized into two batteries, departed Mount Sinai Church and began to destroy railroad track and cars of the Weldon Railroad at Reams Station,<ref>Located at the currently unincorporated community of Reams, Virginia, this railroad station is referred to variously as Reams, Ream's, and Reams's Station.</ref> {{convert|7|mi|km}} south of Petersburg. Kautz's men moved to the west to Ford's Station and began destroying track, locomotives, and cars on the South Side Railroad.<ref>Salmon, p. 397; Longacre, pp. 287–89; Starr, pp. 179–81.</ref>

On June 23, Wilson proceeded to the junction of the [[Richmond and Danville Railroad]] at [[Burkeville, Virginia|Burkeville]], where he encountered elements of Rooney Lee's cavalry between [[Nottoway, Virginia|Nottoway Court House]] and Black's and White's (modern-day [[Blackstone, Virginia|Blackstone]]). The Confederates struck the rear of his column, forcing Colonel George A. Chapman's brigade to fend them off. Wilson followed Kautz along the South Side Railroad, destroying about 30 miles (50&nbsp;km) of track as they went. On June 24, while Kautz remained to skirmish around Burkeville, Wilson crossed over to Meherrin Station on the Richmond and Danville and began destroying track.<ref>Longacre, p. 289; Starr, pp. 181–91.</ref>

On June 25, Wilson and Kautz continued tearing up track south to the Staunton River Bridge at Roanoke Station (modern-day [[Randolph, Virginia|Randolph]]), where they encountered approximately 1,000 "old men and boys" (the Home Guard), commanded by Captain Benjamin L. Farinholt, dug in with earthworks and prepared artillery positions at the bridge. The [[Battle of Staunton River Bridge]] was a minor affair in which Kautz attempted multiple frontal assaults against the Home Guard, but his men never came closer than {{convert|80|yd|m}}. Lee's cavalry division closed on the Federals from the northeast and skirmished with Wilson's rear guard. Casualties on the Union side amounted to 42 killed, 44 wounded, and 30 missing or captured. Confederate losses were 10 killed and 24 wounded. Kautz's men gave up and retreated to the railroad depot at 9 p.m. Despite these relatively minor losses, the two Union cavalry generals decided to abandon their mission, leaving the Staunton River bridge intact and having inflicted only minor damage on the railroads.<ref>Salmon, pp. 411–13; Longacre, pp. 289–90; Starr, pp. 191–93.</ref>

As Wilson and Kautz turned back to the east after their defeat at Staunton River Bridge, Lee's cavalry pursued and threatened their rear. Meanwhile, Robert E. Lee ordered Hampton's cavalry, which had been engaged with Sheridan's cavalry at the [[Battle of Trevilian Station]] on June 11–12, to join the pursuit and attack Wilson and Kautz. Before leaving on his raid, Wilson had received assurances from Meade's chief of staff, Major General [[Andrew A. Humphreys]], that the Army of the Potomac would be immediately taking control of the Weldon Railroad at least as far south as Reams Station, so Wilson decided that would be an appropriate place to return to Union lines. The Union defeat at [[Battle of Jerusalem Plank Road|Jerusalem Plank Road]] made those assurances inoperable. Wilson and Kautz were surprised on the afternoon of June 28 when they reached Stony Creek Station, {{convert|10|mi|km}} south of Reams, as hundreds of Hampton's cavalrymen (under Brigadier General [[John R. Chambliss]]) and infantry blocked their path. In the [[Battle of Sappony Church]], Wilson's men tried to break through but had to fall back when Confederate brigadier generals [[Matthew C. Butler]] and [[Thomas L. Rosser]] threatened to envelop Wilson's left flank. Kautz's division, following Wilson's, took a back road in the direction of Reams Station and was attacked by Lee's division late in the day. The Union cavalrymen were able to slip out of the trap under the cover of darkness and rode north on the Halifax Road for the supposed security of Reams Station.<ref>Salmon, pp. 414–15; Longacre, pp. 290–91; Starr, pp. 193–96.</ref>

[[File:Dictator at Petersburg.jpg|thumb|"Dictator" siege mortar on the U.S. Military Railroad at Petersburg]]

In the [[First Battle of Reams Station]] on June 29, Kautz approached Reams Station from the west expecting to find the friendly infantry promised by Humphreys but found Confederate infantry instead—Mahone's division blocking the approaches to the Halifax Road and the railroad behind well-constructed earthworks. Kautz's attack by the 11th Pennsylvania and the 1st District of Columbia Cavalry along the Depot Road was unsuccessful and Mahone counterattacked against the flank of the Pennsylvanians. On the Stage Road to the north of the station, the brigades of brigadier generals [[Lunsford L. Lomax]] and [[Williams C. Wickham]] maneuvered around the [[2nd Ohio Cavalry]] and 5th New York Cavalry, turning the Federal left flank. Wilson sent a messenger north who was able to slip through the Confederate lines and urgently requested help from Meade at City Point. Meade alerted Wright to prepare to move his entire VI Corps to Reams Station, but he realized that it would take too long on foot and requested help from Sheridan's cavalry as well. Sheridan demurred, complaining of the effect on his "worn-out horses and exhausted men." After the war, arguments persisted between Sheridan and Wilson about whether the former had adequately protected the raiders from the Confederate cavalry of Hampton and Fitzhugh Lee. Sheridan did reach Reams Station by 7 p.m., only to find that the VI Corps infantry had in fact arrived but that Wilson and Kautz had departed.<ref>Salmon, pp. 414–15; Starr, pp. 197–204.</ref>

Caught in a trap without the promise of immediate aid, the Wilson–Kautz raiders burned their wagons and destroyed their artillery pieces and fled to the north before the reinforcements arrived. They lost hundreds of men as prisoners in what was called "a wild skedaddle." At least 300 escaped slaves who had joined the Union cavalrymen during the raid were abandoned during the retreat. The raiders reentered Federal lines around 2 p.m. on July 1. They had destroyed {{convert|60|mi|km}} of track, which took the Confederates several weeks to repair, but it came at the cost of 1,445 Union casualties, or about a quarter of their force. Wilson lost 33 killed, 108 wounded, and 674 captured or missing. Kautz lost 48 killed, 153 wounded, and 429 captured or missing. Although Wilson counted the raid as a strategic success, Grant reluctantly described the expedition as a "disaster."<ref>Longacre, pp. 292–93; Salmon, pp. 415–16; Starr, pp. 203–07. Casualty figures are from Starr. Kennedy, p. 355, cites the total of 1,445. Salmon claims 1,800.</ref>