The siege of Petersburg, Virginia, was now in its third week, and would extend for another nine months. Supplies were already running low in the Confederate trenches. If the Army of Northern Virginia under General Robert E. Lee was to have any chance of surviving the siege, the flow of badly needed supplies could not be interrupted. Lee’s northern counterpart, General Ulysses Grant, recognized this and ordered his cavalry to move southward and attack the rail lines which carried those supplies.

The first phase of the cavalry raid, under Brigadier General James H. Wilson and Brigadier General August V. Kautz focused on two Virginia rail lines: the Richmond and Danville Railroad and the Southside Railroad. Some 5,000 cavalrymen began the task of tearing up tracks, demolishing locomotives and cars, and any other destructive means that presented themselves along the way. Knowing that tracks can be replaced and more locomotives could be moved into position, the main part of the plan along the Richmond and Danville Railroad was to destroy the Staunton River Bridge, which carried the line across the Staunton River. This bridge, Grant reasoned, would not be replaced as easily. Its destruction would cripple Lee’s efforts to break the Petersburg siege.

The bridge was lightly defended by a small force of about 300 Confederate reservists under the command of Captain Benjamin Fairholt. Fairholt’s troops occupied earthworks on both sides of the bridge. When he received a dispatch from Lee that Union troopers were headed for the bridge, Fairholt put out a desperate plea to the citizens of the area to assist. Soon, Fairholt’s men were bolstered by a force of about 640 local citizens, mostly old men and young boys. Only about 150 of them were real soldiers.

In addition to his disparate band of defenders, Fairholt had six pieces of field artillery. He also set up a ruse, whereby he ordered empty trains to run back and forth across the tracks, giving the false impression to Union spies that reinforcements were coming from Confederate regiments in the surrounding countryside.

The Union cavalry arrived at the bridge on the afternoon of June 25, 1864. The Confederates fought fiercely despite their inexperience, and the Northerners could get no closer than 150 yards, nowhere close enough to set the bridge afire. Four unsuccessful charges were attempted, the last of which took place as Confederate reinforcements under the command of Colonel Rooney Lee arrived on the field.

Determining at that point that further assaults would be fruitless, the Federals withdrew. The Union forces suffered 116 casualties, including 42 killed, 44 wounded, and 30 missing or captured, compared with the Confederate losses of 10 killed and 24 wounded. The Confederates’ successful defense of the Staunton River Bridge allowed the Richmond & Danville rail supply line to quickly return to service, keeping a key part of the Confederate supply chain operable and extending the siege until April 1865, at which time Lee was forced to abandon Petersburg.

Private Nelson W. Ward

By James Gindlesperger, historical author

Lieutenant Colonel George Stetzel, commanding the 11^th Pennsylvania Volunteer Cavalry, peered across the flat open field that lay between his men and the Staunton River Bridge. There would be no cover for his men, and Stetzel feared a charge across the open ground would be suicidal. Stetzel had been court-martialed and found guilty in April 1863 on three charges of contempt and disrespect toward his commanding officer. He had been suspended in rank and pay for two months as his punishment. Now, although two years had passed, he was still working to regain the confidence of his superiors, as well as those who served under him. Thus, there would be no challenging the orders he had been given this day.

Several men from each company had been selected to make the initial advance. One of those men from Troop M had fallen ill, and a replacement was needed. Private Nelson W. Ward answered the call for a volunteer.

Ward, born November 20, 1837, in Madison Township, Ohio, had just returned from sick leave himself and had not yet fully regained his strength. Nonetheless, he was anxious to return to duty with his friends.

The detachment moved forward in a jagged line until they reached a dry portion of the stream’s bed. There they came under heavy fire and, with little cover, their ranks quickly thinned as one man after another became a casualty. Ward asked his captain, Gerard Reynolds, if Stetzel was ever going to give the command for the rest of the 11^th Cavalry to advance. Reynolds looked back at the main body, then gave the order himself. It was the last command he would ever give, as he was shot just as he spoke the last word of the order. At about the same time, Stetzel, not realizing Reynolds had been killed, gave an order for Reynolds to move his men to the right, in the direction of the railroad.

Without their captain, the men of the detachment reacted in confusion. Seeing this, Nelson Ward shouted to his companions, “Follow me!” Ward led the group in a charge across the open ground, with predictable results. Despite their inexperience, the Rebels were proving to be good shots. Ward said later that the charge resulted in an “… awful slaughter and a hopeless effort.” Soon, only Ward and one other man were still standing, and they began to withdraw to the dry stream bed they had just left.

Nearing their starting point, Ward came across Reynold’s body and stopped to retrieve his captain’s money, watch, revolver, and spurs. Seeing this, those further back in the line shouted for Ward to continue his retreat. Ward ignored the cries and remained with the body for several minutes, trying to find someone who could assist him in carrying Reynolds off the field. Finally, realizing no help was going to come, Ward reluctantly returned to the main line alone, leaving his captain’s body behind. On his return, he was struck in the heel of his boot, with a second bullet passing through his jacket.

Despite his close call, Ward made it back to the line unscathed, where he turned Reynolds’s effects over to higher officers.

When Lee surrendered his army in April 1865, Ward returned home and married Emily Jane Hall. The two would be married for 50 years and have a son, Joseph Edward, and a daughter, Virginia. Their marriage ended when Emily Jane died in 1916.

On September 10, 1897, Ward was presented with the Medal of Honor for his efforts at the Staunton River Bridge, his citation reading: “Voluntarily took part in the charge; went alone in the front of his regiment under a heavy fire to secure the body of his captain, who had been killed in the action.”

Shortly after receiving his Medal, Ward purchased a hotel in Springfield, Missouri, which he continued to operate until 1904. At that time, he and his family moved to Long Beach, California, where he purchased and managed an apartment complex. He also became an author, writing a religious book titled ‘The Master Key to the Problems of Passion Week and the Resurrection According to the Scriptures’ in 1915. A few years following Emily Jane’s death, Ward remarried Minnie Zurada Souder.

Nelson W. Ward passed away on February 5, 1929, at age 92 in Long Beach and is buried in Sunnyside Cemetery in that city.

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