On To Appomattox
- Oliver Groom
- Aug 24
- 5 min read
Updated: 14 hours ago
Abstract: The Appomattox River saw one of the final battles of the Civil War where the Confederates burned the High Bridge in order to slow the Union army's pursuit.
Original written by siblings George & Deb McGraw, December 2023. Revised and edited by Erika Newcombe, Deb Hall, and Oliver Groom, August 2026.
In mid-March 1865, the 111th was rewarded with a week off from duty.
According to the Auburn Daily Advertiser and Union, the men got the time off for building the best line of breastwork near Hatcher’s Run, VA. Soon thereafter, they experienced the welcome return of Capt. Sidney Mead, who had been captured at Mine Run, VA, on December 1, 1863.
After thirteen months at Libby Prison in Richmond, he escaped, made his way to Knoxville, TN, behind Union lines, then home to recuperate before returning to duty and being promoted to major. Mead was to muster out as a lieutenant colonel on June 13, 1865.
From April 1-3, Col. Lewis Husk led the 111th in several engagements at Hatcher’s Run, South Side Railroad, and White Oak Ridge.
As the regiment moved toward Sutherland Station in pursuit of Gen. Robert E. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia, the 111th lost six killed and fifteen wounded. Sgt. Thomas Geer of Co. A wrote that the “… whole line advanced, drove the Rebels to their works Our picket lines are now where the Rebels were yesterday.”
On March 30, 23-year-old Cpl. Franklin Lutes of Co. D, who had recently been paroled from a Confederate POW camp, had the chance to fight again. When he saw a color-bearer from the 41st Alabama Infantry Regiment waving that regiment’s colors, he seized the opportunity to jump from cover and capture the enemy flag, the color bearer, and his guard. Having distinguished himself by his acts of valor, Cpl. Lutes was later awarded the nation’s highest decoration, the Congressional Medal of Honor, at Petersburg on March 31. He would leave the 111th in June when he was transferred to Co. B of the 4th U.S. Artillery with over two years left on his enlistment.
After mustering out of the 4th Artillery on August 4, 1865, Lutes lived another fifty years and is now resting at the Glenside Cemetery in Wolcott. Both of his wives, Maud Schindler Lutes (1848-1880; married in 1864), and Mary A. “Maria” Schindler Lutes (1848-1947; unsure of when they married), are buried with him.
The regiment’s engagement on March 30 was described by 2nd Lt. Esek Hoff of Co. K: “We halted and I was sent out on the skirmish line and was on the line all day. Soon our regiment charged and captured a rebel flag from a Virginia regiment, I think the 18th, I think. Then I formed the line, went out again following the rebels … we have lost in the regiment about 80 I should think in killed and wounded. Killed were five the balance wounded. I had some narrow escapes but am all right so far … P.S. There are none hurt in Co. K.” (The reader should take note that letters and diaries were based on camp talk and the facts would often vary as they later unfolded but do help us understand what was happening on the field of battle.)
Late in the evening of April 1, Gen. Ulysses S. Grant issued the order for a full assault the next morning. On April 2, the men of the 111th were ready for the final push to seize Petersburg. They took part in three charges and paid a heavy price: five killed, 41 wounded, and eighteen missing or captured.
One of those wounded was Pvt. Isaac Mullie of Co. D. Isaac was discharged for disability on May 13, 1865. Born in the Netherlands before emigrating to the United States, at age 20 he had enlisted in the war on August 5, 1862, at Williamson. Isaac later married Wilhelmina “Bruno” and raised multiple children before his death in 1896. Isaac is buried at Sodus Rural Cemetery in Sodus with his wife and children.
During the engagements on April 2, both Col. Husk and Brevet Brig. Gen. MacDougall were wounded. Husk’s horse was killed from under him, so the colonel fought on foot. MacDougall was not unhorsed and continued to lead from the saddle, which received great cheers from his men.
One of those killed in action that day was 41-year-old Lt. Silas W. Belding of Co. B. He was a “made man,” having been promoted from private to second lieutenant in October 1864. With fewer than three months left in his one-year enlistment, Lt. Belding was the last 111th officer killed in the war.
On April 3, the regiment suffered only one man wounded as they continued the pursuit of Lee’s army. The 4th found the men corduroying a muddy road by laying logs to stabilize it for the supply wagons and artillery caissons.
On April 5, they continued their march westward to the Appomattox River. The 6th found them chasing Lee’s rearguard. That afternoon, they formed skirmish lines near Farmville and Dentonsville; two men were wounded in these small actions. The efforts of the 111th that day helped the Second Corps capture thirteen battle flags, four pieces of artillery, over 1,700 prisoners, and more than 125 supply wagons.
On April 7, the men of the 111th were within sight of the Appomattox River and the Southside Railroad bridge, locally known as the High Bridge. Over 130 feet tall and spanning 2,500 feet, the High Bridge was a critical crossing over the river. When the 111th arrived, they saw four forts guarding the bridge, two on each side, and engaged in heavy fighting to capture them. The Confederates were forced to retreat, but not before they set fire to the bridge.
The 111th watched while the 39th and 52nd New York Infantry Regiments were deployed along the river’s edge to protect those trying to put out the fires. Once the bridge was safe to cross, the 111th continued their pursuit along the Jamestown Road. As Lee had concentrated his army at Appomattox, the Army of the Potomac and the Army of the James converged on the small river town. While night was falling, the men of the 111th were building earthworks facing the Cumberland Church just north of Farmville. Grant, knowing his soldiers greatly outnumbered the Confederate forces, sent Lee a note suggesting he surrender at once to avoid further catastrophic losses. Messages continued between the two generals on the evening of April 7 and into the 8th.
The Wayne County Historical Society encourages anyone with family members who served and lived in Wayne or Cayuga Counties during the 1860s to contact the Wayne County Historical Society at info@waynehistory.org or (315) 946-4943. If you are not sure about your Civil War ancestry, you can follow up with the link below:
Photos:
High Bridge, April 1865
Sketching of Libby Prison by W. C. Schwartzburg
41st Alabama Infantry Regimental Flag
Medal of Honor
Grave of Franklin W. Lutes (Photo uploaded by Alan Brownsten on findagrave)
Pvt. Isaac Mullie
Appomattox River Near Petersburg
Sources:
Isaac Mullie’s findagrave: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/183734065/isaac_p-mullie
New York State Division of Military and Naval Affairs, One Hundred and Eleventh Infantry, in Annual Report of the Adjutant-General of the State of New York for the Year 1900: Registers of the One Hundred and Eleventh Infantry, accessed July 2, 2026, “111th Infantry Civil War Roster”
Wayne Historians Organization. Wayne County Civil War Soldiers. Accessed July 2, 2026. “Wayne County Civil War Soldiers”
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