The Mine Run Campaign
Updated: Aug 31
Abstract: The men of the 111th New York Volunteer Infantry returned to war in Virginia. Several diary entries from Sgt. Richard Warren of Co. F.
Original written by siblings George & Deb McGraw, September 2023. Revised and edited by Erika Newcombe, Deb Hall, and Oliver Groom, August 2026.
The men of the 111th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment received orders in early November 1863 to march from nearby Warrington, Virginia, to Warrington Junction, then on to Belton Station, crossing the Rappahannock River at Kelley’s Ford. There they set up camp and spent their time drilling, all the while under the assumption that they would receive their wages. Many men believed this might be where they camped for the winter. While in camp, they learned of President Lincoln’s upcoming visit to Gettysburg on November 19 to dedicate the National Cemetery.
As President Lincoln famously began, “Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal,” the crowd listened in awe. Lincoln’s audience had already stood for Edward Everett’s two-hour speech and was refreshed by the brevity of the President’s 271 words. He closed by saying, “that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain—that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that government of the people, by the people, for the people shall not perish from the earth.”
It must be noted that the 111th had one of the highest casualty rates of any Union regiment at Gettysburg. Around 70 percent of the men were either killed, wounded, or taken prisoner.
Now, just four months after Gettysburg, on November 26, the men of the 111th rose at 4:30 a.m. and learned that their orders to march had arrived. They left at 7 a.m. to cross the Rapidan River at Germanna Ford, encountering no resistance. They continued on a plank road for three miles before stopping for the night at 6 p.m. During the march, they passed near where Lt. Gen. Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson—the former commander of the Confederate forces that took Harper’s Ferry in September 1862—had been killed by his own sentries at the Battle of Chancellorsville in May 1863.
The next few days were short marches then skirmish lines with little action. On Saturday, November 30, 1863, they were to pile knapsacks and prepare for a charge they ultimately never made.
On December 1, beginning at 5 a.m., the men spent the day laying in lines for the battle. Diaries recorded it as a pleasant but cold day. At 7:30 p.m., orders came to be ready to march at 8:30 p.m. toward Centerville. Sgt. Richard Warren of Co. F recorded in his diary for December 2, “We all felt rather tired after our march and was anxious to get across the river again. We crossed the Rapidan at Culpepper Mine Ford and then rested about 3 hours.”
There they were ordered to move again and arrived at on of their old camps just after dark. Warren writes, “All very tired. A Campaign of 7 days our Regt lost 30 men taken prisoner while on Picket.” On Monday, December 6, he wrote, “We moved again this morning to Dumpling Mountain and their went into Winter Quarters.”
Mine Run, also known as Payne’s Farm or New Hope Church, was Maj. Gen. George Meade’s last campaign before Ulysses S. Grant became general-in-chief of all Union armies in March 1864. The campaign was inconclusive in its outcome as Meade failed to capture or destroy Gen. Robert E. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia, once again allowing the Confederates to escape and fight another day.
For the 111th, however, the campaign would have a long-term impact on the regiment. While only one man was recorded as being wounded, their loss of thirty men as prisoners would prove to be devastating. The thirty men had been left behind to cover the retreat of the Second Corps as part of the Third Brigade’s picket line. Cpl. Thomas Geer of Co. A wrote in a letter that an officer had forgotten about the 111th men and never issued an order for their retreat, resulting in the capture of Capt. Sidney Mead (Co. I) and 29 other men. These men were shipped off to Camp Sumter in Andersonville, GA.
23 men died at Andersonville over the next seventeen months, leaving only six to return home to their families in terrible shape due to disease and starvation. Eight of the 29 had been wounded at Gettysburg but returned to duty five months later; four of them died of starvation at Andersonville.
No blame was attributed to Capt. Mead, who did return to the regiment in early 1865 and was mustered out in June 1865 with the rank of lieutenant colonel. The hardships these men endured while at Andersonville are difficult to comprehend. There were days without food or water and when it was available it was hardly edible. Some records state that men were forced to eat rotten cornmeal, and their water was no better than muddy rain water. Scurvy was present amongst the men. Medical supplies were almost nonexistent.
Meanwhile, the rest of the regiment stayed in Virginia awaiting their next battle.
These stories have been researched and recalled here after reading both primary and secondary sources, such as Civil War diaries that have been donated to historical societies and libraries by descendants and collectors. If the reader is a descendant of a Civil War soldier, especially those from Wayne County, New York, please use the contact form to let us know about yourself and your ancestor.
Photos:
1905 lithograph by the Sherwood Lithograph Co. depicting President Abraham Lincoln delivering the Gettysburg Address on November 19, 1863.
Troops crossing at Germanna Ford during the Mine Run Campaign (from Harper's Weekly)
The Army of the Potomac at Mine Run.
Crowded Hospital at Andersonville.
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