Petersburg/Richmond
Virginia
April 1865
After a 10 month siege, Petersburg, twenty-five miles south of the Confederate capital of Richmond fell to Union forces under General Ulysses Grant on April 1, 1865. The fall of Petersburg opened the way for Grant to move northward and capture Richmond. Prior to the assault, both Confederate President Jefferson Davis, and General Robert E. Lee were forced to abandon the city to the will of the Union forces. The city was secure enough so that by April 4th President Lincoln entered the former Confederate capital. Lincoln though would never see the final surrender of the Confederacy, being assassinated at Ford’s Theater in Washington D.C. on April 15, 1865.
Follow the link: http://www.nps.gov/rich/index.htm