The Battle of Fair Oaks & Darbytown Road (also known as the Second Battle of Fair Oaks) was fought on October 27–28, 1864, in Henrico County, Virginia, as part of the Richmond-Petersburg Campaign of the American Civil War.
In combination with movements against the Boydton Plank Road at Petersburg, Maj. Gen. Benjamin Butler attacked the Richmond defenses along Darbytown Road with the X Corps. The XVIII Corps marched north to Fair Oaks where it was soundly repulsed by Maj. Gen. Charles W. Field's Confederate division. Confederate forces counterattacked, taking some 600 prisoners. The Richmond defenses remained intact. Of Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's offensives north of the James River, this was repulsed most easily. The Medal of Honor was awarded to First Lieutenant William Rufus Shafter for his actions. Union casualties were 1,603, Confederates fewer than 100.Salmon, p. 445.
Background
Order of battle Union The following Union Army units and commanders fought in the Battle of Fair Oaks & Darbytown Road. It is compiled from the official tabulation of casualties, so includes only units which sustained casualties.
Army of the James
MG Benjamin F. Butler
X Corps
BG Alfred H. Terry
Division Brigade Regiments and OthersFirst Division BG Adelbert Ames First Brigade Col Alvin C. Voris 39th Illinois 62nd Ohio 67th Ohio 85th Pennsylvania (detachment) Second Brigade Col Joseph C. Abbott 6th Connecticut 7th Connecticut 3rd New Hampshire 7th New Hampshire 16th New York Heavy Artillery (7 companies) Third Brigade Col Harris M. Plaisted 10th Connecticut 11th Maine 24th Massachusetts 100th New YorkSecond Division BG Robert S. Foster First Brigade Col Newton Martin Curtis 3rd New York 112th New York 117th New York 142nd New York Second Brigade Col Galusha Pennypacker 47th New York 76th Pennsylvania 97th Pennsylvania 203rd Pennsylvania Third Brigade Col Louis Bell 13th Indiana (3 companies) 9th Maine 115th New YorkThird Division BG Joseph R. Hawley First Brigade Col James Shaw Jr. 7th U.S. Colored Troops 9th U.S. Colored Troops 41st U.S. Colored Troops (Company A) Second Brigade Col Ulysses Doubleday 29th Connecticut 8th U.S. Colored Troops 45th U.S. Colored Troops (6 companies) Artillery Brigade Ltc Richard Jackson 1st U.S., Batteries C & D
XVIII Corps
MG Godfrey Weitzel
Division Brigade Regiments and OthersFirst Division BG Gilman Marston First Brigade Ltc John B. Raulston 13th New Hampshire 81st New York 98th New York 139th New York Second Brigade Col Edgar M. Cullen 5th Maryland 10th New Hampshire 92nd New York (detachment) 96th New York 118th New York Third Brigade Ltc Joab N. Patterson 21st Connecticut 40th Massachusetts 2nd New Hampshire 58th Pennsylvania 188th Pennsylvania Unattached Sharpshooters Pioneers 8th Connecticut: Col John E. WardSecond Division BG Charles A. Heckman First Brigade [not engaged] Second Brigade Col Edward H. Ripley 8th Maine 9th Vermont Third Brigade Col Harrison S. Fairchild 89th New York 148th New York 2nd Pennsylvania Heavy Artillery, Company G 19th WisconsinThird Division First Brigade Col John H. Holman Ltc Abial G. Chamberlain 1st U.S. Colored Troops 22nd U.S. Colored Troops 37th U.S. Colored Troops Second Brigade Col Alonzo G. Draper 5th U.S. Colored Troops 36th U.S. Colored Troops 38th U.S. Colored Troops Unattached 2nd U.S. Colored Cavalry (dismounted)Artillery Division New York Light Artillery, 16th Battery 1st Pennsylvania Light Artillery, Battery ACavalry Division Col Robert M. West First Brigade Col George W. Lewis 3rd New York 5th Pennsylvania Second Brigade Col Samuel P. Spear 1st District of Columbia (Battalion) 11th Pennsylvania Third Brigade Col Andrew W. Evans 1st Maryland 1st New York Mounted Rifles Artillery Brigade Wisconsin Light, 4th Battery 1st U.S., Battery B
Confederate The following Confederate army units and commanders fought at the battle.Trudeau, Noah Andre. The Last Citadel: Petersburg, Virginia June 1864 – April 1865. Boston, Massachusetts: Little, Brown and Company, 1991. .
Army of Northern Virginia
First Corps LTG James Longstreet
DivisionBrigade Regiments and OthersField's Division
MG Charles W. Field Anderson's Brigade
BG George T. Anderson 7th Georgia 8th Georgia 9th Georgia 11th Georgia 59th Georgia Law's Brigade
Col William F. Perry 4th Alabama 15th Alabama 44th Alabama 47th Alabama 48th Alabama Gregg's Brigade
Col Frederick S. Bass 3rd Arkansas 1st Texas 4th Texas 5th Texas Benning's Brigade
Col Dudley M. Du Bose 2nd Georgia 15th Georgia 17th Georgia 20th Georgia Bratton's Brigade
BG John Bratton 1st South Carolina 5th South Carolina 6th South Carolina 2nd South Carolina Rifles
Fourth Corps
DivisionBrigade Regiments and OthersHoke's Division
MG Robert F. Hoke Hagood's Brigade
BG Johnson Hagood 7th South Carolina (battalion) 11th South Carolina 21st South Carolina 25th South Carolina 27th South Carolina Colquitt's Brigade
BG Alfred H. Colquitt 6th Georgia 19th Georgia 23rd Georgia 27th Georgia 28th Georgia Clingman's Brigade
BG Thomas L. Clingman 8th North Carolina 31st North Carolina 51st North Carolina 61st North Carolina Kirkland's Brigade
BG William Whedbee Kirkland 17th North Carolina 42nd North Carolina 66th North Carolina
Cavalry Corps
DivisionBrigade Regiments and OthersW. H. F. Lee's Division
MG W. H. F. Lee Barringer's Brigade
BG Rufus Barringer 1st North Carolina Cavalry 2nd North Carolina Cavalry 3rd North Carolina Cavalry 5th North Carolina Cavalry Beale's Brigade
BG Richard L. T. Beale 9th Virginia Cavalry 10th Virginia Cavalry 13th Virginia Cavalry Dearing's Brigade
BG James Dearing 8th Georgia Cavalry 4th North Carolina Cavalry 16th North Carolina CavalryButler's Division
MG Matthew Butler Butler's Brigade
Col Hugh Kerr Aiken 4th South Carolina Cavalry 5th South Carolina Cavalry 6th South Carolina Cavalry Young's Brigade
Col J.F. Waring 10th Georgia Cavalry Cobb's (Georgia) Legion Phillip's (Georgia) Legion Jeff. Davis (Mississippi) Legion Horse Artillery
Maj R. Preston Chew Hart's (South Carolina) Battery Graham's (Virginia) Battery McGregor's (Virginia) Battery
Abbreviations used
Military rank Gen = General LTG = Lieutenant General MG = Major General BG = Brigadier General Col = Colonel Ltc = Lieutenant Colonel Maj = Major
Other (w) = wounded (mw) = mortally wounded (k) = killed in action (c) = captured
Battle
Notes
References National Park Service battle description Salmon, John S. The Official Virginia Civil War Battlefield Guide. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 2001. . CWSAC Report Update