Battle of Cold Harbor - Day 3

Friday, June 3, 1864

The Thirteenth New Hampshire was deployed in a reserve position at the rear of the Union line. Although exposed to Confederate fire the Thirteenth was not engaged in battle. A grand infantry charge began at 4:30 A.M. with Union artillery fire to support the infantry. Poor reconnaissance concerning the difficult ground the Union traversed to attack the well-entrenched Confederates proved disastrous. The Union assault terminated by 1:00 P.M. Casualties were staggering for the Union, as in the first twenty minutes of the charge nearly ten-thousand Union infantry soldiers were killed or wounded.¹

References:
¹S. Millett Thompson, Thirteenth Regiment of New Hampshire Volunteer Infantry in the War of the Rebellion, 1861-1865 : A Diary Covering Three Years and a Day (Boston, Massachusetts: Houghton, Mifflin and Company, 1888), 357-61.