This Day in Henrico History: Sept. 30 – Confederate counterattack at Fort Harrison fails

On Sept. 30, 1864, Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee attempted to reverse one of the previous day’s most serious setbacks by ordering an assault to retake Fort Harrison in Eastern Henrico.

Union troops had captured the fort on Sept. 29 as part of a larger offensive that also included the victory by U.S. Colored Troops at New Market Heights. Fort Harrison was a particularly important prize: the National Park Service describes it as the strongest point in that portion of Richmond’s defenses, and its loss left a gap in the Confederate line only miles from the capital.

Lee personally organized the effort to recapture the position. But the Confederate attack was poorly coordinated, while Union troops had spent the intervening hours strengthening their defenses. Some federal soldiers were equipped with repeating weapons that increased their firepower. The counterattack was repulsed with heavy Confederate losses, and Fort Harrison remained in Union hands.

The two days of fighting at Chaffin’s Farm and New Market Heights did not produce the breakthrough that might have ended the war in Richmond in September 1864, but they permanently altered the lines north of the James. Union troops held Fort Harrison for the rest of the war, forcing Confederate forces to establish a new defensive line and maintain additional troops in the area. Six months later, Richmond fell to Union forces.

Sources: National Park Service: https://www.nps.gov/rich/learn/historyculture/fort-harrison.htm; National Park Service overview: https://home.nps.gov/rich/learn/historyculture/overview.htm