Battle of the Crater
July 30, 1864, Petersburg, VA

This sterling silver souvenir spoon commemorates the Battle of the Crater on July 30, 1864. The battle was one incident in the siege of Petersburg, VA (an obstacle on Grant's route to Richmond, being defended by Robert E. Lee).

This military operation illustrated many of the short-comings of military organization during the Civil War; flaws that are almost inconceivable to us today. Although the basic plan was a brilliant one, and based on its initial execution, should have produced good results, petty jealousies between US Generals Meade and General Burnside sabotaged what should have been a successful Union attack on Lee's defenses. Because of the Meade-Burnside problems,  the operation was never fully planned and supported. Burnside ended up taking most of the blame (he was kicked out of the Army, in fact), but the faults were not all his.

The attack was based on weeks of digging a tunnel from Union lines to an exposed point in the CSA defenses. A huge charge of dynamite was then put in place to be detonated and destroy the southern lines. All that had to be done afterwards was to conduct a well-planned attack through the open CSA lines.

Burnside's choice to lead the attack after the redoubt was blown up was an all African American unit, his best unit at the time in his opinion. This plan was overruled for political reasons (unacceptable risk that Blacks would be sacrificed in an unsuccessful operation) whereupon Burnside conducted a lottery [can you believe that?] that designated a regiment led by an incompetent drunk to lead the attack.

When the explosion demolished a portion of the southern defenses, MGen Ledlie, the drunk, sent his men forward with no instructions and no leadership and stayed behind in a trench with a bottle of rum. The men charged into the crater (had they skirted the rim of it, they would have easily penetrated the southern lines, but of course, Meade had failed to plan any follow-up anyway) where they were trapped, unable to scramble up the steep sides lined with rebels firing away. The result was the slaughter of many US soldiers rather than a breach of CSA defenses.

Etched in the bowl of this spoon you can see the Confederates at the rim of the crater (notice CSA battle flag) shooting the federals as they tried to clamber up the loose dirt and rock.

Here's another view of the battle from another spoon. This is interesting because the engraver apparently used the same artwork to copy as did the die-maker of the Watson spoon, but he changed the flag from a CSA flag to the Union flag.

Take an excursion to this web site for more detailed information, as well as an overall context. This particular battle is described about halfway down the page. There are many good pictures of the major participants and well as maps and sketches.

Sterling silver, 5¾ inches, Watson & Newell (pennant H mark) American souvenir spoon.