Welcome to the Petersburg Project!
PETERSBURG -- The Longest Battle of the American Civil War
David Lowe on the Taylor Farm, April 2024
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Dr. Shiman assessing the slashing in front of a Confederate gun position, January 2024.
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Julie Steele venturing into the brambles in search of elusive earthworks- March 2024 was a good time for the hunt along the James River.
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Julia Steele and David Lowe have retired from the National Park Service and if anything we say here conflicts with official NPS policies, then we officially no longer much care. We had a good ride with good compatriots. It is time for the youngsters to take over. Our colleague, Dr. Philip Shiman is still working full-time (poor soul) for the US Defense Department. We continue to contribute to the Petersburg Project and hope to bring others on board as co-contributors. We appreciate all of our visitors. Together, we are putting the Siege of Petersburg on the map where it belongs. A siege is basically a battle in slow motion. This one lasted 292 days--by some measures--the longest battle of the American Civil War. Thanks, David, Julie, and Phil.
The Petersburg Project strives to increase understanding of trench warfare during the American Civil War, raise public awareness of the significance of the Petersburg Campaign and other entrenched battlefield sites, and promote the documentation, preservation, and interpretation of the surviving earthworks and other relevant [features and] artifacts. We try to present information to make it accessible and useful to casual readers and specialists alike.
The Project's historians and archeologists are using a cross-disciplinary approach involving textual research, field surveys, archeological investigations, and detailed analyses of the contemporary maps and photographs [LiDAR and the powerful analytical capabilities of geographical Information systems (GIS)]. Colloquially, it is known as "boots on the ground."
The Petersburg Project is a personal endeavor but we try to cooperate with Petersburg National Battlefield and other elements of the National Park Service, the Petersburg Battlefield Foundation, preservationists, local historians, and with the Civil War Fortification Study Group.
The voice here is our own.
The Project's historians and archeologists are using a cross-disciplinary approach involving textual research, field surveys, archeological investigations, and detailed analyses of the contemporary maps and photographs [LiDAR and the powerful analytical capabilities of geographical Information systems (GIS)]. Colloquially, it is known as "boots on the ground."
The Petersburg Project is a personal endeavor but we try to cooperate with Petersburg National Battlefield and other elements of the National Park Service, the Petersburg Battlefield Foundation, preservationists, local historians, and with the Civil War Fortification Study Group.
The voice here is our own.
Welcome. Please take some time to browse the website using the navigational links at the top of the page AND the Search function which works really well (some topics may be covered in more than one location). There is a lot of material, which we continue to update. As of now the structure of the site is rather chaotic but it is expected to improve with age. Thanks for visiting.
Armies in continuous contact for 292 days
updated 4/30/2024
