Description

Cold Harbor Battle Artillery Pieces I purchased these four Cold Harbor Battlefield Relics from Michael Rasmussen April 3, 2109. Michael is a long time digger and collector, from Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. The four pieces include 3 round canister shot and what looks to be a fuse piece. The Battle of Cold Harbor was fought during the American Civil War near Mechanicsville, Virginia in Hanover County, from May 31 to June 12, 1864. The most significant fighting occurred on June 3. The commanders for the Union were Ulysses S. Grant and George Meade and Robert E. Lee commanded the Confederates. There were 170,000 forces engaged, 108,000 for the Union and 62,000 for the Confederates. Casualties numbered 12,737 for the Union and 4,595 for the Confederates. Unfortunately wounded Federal Soldiers were left on the battlefield for four days after the June 3rd assault. Grant was slow in negotiating a truce with the Confederates to gather the several hundred wounded and trapped between the lines. The Battle of Cold Harbor was Robert E. Lee's last large-scale field victory. Edward Porter Alexander, the Southern artillery officer who orchestrated the guns before Pickett's Charge, and served as one of Lee and Longstreet's most consulted aides, called the Battle of Cold Harbor "our last, and perhaps our highest tide." Alexander also commanded Artillery units at Cold Harbor. The shot size of these relics are 3/4 inch, 1 inch and 1 1/4 inches. Many of the artillery cannons fired case shot, which was a pretty lethal round acting almost like a shotgun blast. I will include a hand signed letter by me highlighting the provenance for the artillery pieces.