Union Reserve Line wayside marker

Cold Harbor • Tour the Battlefield • Monuments & Markers • The Armies

The “Union Reserve Line” wayside marker is along the mile long hiking trail in Hanover County Park. (see map below)

The 'Union Reserve Line' wayside marker in Hanover County Park on the Cold Habor battlefield..

Text from the marker:

Cold Harbor Battlefield Park Walking Trail
Hanover County Parks and Recreation

Union Reserve Line

The Union front lines lay 325 yards west of here; reserve troops occupied this ground. These Union pits may have been a stop along the relay system that brought reinforcements and supplies to the forward line. Imagine soldiers huddled inside these trenches, with their rifles, canteens, blankets, and haversacks, waiting for the call to the front. “The baking down of the summer sun became intolerable,” remarked one veteran, “that the line of men would canopy the whole trench with their blankets.”

Overcrowded conditions, poor sanitation, and too few rations allowed sickness and disease to weaken Grant’s army. Nearly 3,000 Federal soldiers reported to Union hospitals during the two weeks at Cold Harbor.

Location of the marker

The marker is on the one mile walking trail in Hanover County Park. (37° 35.238′ N, 77° 16.638′ W) The park is on the south side of Cold Harbor Road (Virginia Route 156) about 650 feet east of the National Cemetery and next to Gathright House.