Pamplin Park • Breakthrough Trail • Tudor Hall • Fortifications • Markers • Timeline
Text from the marker
The Breakthrough Trail
A walk along the Breakthrough Trail is a journey into history! On April 2, 1865, thousands of Union and Confederate soldiers clashed here to determine the fate of Petersburg and Richmond. The Breakthrough Trail leads past many original features of this battlefield, including the Hart House and some of America’s best preserved Civil War fortifications. A series of interpretive signs, many with recorded messages, helps explain the dramatic events that occurred on this hallowed ground. This terrain is generally level, and the trail is well maintained for easy walking. Please help us protect the earthworks, rifle pits, house sites, and other historic resources along the Breakthrough Trail by remaining on the path.
“[The] enemy have broken through our lines …. I see no prospect of doing more than holding our position here till night. I am not certain that I can do that.”
– General Robert E. Lee, commanding Confederate army
“Altogether this has been one of the greatest victories of the war.”
– Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant, commanding Union armies
Location of the marker
The Breakthrough Trail orientation marker is at the trailhead for the trails just south of the Education Center at Pamplin Historical Park near Petersburg, Virginia. (37° 10.828′ N, 77° 28.519′ W)