The Battle of Drewry's Bluff (May 16, 1864)

On May 5, 1864, Gen Ben Bultler brought an armada of some 100 boats and 30,000 men up the James River below Richmond. For the next ten days, Butler unloaded and positioned his men. About half the Union force moved on Drewry's Bluff where the Confederates had a small force. Drewry's Bluff is a peice of high ground overlooking the James River approximately ten miles below Richmond and ten miles above Petersburg, Virginia. Between May 10 and May 15 Confederate reinforcements from Charleston and North Carolina poured into Petersburg. On the Confederate side a plan evolved calling for an attack upon the Union forces at Drewry's Bluff. On the morning of May 16, The Confederates attacked the Union positions. During the battle, Butler lost 4,160 men killed, (presumably this Bodwell as well), wounded, or missing. During the evening of May 16th Bulter withdrew his troops to a fortified position on the Bermuda Neck. (Shelby Foote, "The Civil War,"Vol III, pp. 263-275)