02610 - Breastworks of the Confederate Fort Mahone ("Fort Damnation"), Petersburg, VA; April 3, 1865
"Well goodbye boys, this means death", US soldier
Ft Mahone aka "Fort Damanation" was a CS earthen fort, on a ridge, with little ravines protecting it on the left & right, at Petersburg, Va., closest to the US lines. On April 1, 1865, the US troops were ordered to attack the fort.
As the Federals scrambled up the ridge, CS Col Goodgame leapt to the top of the parapet crying out, "Alabamians! Stand up! Aim low & fire like men!"
A soldier of the 53rd NC recalled, "Soon, the open space inside of Ft Mahone was literally covered with blue-coated corpses."
