Conparing the position of the sun with the results of timepieces on June 22, 1864, when Confederates of Hill's Corps at Petersburg inflicted the first of a pair of humiliations on the crack Federal II Corps, indicates the timepieces may have been slow by up to an hour. Four guns and more than 1,500 prisoners were captured.
Timepieces say the morning advance of Gibbon's division of II Corps into its forward line facing the Petersburg fortifications took place at 2:00 a.m. The sun says at least 3:00 a.m.
Map by Hal Jespersen
Captain John R. Breitenbach of the 106th Pennsylvania in O'Brien's brigade of Gibbon's division said the 106th moved into the advanced breastworks constructed during the night of June 21-22 “at early dawn.” OR 40, 1:386. Corporal Daniel Bond of the 1st Minnesota Battalion in Pierce's brigade of Gibbon's division wrote, “About daylight four pieces of artillery were brought up and took position on the left of our battalion and between it and the third [O'Brien's] brigade,” Daniel Bond Diary and Memoir, Newberry Library, Chicago, IL, June 22, 1864, 234. Early dawn could not have been before 2:59 a.m., the beginning of astronomical twilight, the darkest phase of twilight; daylight could have been as late as from 4:22 a.m., civil twilight, until sunrise at 4:53 a.m. timeanddate.com/sun/@4778642? month=6&year =1864; odysseymagazine.com/astronomical-twilight/
Timepieces say the last counterattack of Gibbon's division took place at 7:00 p.m. The sun says around 8:00 p.m.
Map by Hal Jespersen
Brigadier General William Mahone of Hill's Corps at “7:20 p.m.” reported that by then he had fought off the two Federal counterattacks and that Wilcox's division had arrived behind him. OR 51, 2:1026. Major General Cadmus Marcellus Wilcox of Hill's Corps says his division reached Mahone “after sundown.” Wilcox Report, Lee Headquarters Papers. Sundown was at 7:37 p.m. timeanddate.com/sun/@4778642month+6&year=1864 Private T. V. Methvin in Wright's Georgia Brigade of Mahone's division begins his account of the second Federal counterattack, “We held them until eight o’clock that night, but just after the sun went down we got orders for four men from each company to go to the front and locate the enemy.” T. V. Methvin, “In the Wilderness Campaign,” Confederate Veteran (CV) 23:455. Corps commander Lieutenant General Ambrose Powell Hill says the second Federal counterattack occurred “at dark.” OR 51, 2:1026. By “dark,” he probably meant the beginning of nautical twilight, during which it is too dark to see objects in the distance easily, but one can still see the horizon and trees in the distance due to the remaining brightness in the night sky. odysseymagazine.com/astronomical-twilight/ Nautical twilight began at 8.08 p.m. timeanddate.com/sun/@4778642month +6&year=1864 Corporal John J. Sherman of Gibbon's division indicates the attack ended before dark, recalling, “As soon as it became dark the brigade commenced to fall back.” Letter, John J. Sherman to “Dear Mother,” June 24, 1864, Eighth New York Heavy Artillery Collection, Genesee County History Department, Batavia, NY. By “dark,” he probably meant the end of nautical twilight and the beginning of astronomical twilight, when there are no traces of glow and light in the sky. odysseymagazine .com/astronomical-twilight/ Astronomical twilight began at 8:46 p.m. timeanddate .com/sun/@ 4778642month+6&year=1864 The aforesaid sources thus suggest that the second Federal counterattack went in about 8:00 p.m.
During the middle of the day, the sun was not near enough the horizon to provide much of a check at all on timepieces.
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