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History Daily

Retreat from Cold Harbor

History Daily

Airship | Noiser | Wondery

History

4.42.1K Ratings

🗓️ 12 June 2025

⏱️ 21 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

June 12, 1864. Union soldiers retreat in the dead of night to bring the Battle of Cold Harbor to a conclusion, ending one of the bloodiest encounters of the American Civil War.


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Transcript

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0:00.0

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0:04.1

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0:06.0

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0:10.6

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0:20.4

Music It's June 1st, 1864 in Hanover County, Virginia during the fourth year of the American Civil War.

0:33.1

19-year-old Confederate private, Green W. Hodge creeps through the thick woods on the lookout for Union soldiers.

0:39.4

As he glances left and right, a bullet ricochets off the tree next to him,

0:44.5

splintering the wood.

0:46.1

Hodge ducks down beside the nearest trunk and makes himself as small as possible,

0:50.4

all too aware how close he just came to being hit.

0:53.9

Yesterday, Union soldiers targeted a strategically

0:56.5

important crossroads in Virginia, known locally as Cold Harbor. Private Hodges' regiment was

1:02.0

instructed to keep the attackers at bay until reinforcements arrived, but the vastly outnumbered

1:06.9

Confederates were pushed back into the woods. There they began digging new defensive

1:11.3

positions, and now, while his compatriots continue to fortify these defenses, Private Green has been

1:17.1

sent to patrol the woods. Judging by how close that gunshot was, the enemy isn't far away.

1:23.2

Private Hodge checks his weapon and scans all around. He can't see the enemy.

1:28.1

But 30 feet away through the trees,

1:30.3

he can just make out his fellow Confederates,

1:32.6

barricaded behind a hastily built wall of mud.

1:35.7

After one last check around him, he makes a run for it.

1:38.9

But he isn't fast enough,

...

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