Seven Days' Battles--New Bridge

Leading up to and during the Seven Days' Battles from 25 June to 1 July 1862, bridges and roads played an important role in the movement of the Union and Confederate armies. New Bridge on the Chickahominy River was 1.5 miles south of here, and was one of the most important of the many river crossings. Union army troops marched through this region to Mechanicsville on 24 May 1862. Confederate Maj. Gens. James Longstreet's and Ambrose P. Hill's divisions used the New Bridge on 29 June 1862 as they moved south toward Glendale where they fought elements of Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan's Army of the Potomac the next day.