Early on the morning of the 1st of May I started with my command to accompany the brigade on its return to Burkeville, reaching the latter place on the evening of the 2nd of May. On the morning of the 3rd I sent Captain McGrath, with his company, to accompany General Benham to City Point, for the purpose of loading and forwarding engineer material to Washington, and started with the balance of the brigade, under the command of Colonel Brainerd, for Richmond; and at 5 a.m. on the 5th we reached Manchester, opposite Richmond, having marched forty-two miles during the last twenty-five hours. On the 6th we marched with the army thorough Richmond, and camped that night near Hanover Court-House. On the morning of the 7th the march toward Fredericksburg was resumed. At the Pamunkey I left Lieutenant Taylor, with a small detachment, in charge of a pontoon bridge over the river, and the balance of the wooden-boat trains, which I had left at City Point and which had been brought to this point, were turned over to me. We reached the Rappahannock near Fredericksburg on the evening of the 8th, and at 7 o'clock the next day I had a bridge completed across the river at Franklin's Crossing. On the same day, by your order, I sent Captain Jackson with one company and a train of four boats to bridge Potomac Creek for the Fifth Corps. On the 10th I received your order to keep down the bridge at Franklin's Crossing until after the passage of the Twentieth Corps, and on the same day, by your order, I sent Brevet Captain Van Rensselaer with a small detachment and a train of six boats to report to General Griffin, at Potomac Creek. Captain Jackson and Brevet Captain Van Rensselaer returned to my camp with their troops and trains on the 12th. On the 17th, having learned that the Twentieth Corps had crossed the river higher up, and that the bridge at Fredericksburg was considered sufficient for the passage of the remainder of the troops, I dismantled my bridge at Franklin's Crossing, and, in accordance with your directions, made up the wooden boats in a raft, loaded all the bridge material on this raft, and placed it in charge of Lieutenant Brown, with a detachment of Company A, and directed him to start next morning in tow of a steamer for Washington. On the morning of the 18th I broke camp at Franklin's Crossing and started with my troops and trains for army headquarters near Washington, marching via Stafford Court-House, Wolf Run Shoals, and Fairfax Court-House, and reaching army headquarters near Fort Berry on the morning of the 21st.

June 2, Brevet Major Van Brocklin rejoined me with his detachment and trains. All my bridge trains and engineer materials were then turned in to the engineer depot, near the Navy Yard, and the transportation to the Quartermaster's Department.

The following is a synopsis of Major Van Brocklin's report:

April 23, with Companies C and E of the Fiftieth New York Engineers, and the pontoon trains under their charge, consisting of twenty-four canvas pontoon boats and their equipments, and Captain Manger's company of the Fifteenth New York Engineers, I joined the Sixth Corps and marched with it to Clark's Ferry, on the Stanton River, where we arrived at 6 p.m. of the 24th, when I immediately laid a pontoon bridge of nineteen boats, making a bridge 315 feet long. Remained at this place until the morning of the 26th, when I took up the bridge and started for Danville with Companies C and E and their pontoon trains, leaving Captain Manger at the Staunton River to report to General Benham on his arrival at that place. Reached Laurel Hill, sixteen miles from Danville, at 12 m. of the 27th, when I received orders from Major-General Wright to report to Major-General Sheridan at Abbyville, on the Staunton River. While en route for Abbyville and when near South Boston I received notice from General Sheridan that he had already crossed the Staunton River, and therefore did not require the bridge. During the same day [April 28], in compliance with orders of General Sheridan, I started with my bridge trains for Moseley's Ferry, on the Staunton River, with instructions to lay a bridge