Numbers 216. Report of Brigadier General John F. Hartranft, U. S. Army, commanding First Brigade, of operations August 19 - 21.

HDQRS. FIRST Brigadier, THIRD DIV., NINTH ARMY CORPS,
August 30, 1864.

CAPTAIN: In obedience to orders from division headquarters my brigade left camp before Petersburg, Va., at 3.30 a. m. on the 19 instant and marched to Blick's house, on the Weldon railroad, arriving there at 8 a. m. I formed line in front of the Blick house, my left resting about 400 yards from the railroad, where I remained in support until 4 p. m., when an attack was made upon the line of the Fifth Army Corps, penetrating the right of General Crawford's division and some 700 or 800 yards to the front and right. My brigade was immediately formed, and advanced in the direction of this attack, until I met the enemy in line 150 yards distant in the corn-field at the edge of the woods, from which position the enemy had full view of the open space in front of and around the Blick house. My brigade was formed from right to left in the following order: Thirty-seventh Wisconsin, Colonel Harriman commanding; Thirty-eighth Wisconsin, Lieutenant-Colonel Pier commanding; Thirteenth Ohio Volunteer Cavalry, Captain Clark commanding; Twenty-seventh Michigan, Captain Cash commanding; One hundred and ninth New York Volunteers, Captain Evans commanding, Fifty-first Pennsylvania Veteran Volunteers, Major Hart commanding, and the Eighth Michigan Veteran Volunteers, Major Belcher commanding. The four left regiments were in the open field, and the three right regiments were under cover of the woods on the right of the corn-field. After the four regiments on the left were engaged, the right of the brigade kept advancing through the woods and soon met the enemy also advancing, and captured from them between 50 and 60 prisoners. The enemy in the open space were soon repulsed and fell back under a terrific musketry fire to the cover of the woods. The left of my brigade immediately advanced from 75 to 100 yards, and while they were still advancing the enemy rallied in the woods and made a second attack upon my line, coming within about seventy-five yards, but he was again successfully repulsed and retired to the cover of the woods. After the second repulse of the enemy the Second Brigade of this division came up in support, but was immediately ordered to the left. The troops of the First Division also came up about the same time from right and rear, and one brigade moved to my left. I now received orders to move to the left, along the edge of the woods, and connect with the right of the Second Brigade, which I did, the brigade of the First Division on my left moving to the right. Colonel Humphrey had advanced his brigade, and I was about to advance into the woods on his right, when the First Division was attacked by the enemy upon the same ground upon which he had been twice repulsed by my brigade, and I was ordered to the right in support. I moved along the edge of the woods until my right was within seventy-five yards of the left of the First Division, with my left resting about 100 yards from Crawford's right. I saw that the First Division was not heavily pressed, and soon afterward the firing from First Division ceased. When General Crawford advanced I advanced skirmishers and connected with him. It was

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