“After having accomplished the destruction of the two railroads, which are now the only avenues of supply to Lee’s army, you may return to this army, selecting your road farther south, or you may go on into North Carolina and join General Sherman.  Should you select the latter course, get the information to me as early as possible, so that I may send orders to meet you at Goldsboro’.

“U.  S. Grant, Lieut.-General.”

These instructions did not alter my line of march for the morrow, and I trusted matters would so come about as not to require compliance with those portions relative to the railroads and to joining Sherman; so early on the 29th I moved my cavalry out toward Ream’s Station on the Weldon road, Devin commanding the First Division, with Colonels Gibbs, Stagg, and Fitzhugh in charge of the brigades; the Third Division under Custer, Colonels Wells, Capehart and Pennington being the brigade commanders.  These two divisions united were commanded by Merritt, as they had been since leaving Winchester.  Crook headed the Second Division, his brigades being under General Davies and Colonels John I. Gregg and Smith.

Our general direction was westward, over such routes as could be found, provided they did not embarrass the march of the infantry.  The roads, from the winter’s frosts and rains, were in a frightful state, and when it was sought to avoid a spot which the head of the column had proved almost bottomless, the bogs and quicksands of the adjoining fields demonstrated that to make a detour was to go from bad to worse.  In the face of these discouragements we floundered on, however, crossing on the way a series of small streams swollen to their banks.  Crook and Devin reached the county-seat of Dinwiddie about 5 o’clock in the evening, having encountered only a small picket, that at once gave way to our advance.  Merritt left Custer at Malon’s crossing of Rowanty Creek to care for the trains containing our subsistence and the reserve ammunition, these being stuck in the mire at, intervals all the way back to the Jerusalem plank-road; and to make any headway at all with the trains, Custer’s men often had to unload the wagons and lift them out of the boggy places.

Crook and Devin camped near Dinwiddie Court House in such manner as to cover the Vaughn, Flatfoot, Boydton, and Five Forks roads; for, as these all intersected at Dinwiddie, they offered a chance for the enemy’s approach toward the rear of the Fifth Corps, as Warren extended to the left across the Boydton road.  Any of these routes leading to the south or west might also be the one on which, in conformity with one part of my instructions, I was expected to get out toward the Danville and Southside railroads, and the Five Forks road would lead directly to General Lee’s right flank, in case opportunity was found to comply with the other part.  The place was, therefore, of great strategic value, and getting it without cost repaid us for floundering through the mud.