The Last Chase: Cavalry Clash at Namozine Church and Willicomack Creek — April 3, 1865
The sun rose on April 3rd over the rolling Virginia countryside as the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia, weary and desperate, pushed toward Amelia Court House. The air was thick with dust and tension; behind them, the thunder of Union hooves grew louder. The pursuers were relentless — cavalrymen hungry for a decisive strike that might finally end the long and bloody retreat.
Among the Union riders was Captain Tom Custer, younger brother of the famed General George Custer. His horse’s hooves pounded like war drums as he charged without hesitation over a makeshift barricade hastily thrown up by the retreating Confederates near Willicomack Creek. Bullets whipped through the air, but Tom’s courage never faltered. With a cry of determination, he captured three Confederate officers, eleven soldiers, and — most prized of all — the battle flag of the 2nd North Carolina Cavalry. That flag would forever tell the story of that fierce encounter, and Tom Custer’s daring deed earned him the Medal of Honor.
But the Confederate cavalry wasn’t ready to yield. Under Brigadier Generals William Paul Roberts and Rufus Barringer, they fought to the last breath, buying precious time for infantry under Major General Bushrod Johnson to slip past the Union riders near Namozine Church. The Confederates were exhausted, their roads tangled and confused, and Johnson’s men briefly lost their way in the maze of Virginia backroads. Yet, with grim determination, they corrected their course and prepared to meet the Federal advance.
The clash at Sweathouse Creek was brutal. As darkness crept across the battlefield, Custer’s troopers pressed on, only to meet a wall of infantry resistance. Johnson’s men, though battered, held firm, forcing the Union cavalry to slow their charge. But the relentless Union pursuit never faltered. Wells’s brigade continued probing the Confederate rear, striking again and again along the foggy edges of Deep Creek.
In the chaos, Sheridan’s scouts played a deadly trick — donning Confederate gray, they infiltrated enemy lines and ensnared Brigadier General Barringer and many of his men in a sudden, crushing trap. The Confederate cavalry’s fighting spirit was broken, and the Union troopers surged forward with renewed confidence.
Though Wells’s brigade paid a heavy price — 95 men killed or wounded — the gains were undeniable. Hundreds of Confederates were captured, along with horses and artillery pieces, clearing the roads toward Amelia Court House for the advancing Union forces. Johnson’s infantry, though battered and bleeding, counted only fifteen wounded — a testament to their fierce resolve.
On that day, the relentless Union cavalry tightened their grip on the retreating Confederates. The noose was closing around Lee’s shattered army, each mile gained bringing the Confederates closer to the inevitable surrender that would soon echo through the hills of Virginia.
