Lee's only chance would be to move his troops out of Richmond and down a southwestern path toward a meeting with fellow General Johnston's (Johnston had been dispatched to Virginia after being ordered not to resist the advance of Sherman's Army) forces. Lee chose a small town to the west named Amelia Court House as a meeting point. His escape was narrow; they (the soldiers) could see Richmond burn as they made their way across the James River and to the west. Grant had finally broke through and Richmond and Petersburg were finished on the second day of April.

LINCOLN VISITS FALLEN RICHMOND

On April 4th, after visiting Petersburg briefly, President Lincoln decided to visit the fallen city of Richmond. He arrived by boat with his son, Tad, and was led ashore by no more than 12 armed sailors. The city had not yet been secured by Federal forces. Lincoln had no more than taken his first step when former slaves started forming around him singing praises. Lincoln proceeded to join with General Godfrey Weitzel who had been place in charge of the occupation of Richmond and taken his headquarters in Jefferson Davis' old residence. When he arrived there, he and Tad took an extensive tour of the house after discovering Weitzel was out and some of the soldiers remarked that Lincoln seemed to have a boyish expression as he did so. No one can be sure what Lincoln was thinking as he sat in Davis' office. When Weitzel arrived, he asked the President what to do with the conquered people. Lincoln replied that he no longer gave direction in military manners but went on to say: "If I were in your place, I'd let 'em up easy, let 'em up easy" (Johnson, Robert Underwood, and Clarence Clough Buel, eds., Battles and Leaders of the Civil War, Vol 4. New York: The Century Co., 1887). THE CHASE BEGINS

Lee's forces were pushing west toward Amelia and the Federals would be hot on their tails. Before leaving Richmond, Lee had asked the Commissary Department of the Confederacy to store food in Amelia and the troops rushed there in anticipation. What they found when they got there however was very disappointing. While there was an abundance of ammunition and ordinance, there was not a single morsel of food. Lee could not afford to give up his lead over the advancing Federals so he had to move his nearly starving troops out immediately in search of food. They continued westward, still hoping to join with Johnston eventually, and headed for Farmville, where Lee had been informed, there was an abundance of bacon and cornmeal. Several skirmishes took place along the way as some Federal regiments would catch up and attack, but the Confederate force reached Farmville.