I’ve been developing Beyond the Crater since August 2009, starting with primary sources such as the Official Records, letters, diaries, newspapers, unpublished reports, and other unpublished information I’ve been able to access from the National Archives through Footnote.com and by buying microfilm rolls. Post-war publications such as the Southern Historical Society Papers, MOLLUS Papers, and Papers of the Military Historical Society are also appearing slowly. I’m also developing Orders of Battle for Each of Grant’s nine offensives by using any sources I can find, essentially everything I’ve already posted or plan to post to the site.
As anyone who has studied this campaign knows, it was massive and lasted much longer than your typical campaign. I realize, then, that this is a massive project and one I could use some help on. As such, I’m asking for help at places where people reside with an interest in, knowledge of, and possibly have materials on the Siege of Petersburg. The site is currently a not for profit site that looks to help accumulate materials to help people learn more about this often overlooked campaign and ultimately to provide researchers with information which otherwise might be difficult to obtain.
After reading this, if you think you have materials I might be interested in or are interested in helping to transcribe unpublished materials or materials available in image form only, please respond here or use the Contact form at the top of The Siege of Petersburg Online: Beyond the Crater (http://www.beyondthecrater.com ) .