war, a cow and chickens accompanied him in order to provide dairy products. Otelia and their children moved to Petersburg to be near him during the final campaign of the War in 1864-65 as Grant moved against Petersburg, seeking to sever the rail lines supplying the Confederate capital of Richmond. During the Battle of the Wilderness, Mahone's soldiers accidentally wounded James Longstreet. Richard Anderson was appointed to corps command, with Mahone getting command of Anderson's division, which he led for the remainder of the war, starting at the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House. He became widely regarded as the hero of the Battle of the Crater on July 30, 1864. Coal miners in the Union Army tunneled under the Confederate line and blew it up in a massive explosion, killing and wounding many Confederates and breaching a key point in the defense line around Petersburg. But Mahone rallied the remaining Confederate forces nearby, repelling the attack, and the Union lost their initial advantage. Having begun as an innovative tactic, the Battle of the Crater turned into a terrible loss for the Union leaders. The quick and effective action led by Mahone was a rare cause for celebration by the occupants of Petersburg, embattled citizens and weary troops alike. On July 30, he was promoted to major general. However, Grant's strategy at Petersburg eventually succeeded as the last rail line from the south to supply the Cockcade City (and hence Richmond) was severed in early April 1865. At the Battle of Sailor's Creek on April 6, Lee exclaimed in front of Mahone "My God, has the army dissolved?", to which he replied "No, General, here are troops ready to do their duty." Touched by the loyalty of his men, Lee told Mahone, "Yes, there are still some true men left ... Will you please keep those people back?" Mahone was also with Lee at the surrender at Appomattox Court House three days later. Return to railroading After the war, Lee advised his generals to go back to work rebuilding the Southern economy. William Mahone did just that, and became the driving force in the linkage of N&P, South Side Railroad, and the Virginia and Tennessee Railroad. He was president of all three by the end of 1867. During the post-war Reconstruction period, he worked diligently lobbying the Virginia General Assembly to gain the legislation necessary to form the Atlantic, Mississippi &