Chancellorsville Looking for a Sunken Lane

[Horse_Artillery_23]

Hello everyone,

I am currently working on an article that examines the 12th New Jersey Volunteers at Chancellorsville on May 3. There are several O.R.'s and letters written after the battle from the 12th New Jersey and 108th New York which mentioned changing front and taking up a new line in a "sunken lane" after Pender's brigade turned the right flank. Here the 12th NJ and 108th NY held out for close to an hour (somewhere around 6:30 am and 7:30 am) before having to give up the position. Of course my research to pinpoint the exact location of the lane has turned almost nothing. What is known is that the lane existed somewhere in the thick woods between the Chancellor house and the Bullock house....I imagine the lane connected the two through the woods to some extent. I would also assume that this "sunken lane" is probably more akin to a well traveled deer path rather than an established road. I have seen nothing on any maps that show its existence, only the accounts of the Jersey and New Yorkers who defended it. Has anyone heard of this "sunken lane"??


Best,

ECZ

 

[Horse_Artillery_23]

Update:

I have discovered three period maps which show a "lane" or "path" in the area between the Bullock and Chancellor clearings. Each example differs from the others (after all its a small lane and not a major concern for these map makers in 1863)..... the most notable map is Jed Hotchkiss's of the battlefield......this lane is essential to research I am currently working on and I hope to explore the idea further to place the direction and length of the lane into context of the May 3 fighting.