Thesis (Ph. D.)--West Virginia University, 2000. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains vii, 267 p. : maps. Vita. Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 256-267).

The study of soldier’s experience is important to understanding the effect that wars have on society. In the latter part of the 19th century the experience of warfare changed due to advances in weapons technology. The defensive tactic of trench warfare gained new importance. The most prolific use of trench warfare occured on the Western Front in the First World War, but it was during the siege of Petersburg in the American Civil War that extensive trenches were first used with technologically advanced weapons. By comparing the siege of Petersburg with the Western Front, it is clear that similar conditions elicited similar emotional reactions from soldiers. The most common reactions were fraternization and war neurosis. Fraternization was more prevelant during the siege of Petersburg than at other times during the war. Fraternization was also common on the Western Front. The reasons for this vary, but are all linked to the nature of trench warfare. War neurosis was also caused by the conditions of the trenches. It was a bigger problem at Petersburg and on the Western Front than it was for soldiers in other conflicts. Trench warfare created these emotional reactions. / Master of Arts

During June 15-18, 1864, the Federal Army of the Potomac launched a series of attacks against the vital Confederate rail center of Petersburg, Virginia. Union leaders believed that capturing Petersburg would force the abandonment of the Rebel capital at Richmond. The assaults failed, however, and the opposing armies settled into a ten-month siege.This study investigated the opening battles for Petersburg on three levels. First, the strategic dispositions and movements of the Army of the Potomac and the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia are discussed prior to and during the battles. Secondly, the study looks carefully at the tactical situation on each of the four days of fighting. Thirdly, the paper reveals the personal side of combat through the use of soldiers' diaries, letters, and regimental histories. The thesis concludes that Federal failure occurred because of poor Union leadership and staff work, a strong Confederate defense, and extreme exhaustion throughout the Northern army. / Master of Arts

*Graveyards are significant sites that are consciously and deliberately created. As both architecture and landscape architecture, graveyards are an intrinsic part of history that have helped define and establish architectural styles as well as address land use and associated issues.Graveyards provide some of the best and most lasting examples of art and sculpture through the ages. By examining the size, shape, ornamentation/articulation, style of carving and materials from which the stones are constructed, elements of social status and what individuals thought of the themselves are revealed. Valuable historic documentation is gleaned from graveyards in the form of genealogical information, social history, widespread diseases, wars/battles and demographics. The study of epitaphs discloses biographies of individuals and indicates what type of professions were dominant during a certain period. The religious symbolism of individual stones differentiates denominations and may lend evidence of a once-existent church or parish.*This term was traditionally used throughout the seventeenth, eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and therefore will be applied in the text where appropriate. The need to preserve graveyards is essential to humankind's understanding of the past,, people and the environment. As outdoor museums that are open to all, regardless of social or economic status, to visit and experience, graveyards are potentially one of the best educational tools for interpreting history, yet are seldom used. Graveyards must begin to be viewed as "interpretive sites" and not just as functional and emotional places for the dead. As a tangible aspect of history that contains sensitive records, the preservation of a graveyard must be carefully and innovatively handled. The stability that a cemetery presents in the ever-changing environment of a disposable society is threatened unless the site and its artifacts are properly maintained.Historic Blandford Cemetery in Petersburg, Virginia, presents itself as a significant eighteenth, nineteenth and twentieth-century graveyard/cemetery. It is the site of the 1781 Battle of Petersburg and the burial grounds for approximately 30,000 Confederate soldiers from the United States Civil War. The Old Blandford Church is the oldest church in the Petersburg area (ca. 1734-1737) and was the last of three brick churches built for Bristol Parish of Bristol, England, in colonial Virginia. The church also contains fifteen Tiffany stained-glass windows designed by Louis Comfort Tiffany.Since the historic fabric at Blandford Cemetery needs to be preserved, restored, maintained and innovatively managed to ensure its future, this study has been undertaken with the sincere hope that others will find the enthusiasm, support and encouragement to seek out, preserve and interpret old graveyards and cemeteries. / Department of Architecture