In the spring of 1865 the war had dragged on for an exhausting four years. It was painfully apparent that defeat for the South was near. The people of West Point waited with quiet resignation for Easter Sunday.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On Easter Sunday, April 16, 1865, the war, which had been approaching West Point for four years, had  come and gone in a single day.  Late in the day, Colonel James H. Fannin formally surrendered 64 Confederates who had fought alongside him that day to Union Colonel Oscar H. LaGrange.  All were taken as prisoners of war.  Participating in the age old "spoils of war,"  LaGrange's men fought over the Confederate battle flag that had been flown so proudly over the fort.  Ultimately, Colonel LaGrange awarded the flag to his Wisconsin regiment.  The flag would never be seen in West Point again.  Many of the war wounded who participated in the battle that day were returned to the hospitals.  The dead would be taken care of later.  

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Sources:

�  Randall Allen, "A Most Voluntary Gathering,"  The Battle of West Point, Chattahoochee Valley Historical Society, 1997, pp. 23-34

�  Joe Keith, Jr., "Aftermath: Written for the 130th Anniversary of the Battle of West Point"