A Union roadblock at Jetersville prompted Lee to move his army toward Farmville, beginning the chain of events that led to the battle on April 6, 1865

Gen. Robert E. Lee's main goal after Richmond and Petersburg fell was to move his army into North Carolina so that it could join Gen. Joseph E. Johnston's Confederate force there. Lee gave the order for his soldiers to gather at Amelia Court House for replenishment before moving on to the railroad hub at Danville in order to get there. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant deployed the majority of his effective force—infantry from five corps and Gen. Philip Sheridan's cavalry—to pursue Lee and close off the route to Danville in order to defeat this maneuver.

Lee's force was held back by flooded rivers and misplaced food supplies, which allowed the Federals to advance. A portion of the Union Fifth Corps was able to advance on Lee at Jetersville while the Confederates were searching for food in southern Virginia at Amelia. Lee was compelled to find another path because Federal entrenchments were obstructing the road to Danville. On the evening of April 5, he gave the order for his force to proceed west, beginning the chain of events that resulted in the battle in the Sailor's Creek valley.