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From Fort Hindman, at Arkansas Post, Confederates had been disrupting Union shipping on the Mississippi River. Major General John McClernand, therefore, undertook a combined force movement on Arkansas Post to capture it. Union boats began landing troops near Arkansas Post in the evening of January 9, 1863. The troops started up river towards Fort Hindman. Major General William T. Sherman's corps overran Rebel trenches, and the enemy retreated to the protection of the fort and adjacent rifle-pits. Rear Admiral David Porter, on the 10th, moved his fleet towards Fort Hindman and bombarded it withdrawing at dusk. Union artillery fired on the fort from artillery positions across the river on the 11th, and the infantry moved into position for an attack. Union ironclads commenced shelling the fort and Porter's fleet passed it to cutoff any retreat. As a result of this envelopment, and the attack by McClernand's troops, the Confederate command surrendered in the afternoon. Although Union losses were high and the victory did not contribute to the capture of Vicksburg, it did eliminate one more impediment to Union shipping on the Mississippi. Result(s): Union victory Location: Arkansas County Campaign: Operations against Vicksburg (1862-1863) Date(s): January 9-11, 1863 Principal Commanders: Rear Adm. David D. Porter and Major General John A. McClernand [US]; Brigadier General Thomas J. Churchill [CS] Forces Engaged: Army of the Mississippi [US]; Fort Hindman Garrison [CS] Estimated Casualties: 6,547 total (US 1,047; CS 5,500) |
Union River Ironclad 1861-65
At the start of the American Civil War, neither side had warships on the Mississippi River. In what would prove the vital naval campaign of the war, both sides fought for control of the river. While the Confederates relied on field fortifications and small gunboats, the Union built a series of revolutionary river ironclads
