Collierville Tennessee

American Civil War
November 3, 1863

Four minor battles occurred in 1863 at Collierville, Tennessee, during a three-month period.

The November 3 fight was intended to be a Confederate cavalry raid to break up the Memphis & Charleston Railroad behind Major General William T. Sherman's XV Army Corps, then in the process of marching to the relief of Chattanooga. But, when Brig. General James R. Chalmers, leading a cavalry division riding up from Mississippi, learned that only two Union regiments defended Collierville, he decided to attack.

Union Col. Edward Hatch possessed more men than Chalmers supposed, stationed at Collierville and at Germantown, five miles to the west. Scouts warned Hatch of Chalmers's approach from the south, so he ordered Collierville's defenders to be prepared and rode from Germantown with cavalry reinforcements. Chalmers, as he had done only three weeks earlier, attacked from the south. Col. Hatch arrived with help.

Surprised by the unexpected appearance of the enemy on his flanks, Chalmers concluded that he was outnumbered, called off the battle, and, to ward off Union pursuit, withdrew back to Mississippi. The Memphis & Charleston Railroad remained open to Tuscumbia, Alabama, for Union troop movements.

Result(s): Union victory

Location: Shelby County

Campaign: Operations on the Memphis & Charleston Railroad (1863)

Date(s): November 3, 1863

Principal Commanders: Col. Edward Hatch [US]; Brig. General James R. Chalmers [CS]

Forces Engaged: 3rd Cavalry Brigade (850) [US]; cavalry division (2,500) [CS]

Estimated Casualties: 155 total (US 60; CS 95)


The Northern Railroads in the Civil War, 1861-1865
Account of the impact of the railroads on the American Civil War and vice versa. How the North was helped to victory through its effective use of the rails, also how the war changed the way railroads were built, run and financed after the war.

Robert E. Lee's Headquarters
Two houses that will serve well as army headquarters. One molded and gray tile roof has a nice porch and many windows to shoot from. One brown stone and tile roof will hold many troops. 10 Union and 10 Confederate troops. Each side has a mounted officer, a standing officer, a flag bearer, and riflers		 Tennessee State Battle Map
State Battle Maps
American Civil War Exhibits
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Civil War Summary
Documents of the Civil War
Confederate Commanders
Union Generals
Civil War Timeline
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Civil War Store
72 Piece Civil War Army Men
Play Set 52mm Union and Confederate Figures, Bridge, Horses, Canon
  • 48 Union and Confederate Soldiers
  • 4 Horses, 4 Sandbag Bunkers, 6 Fence Sections, 3 Cannon, 3 Limber Wagons (Ammo Carts)
  • Bridge, Small Barracks, 2 Cardboard buildings
  • Scale: About 1/35th
American Civil War Book Titles

This Terrible Sound
The Battle of Chickamauga
Study of the great bloody battle of Chickamauga that was the last great offensive, although costsly, victory by the Confederates. This is a detailed account of the movements of regiments, brigades, divisions.
No Better Place to Die
The Battle of Stones River
The forces of Braxton Bragg came very close to victory. But the star-crossed Confederate general ended up withdrawing, leaving Rosecrans' Union forces to claim victory by holding the field of battle

The Shipwreck of Their Hopes: The Battles for Chattanooga
All the information you need to understand the flow of the battle at Chattanooga as well as the political intriguing that helped to shape the results is here
Six Armies in Tennessee: The Chickamauga and Chattanooga Campaigns
The Federal success along the river opened the way for advances into central and eastern Tennessee, which culminated in the bloody battle of Chickamauga and then a struggle for Chattanooga. Chickamauga is usually counted as a Confederate victory, albeit a costly one

Rock of Chickamauga: The Life of General George H. Thomas
Union General George Thomas was one of the five men most important in the North's victory. Military historians consider him one of the best defensive generals ever, a man who would have stood out in any war
The Bridge Burners: A True Adventure of East Tennessee's Underground Civil War
The railroad that proved such a peacetime boon would become a point of conflict only three years later
A Very Violent Rebel: The Civil War Diary of Ellen Renshaw House
The Siege of Knoxville (November 1863) is covered and Sutherland's footnotes make for good history
Where the South Lost the War: An Analysis of the Fort Henry-Fort Donelson Campaign
The war probably could have been over in 1862 had Lieutenant Phelps destroyed the bridge at Florence. Not doing so provided a retreat for A. S. Johnston to move his men to Corinth and then to Shiloh

Civil War History Documentary DVD Movie Titles

Civil War Combat: America's Bloodiest Battles
The violent mayhem of the hornet's nest at Shiloh, the valiant charge on the sunken road at Antietam, the carnage in the wheat field at Gettysburg, and the brutal fighting at Cold Harbor
Civil War Journal - The Conflict Begins
These four programs from the History Channel series Civil War Journal cover critical aspects of the early days of the war.
Long Road Back to Kentucky:
The 1862 Confederate Invasion
T he often-overlooked Western campaign of the war with a specific emphasis on Kentucky's involvement in the American Civil War. DVD
Gettysburg / Gods and Generals
The tide of the war changes during three fierce days of combat at Gettysburg [Disc 1] the gripping saga of the tactics command errors and sacrifices behind the bloodiest battle ever fought on U.S. soil. Gods and Generals [Disc 2] reveals the spirited allegiances and fierce combat of earlier Civil War struggles

History Channel Presents The Civil War
From Harper's Ferry, Fort Sumter, and First Bull Run to Shiloh, Antietam, and Gettysburg. The most legendary Civil War battles in brilliant detail. A selection of the soldiers and legendary leaders.
The Civil War - A Film by Ken Burns
Here is the saga of celebrated generals and ordinary soldiers, a heroic and transcendent president and a country that had to divide itself in two in order to become one
The Blue and the Gray
The Complete Miniseries
The Civil War proved a backdrop for this 1982 miniseries. Complete and uncut three disc set. Two families divided by the War Between the States. A Southerner caught when he becomes a war correspondent for the Northern newspaper. He finds himself  where history's in the making from the Battle of Bull Run to Abraham Lincoln's assassination
Blue Vs. Gray - Killing Fields
Relive the most vicious fighting of the Civil War, in which General Ulysses S. Grant forcibly reversed the tide of the conflict by paying with the blood of thousands. It was a desperate time for the Union

Women in the War
Civil War Cooking
Civil War Submarines
Kids Zone Causes of the War

 

Sources:
U.S. National Park Service
U.S. Library of Congress.