January 27, 1862 - Gunpowder Mining in the Ozarks

Cave in the Arkansas Ozarks

In a previous post on Civil War industry in Arkansas (see Industry in Arkansas on the eve of the Pea Ridge Campaign), mention was made of the development of caves in the state as a source of raw materials for making gunpowder.

To field its armies, the Confederacy of course needed gunpowder and surveys conducted in Arkansas by Dale David Owens during the years before the war proved that the Ozarks contained some of North America's finest deposits for mining saltpeter.

Saltpeter (often spelled saltpetre in old documents) is another name for potassium nitrate. This mineral is key to the production of gunpowder and was found in the limestone caves of the Ozarks. These caves riddle the hills in the northern half of the state and by the time the Pea Ridge Campaign began to develop in late January of 1862, saltpeter mining was developing as a major industry in Arkansas:

Ozark Mountains of Arkansas

...We sometime ago gave an account of the saltpetre caves of Arkansas, and stated that machinery was being sent from this city [i.e. Memphis] for working some of the caves up White river; so successful has been the experiment that the Jacksonport Herald states that a Mr. Carlton ships about a ton and a half of saltpeter every week to Nashville, to be made into powder, and that he soon expects to ship two and three tons per week.

This account, from the Memphis Appeal, was published in late January of 1862 and was picked up by newspapers throughout the South as evidence of the growing capability of the Southern war effort.

The article mentioned the White River, one of several areas in Arkansas where saltpeter mining took place. Additional mines were located in Newton County and elsewhere. The mineral was prepared on site at mines like the one in Boxley and then carried by wagon or ox cart to the Arkansas or White Rivers. From there steamboat transportation was available to carry it own to powderworks throughout the South.

The Pea River Campaign would spell the beginning of the end of saltpeter mining in Arkansas. By firmly planting themselves in Northwest Arkansas, the Federals opened the door for raids on mining operations in the Ozarks. As a result, the importance of Arkansas saltpeter to the Confederacy would diminish rapidly following the Battle of Pea Ridge.

I will continue posting on the 150th anniversary of the Pea Ridge Campaign over coming days and weeks, so be sure to check back often. You can also read more on the Battle of Pea Ridge at www.exploresouthernhistory.com/pearidgeindex.

Dr. James M. Keller and the Confederate Casualties of Prairie Grove

Fayetteville Confederate Cemetery

Dr. James M. Keller, who is memorialized today by the James M. Keller Camp #648, Sons of Confederate Veterans in Hot Springs, was tasked with the herculean job of organizing hospitals and care for Southern wounded in the wake of the Battle of Prairie Grove.

Confederate casualties in the engagement are generally estimated to have been around 164 killed, 817 wounded and 334 captured or missing. A summary prepared by Dr. Keller one month after the battle, however, indicates this number may be somewhat in error:

• Number killed in action - 87.
• Number wounded and in hospitals - 886.
• Number died from wounds - 62.
• Number slightly wounded and not hospitalized - 120.

Fairview Cemetery in Van Buren

 Keller's summary, which was printed in the Arkansas Democrat about one month after the battle and republished by the Dallas Weekly Herald on January 14, 1863, places the total number of soldiers who had either been killed in action or had died from their wounds by that point as 149, while the total number of wounded was around 1,006, with 886 of these men having been so severely wounded as to require hospitalization.

This would elevate the total number of Confederate dead and wounded from the battle to 1,154 as opposed to the 981 given in most accounts. If Keller's numbers are accurate, which it seems likely that they are, then the total number of Confederate killed and wounded at the Battle of Prairie Grove included 173 more men than is generally thought.

Whether these men were included in the figure of 334 missing or captured is not known.

Most of the Confederates killed in action at Prairie Grove are now buried at Fayetteville Confederate Cemetery in Fayetteville. Many of the wounded were carried south across the mountains to Van Buren and Fort Smith. A large number of those who died from their wounds are buried at Fairview Cemetery in Van Buren.

To learn more about the battle, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/ArkansasPG1.

Flag of the C.S.S. Arkansas

This is the flag of the famed Southern ironclad C.S.S. Arkansas.

One of the most successful inland warships ever built by the Confederacy, the Arkansas was a unique, makeshift ironclad that was actually built in two places.

Work on the vessel started in Memphis in 1861, but when that city was captured by Union troops the unfinished gunboat was carried to the Yazoo River in Mississippi for completion.

On her maiden voyage, the Arkansas steamed down the Yazoo and smashed through a flotilla consisting of the Union warships Carondelet, Queen of the West and Tyler. The Queen escaped, but the Carondelet was driven aground by the Confederate warship. Heavy damage and casualties were inflicted on the Tyler as well.

Leaving the Yazoo, the ironclad entered the Mississippi and stormed through the Union river fleet to reach the cover of the Confederate batteries at Vicksburg.

The vessel eventually engaged additional Union warships on the Mississippi but finally was destroyed by her own crew after she experienced engine trouble about 5 miles above Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Her flag is now on display at the Port Columbus National Civil War Naval Museum in Columbus, Georgia. The museum preserves the wrecks of two Confederate warships as well as numerous artifacts relating to both the Confederate and Union navies. For more information, you can visit them at www.portcolumbus.org.