Battle of Jenkins' Ferry (April 30, 1864)

Jenkins' Ferry Battle Monument

Today marks the 148th anniversary of the Battle of Jenkins' Ferry, Arkansas.

A bloody and important engagement of the Arkansas portion of the Red River Campaign, the battle took place about 12 miles south of Sheridan in the lowlands and swamps along the Saline River.

Union General Frederick Steele had been badly mauled in a series of battles near Camden over the previous two weeks, particularly at the Battle of Poison Spring on April 18th. Learning that the Louisiana phase of the campaign to take Shreveport and advance into northern Texas had failed, he decided that discretion was the better part of valor and began to evacuate his fortified position at Camden on April 26, 1864.

Saline River at Jenkins' Ferry

The Confederates, who had hovered around Camden in large numbers and had defeated several efforts by General Steele to supply his hungry army, quickly moved in pursuit of the retreating Federals. Led by General Kirby Smith in person, they caught up with Steele at Jenkins' Ferry on the morning of April 30, 1864, 148 years ago today.

The ground over which the battle was fought was horrible for offensive operations. The river was running high and the bottoms were partially flooded. Thick swamps and mud hindered the movement of troops and cannon and greatly impacted Smith's ability to properly coordinate his forces.

Fighting on the defensive, the Federals were able to condense their lines and throw up breastworks of fence rails and logs. The Confederates had to come at them through the swamps and mud and without the protection of fortifications of their own. The result was a bloody fight that ended when Kirby Smith realized he would not be able to overwhelm the Union lines and ordered the attacks to stop. The Union army slipped across the Saline River during the night, destroying its pontoon bridge behind it, and moved on for Little Rock.

Total losses in the battle numbered nearly 1,000. The Confederates suffered casualties of at least 86 killed and 356 wounded. The Federals lost an estimated 63 killed, 413 wounded and 45 missing in action.

To learn more about the Battle of Jenkins' Ferry and Jenkins' Ferry State Park, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/jenkinsferry1.

Battle of Poison Spring, Arkansas - Part One

During the spring of 1864, Union forces engaged in one of the most ill-conceived campaigns of the Civil War.

Despite the objections of Gen. U.S. Grant, two armies were sent to invade northern Louisiana and southern Arkansas. Their target was the strategic city of Shreveport, Louisiana, and the ultimate goal was the establishment of a foothold in Texas.

The Louisiana wing of the invasion was turned back at Battles of Mansfield and Pleasant Hill. The Arkansas phase began to unravel here at the Battle of Poison Spring.

Following smaller engagements at Elkin's Ferry and Prairie d'Ane, the Union army of Gen. Frederick Steele occupied Camden, Arkansas on April 15, 1864. The Federals were desperately short of supplies, so three days later Steele sent a force of 670 men with nearly 200 wagons to confiscate corn from private farms about 20 miles east of Camden. This force was reinforced by around 500 additional men as it returned from its raid, giving the Federals 1,190 men and four pieces of artillery as they leisurely escorted the slow-moving wagons on their way back to Camden.

The Confederates, however, were aware of their activities. After Union troops had occupied Camden, Southern Gen. Sterling Price sent out cavalry forces to observe all of the roads leading in and out of the city. When the wagon train emerged and began to move west, Price's forces began to prepare a surprise for the enemy raiders.

The surprise came on April 18, 1864, near a trickling water source named Poison Spring.

We will continue our look at the Battle of Poison Spring, Arkansas in our next post. Until then you can read more by visiting our new Battle of Poison Spring website at www.exploresouthernhistory.com/poisonspring.

Jenkins' Ferry, Part Two

Continuing our look at Jenkins' Ferry State Park and the Battle of Jenkins' Ferry, Arkansas, this is the Saline River as seen from the park. The actual battlefield is on the opposite side.

As you can see from the muddy color of the water, the river was on the rise when this photo was taken in late February (the area is quite a bit greener during the spring and summer). At the time of the Battle of Jenkins' Ferry in 1864, the river was also rising and had overflowed the surrounding swamps.

As the Union army of General Frederick Steele came down from the ridges into the Saline River Valley during their retreat from Camden, they instantly encountered difficulty due to muddy roads and overflowing swamps. They began building a pontoon bridge here at Jenkins' Ferry and were trying to get across when the Confederate army of General Kirby Smith closed on them from behind.

After heavy fighting in which three successive Confederate attacks were thrown back, the Union troops were finally able to get across the Saline and dismantle the bridge behind them. Smith's Confederates pushed up to the river bank opposite today's Jenkins' Ferry State Park, but were not able to get across. Steele's weary men marched through the park area and continued their retreat to Little Rock.

I'll have more on Jenkins' Ferry in the next post, but in the meantime you can read more about the park by going to www.exploresouthernhistory.com/jenkinsferry1.