Interesting Account of the Battle of Van Buren, Arkansas

The following is a report on the Battle of Van Buren (December 28, 1862) that appeared in a Maine newspaper just four days later. The speed with which reports of battles in western Arkansas reached newspapers in the far Northeast is remarkable when it is considered that just a few years before, it would have taken weeks for the news to arrive. The report was datelined Fayetteville, December 31, 1862:

January 1, 1863
Portland (Maine) Daily Advertiser, page 2.

Additional particulars of the raid to Van Buren have been received. Our army was 10 miles this side of Van Buren yesterday, and would bivouac on the mountain top last night, and expected to reach Prairie Grove again today. Gen. Schofield joined them a few miles beyond the foot of the mountain. The steamers violet, Rose Douglas, Frederick Mortrede [Nortrobe], Erie, No. 6, and Van Buren, with their cargoes of grain and provisions for the rebel army, were burned, also a large amount of army stores. The rebels burned their arsenal and ferry boats at fort Smith, to prevent them from falling into our hands; also a large quantity of provisions on the opposite bank of the river. A general conflagration was in progress when our forces left.

The raid on Van Buren clearly demonstrated the shattered condition of the Confederate Army of the Trans-Mississippi, despite the fact that it had fought a superior Union force to a draw at the Battle of Prairie Grove just a little mor than two weeks earlier. The capture of the Arkansas River town was a major blow to the prestige of Confederate forces in the area, although the Federals were unable to permanently exploit their ability to cross the mountains and withdrew back to their camps in Northwest Arkansas for the winter.

To learn more about the Battle of Van Buren, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/vanburenbattle1.

A Raid to the River Valley - December 26, 1862

At a Christmas party in Washington County, Arkansas, in 1862, Union General James G. Blunt decided the time had come to water his horse in the Arkansas River.

Blunt was feeling bold. Just three weeks earlier Confederate General Thomas Hindman had stolen a march on the Federal forces in Northwest Arkansas and came within a hair's width of destroying them. The result was the Battle of Prairie Grove, fought on December 7, 1862. Although Hindman handled his army better in the fight, he didn't have the ammunition, food and other supplies to continue the battle the next day. As a result, the Southern army withdrew during the night and returned to its base at Van Buren and Fort Smith.

The Union army moved up and occupied the battlefield the next day and spent the next three weeks refitting, burying the dead and taking care of the wounded. By Christmas Day, however, Blunt was again ready for action. At a party that night, he and his key officers decided to risk a sudden raid across the Boston Mountains to see if they could draw Hindman into a second battle.

Observing extremely tight operational security, Blunt and his second-in-command - General Francis J. Herron - spent December 26, 1862, preparing plans and issuing orders for the expedition. They would try to cross over the mountains to Van Buren on the north bank of the Arkansas River. The raid would result in the Battles of Dripping Springs and Van Buren and would begin the next morning.

I'll post more on the 1862 raid tomorrow, but you can read more at www.exploresouthernhistory.com/vanburenbattle1.

Williams' Raid before Poison Spring

Colonel James Williams left Camden on the morning of April 17, 1864 (145 years ago today) with 670 men, 200 wagons and 2 pieces of artillery.

The Federals marched 20 miles out from Camden, striking plantations and farms to the west of the city. By the end of the day, they had confiscated an estimated 5,000 bushels of corn as well as livestock and other supplies. Stories handed down in local families also indicate the soldiers raided homes for clothing, furniture and any other valuables they could fine. According to some eyewitnesses, they even stole items from the slave cabins, taking from those with little to offer.

Although they did not encounter resistance on the 17th, the Confederates knew the Federals were on the move. General John Marmaduke learned from scouts and local citizens of the Union raid and decided to intercept them on their way back to Camden. Accordingly, he set out with 3,600 men and 12 pieces of field artillery on a road that would intersect the route by which Williams had marched.

In Camden, General Steele became concerned that his raiding party might not have enough men to fend off a Confederate attack, so he sent out an additional 490 men and 2 more cannon to link up with Williams and assist in getting the confiscated provisions safely back to camp.

By the evening of April 17th, the stage was set for the Battle of Poison Spring. The fighting would begin the next day.

I will have details about the battle in the next post. Until then, you can read more by visiting www.exploresouthernhistory.com/poisonspring.