The Battle of Fayetteville, Arkansas - Part Two

The Confederates rode north from Ozark into the mountains following a path then known as the Mulberry and Frog Bayou Road.

Parts of this road followed the same general path as today's Pig Trail Scenic Byway (so named because it is a popular route for fans on their way to see Arkansas Razorbacks' football games). The road leads through particularly spectacular scenery including mountains, rocks, streams and waterfalls. The lightly flowing falls seen here are Pig Trail Falls.

It took two days for the Confederates to cross the mountains, but by the night of April 17th, they were on the outskirts of Fayetteville and so far the Federals had no idea they were coming.

The attack struck at 5 a.m. on the morning of April 18, 1863. Coming in on the Huntsville Road (a modern city street still bears that name), the Confederates overran a Union picket post and swarmed up into the ravine or small valley dividing the downtown area from East Mountain (today's Mt. Sequoyah).

The Federals did not know that danger was present until they heard the gunfire from the attack on the picket post. Col. Harrison reported that he could hear the Southern troops coming with "wild and deafening shouts."

His troops reacted well to the emergency. The men of the 1st Arkansas U.S. Infantry quickly formed on their parade ground, which lay in the downtown area south of Dickson Street and west of College Avenue. Falling back ahead of the oncoming Confederates, the infantrymen rallied on the men of the 1st Arkansas U.S. Cavalry, who were forming into line.

Because his infantry men had not yet received their uniforms, Harrison was concerned that they might fall victim to friendly fire. As a result he sent most of them to the rear to a sheltered position behind the hill on Maple Street. Seven companies were placed in this position.

The remaining three infantry companies were formed into a line with four companies from the 1st Arkansas Cavalry around the Tebbetts or Headquarters House on East Dickson. These units formed the center of the Union line of battle. To their right was positioned the cavalry battalion of Major Ezra Fitch and to their left was posted the cavalry battalion of Lt. Col. A.W. Bishop.

Thus formed, the Union line stretched from southwest to northeast from about the intersection of Block Street and Meadow Street across the primary intersection of Dickson and College Avenue, across the grounds of the Headquarters House and on off into the open fields (now residential areas) to the northeast.

Our series on the Battle of Fayetteville will continue. Until the next post, you can read more by visiting our new Battle of Fayetteville pages at www.exploresouthernhistory.com/battleoffayetteville.

The Battle of Fayetteville, Arkansas - Part One

On April 18, 1863, Confederate forces launched one of their final large operations to drive Union troops from Northwest Arkansas.

Although much smaller than the earlier Battles of Pea Ridge, Cane Hill and Prairie Grove, the Battle of Fayetteville was a significant event in the history of the Civil War in Arkansas.

By the spring of 1863, the city of Fayetteville in Washington County was the primary Union post in Northwest Arkansas. Although most of the troops of the Army of the Frontier had been withdrawn from the region in anticipation of a campaign down through the Indian Territories (Oklahoma), the city was defended by two regiments of Unionist Arkansas troops commanded by Col. M. LaRue Harrison.

These regiments, the 1st Arkansas U.S. Cavalry and the 1st Arkansas U.S. Infantry, had been formed with Unionist citizens and Confederate deserters and were camped in downtown Fayetteville. Col. Harrison's headquarters were located in the Tebbetts House on East Dickson Street (seen here). Constructed in 1858, the house had been frequented by Union officers since the Pea Ridge campaign in 1862.

There had been a series of rumors that Confederate troops might try to attack Fayetteville and by April the Federals were engaged in efforts to fortify the city with rifle pits and other entrenchments. Col. Harrison also sent out scouting parties to watch for any signs of movement by the Confederate forces in the region, all of which were based in posts across the Boston Mountains along the Arkansas River.

Rumors were also reaching the Southern forces, but they were of a more sinister nature. Throughout the winter, reports had arrived in the Confederate camps of attrocities and acts of destruction allegedly committed by the Unionist Arkansans (or "Arkansas Feds") in Fayetteville. Although he was suffering from critical supply shortages, Confederate Brig. Gen. W.L. Cabell decided to try to do something about the outrages - and possibly capture Fayetteville in the process.

Cabell was then camped in Ozark, an important community on the north bank of the Arkansas River. Aware of the presence of his force, Harrison had sent a cavalry force to watch for any signs of movement by the general, but the men returned to Fayetteville on the eve of the Confederate attack and reported they had seen no signs of activity.

The Union scouts apparently returned to base one day too early, for on April 16, 1863, General Cabell rode out of Ozark with 900 mounted men and two pieces of artillery.

Our series on the Battle of Fayetteville will continue. To learn more before the next post, please visit our new site on the battle at www.exploresouthernhistory.com/battleoffayetteville.

Coming Tomorrow - The Battle of Fayetteville, Arkansas

Beginning tomorrow I will start a new series on the Battle of Fayetteville, Arkansas.

This engagement took place on April 18, 1863 when Confederate forces under Gen. W. L . Cabell swept down from East Mountain and attacked the Union forces of Col. M. LaRue Harrison in the heart of downtown Fayetteville.

The structure shown here, the Tebbetts or "Headquarters" House, faced some of the heaviest fighting of the battle and bears scars from the engagement to this day.

Check back starting tomorrow to learn more about the Battle of Fayetteville.

Battle of Devil's Backbone, Part Four

This photograph shows a surviving section of the Confederate main line at the top of Devil's Backbone.

General Cabell positioned his main force along the natural rocky spine of the mountain and the men piled extra rocks on top of the natural formation to create stone breastworks. This section of breastworks is just east of the old Waldron Road trace and was held by the right flank of the Confederate line.

The position was extremely strong and even though the Federals pushed back the Southern advanced lines from the lower slopes of the mountain, they were unable to dislodge Cabell and his men from their breastworks.

The fighting was intense. Confederate artillery, positioned at the center of the line scene here, opened on the Federals each time they exposed themselves. The Federals brought up the guns of Rabb's battery and for several hours the two sides shelled each other. Artifact discoveries at the battlefield indicate verify the reports of both sides, however, that they cannon fire was largely ineffective. The Confederate fire generally went over the heads of the Union soldiers on the lower slopes of hte mountain. Union fire, meanwhile, more often than not sailed over the top of the ridge and landed in the fields beyond. As a result, casualties were low.

This series will continue. If you would like to read more about the Battle of Devil's Backbone before the next post, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/ArkansasCW5.

Battle of Devil's Backbone, Part Three

This view shows the trace of the old Jenny Lind Road at the point where it climbed up the steep slope of the Devil's Backbone near Greenwood, Arkansas.

The photograph was taken during winter, which explains the brown leaves and fairly open view of the otherwise heavily overgrown mountain.

The Confederates formed the first stage of their ambush just down the slope from this point at the bottom of the ridge. As the Federals arrived at Fort Smith on the morning of September 1, 1863, they sent forward a pursuing force under the command of Col. William F. Cloud of the 2nd Kansas Cavalry.

Cabell's Confederate cavalry skirmished with this oncoming force at Jenny Lind, a small community about midway between Fort Smith and the Devil's Backbone. As expected by the Southern general, his horsemen withdrew ahead of the Federals and drew them into the ambush at the mountain.

Colonel Cloud described the scene:

At 12 o’clock we came to their rear guard in ambush, whose deadly fire cut down Captain Lines and 10 or 12 of his command. I found a line of dismounted cavalry and howitzers and steadily drove their rear from their position, and up the mountain side, to within one-fourth of a mile of their line of battle, skillfully formed upon the summit of Backbone Mountain of the Poteau range. I here brought my whole force into action, and for three hours the battle raged with variable violence.

The Captain Lines mentioned in the report was Captain Edward C.D. Lines of Company C, 2nd Kansas cavalry. According to the regimental surgeon, he was shot through the "bowels and liver."

The Confederate ambush stunned the Union advance and a sharp encounter erupted along the lower slopes of the mountain. Cabell's staggered lines slowly withdrew up the ridge as the Federals attacked, falling back on the main line that was formed behind stone breastworks on the top of the mountain.

Our series on the Battle of Devil's Backbone will continue. Until the next post, you can read more by visiting www.exploresouthernhistory.com/ArkansasCW5.

Breaking News! - Portion of Devil's Backbone Battlefield to be preserved!

I am interrupting our tour of the Dripping Springs battlefield today to give you some breaking news. Charles Durnette of the Civil War Round Table of Arkansas has let me know that the Civil War Preservation Trust has voted to purchase ten acres of land at the Devil's Backbone Battlefield near Greenwood in Sebastian County.

The Battle of Devil's Backbone (sometimes called the Battle of Backbone Mountain) was fought on September 1, 1863 when Confederate Brig. Gen. W.L. Cabell took up a series of hidden positions behind natural stone breastworks on the Devil's Backbone, an imposing mountain south of Fort Smith. Union troops under Col. William F. Cloud of the 2nd Kansas Cavalry ran headlong into Cabell's ambush.

The resulting battle was noisy and intense, as each side poured artillery fire on the other, but casualties were relatively low. Despite some initial success, Cabell's chance for victory evaporated when most of his forces suddenly retreated from the field. (If you would like to learn more about the battle and see modern photographs of the battlefield, just click here and look for the link.)

This is really exciting news as it means that a portion of the critical historic site will be preserved for future generations.

By the way, if you are interested in learning more about the Civil War Round Table of Arkansas, they have a great website at http://www.civilwarbuff.com/.

Headquarters House - Fayetteville, Arkansas

This is the Headquarters House in Fayetteville, a major Civil War landmark in Northwest Arkansas.

Constructed in the 1840s by Judge Jonas Tebbetts, the house stood across the street from the old Arkansas College. Following a skirmish fought in Fayetteville during the days leading up to the Battle of Pea Ridge, the home was briefly occupied by Union General Alexander Asboth. A young girl then living there wrote of his massive drooping mustache and enormous sweet tooth (he ate an entire jar of preserves in one sitting).

One year later, on April 18, 1863, the home was in the line of fire during the Battle of Fayetteville. Union officers made their headquarters here and the Union lines were formed directly in front of the house. Colonel M. LaRue Harrison of the 1st Arkansas Cavalry (U.S.) commanded the Federal ranks during the battle and was able to turn back a Confederate attack led by General W.L. Cabell.

The house still shows damage sustained during the battle. Panels on two doors were shattered by bullets.

Located at 118 East Dickson in downtown Fayetteville, the home and grounds are now preserved and a museum by the Washington County Historical Society. The society is open on Wednesday afternoons from 1 until 4 p.m.