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Chapter I: Jenkins' Ferry and the conclusion of the Camden Expedition
In September 1863, Major General Frederick Steele conquered Little Rock with 20,000 men, whereupon the Confederate state government of Arkansas fled to the southwestern part of the state and established a provisional seat of government in Washington. On March 23, 1864, Steele left Little Rock to join General Nathaniel Banks' march on Texas. The latter operated from the lower Red River region of Louisiana while the former's Union forces crossed the Ouachita River at Rockport and pressed on in a southwestern direction towards Shreveport.
Steele's army for the first time encountered serious resistance while crossing the Little Missouri River. In a bloody struggle, his leading division met 3,000 dismounted Confederate cavalrymen. Further south on Prairie De Ann, near Prescott, the Confederate force dug in. It took almost two days of hard fighting to push the outnumbered Rebels out of their positions.
The fight at Prairie De Ann as well as the onset of spring rain slowed Steele down. The roads were slowly but surely turning into mud swamps. After two weeks of marching, Steele had traveled only 70 miles and the Confederate resistance under the command of Major General Sterling Price increased. Steele then decided to change his plan and turned east towards Camden. The Federals entered the city without great difficulty on April 13, 1864.
Steele's army at that time consisted of some 11,500 men, 9,000 horses and mules, 800 wagons and 30 guns. The supply situation was critical and food supplies in particular were almost exhausted. The reduced rations ensured that many soldiers left their units to gather food in all possible ways and by all means.
On April 17, a procession of nearly 200 wagons, that was on a procurement mission and was only accompanied by less than 1,000 men and four cannons, fell victim to an attack. Sterling Price had dispatched some 3,100 cavalrymen and eight guns under the command of Brigadier Generals Maxey and Marmaduke to intercept the Union force. At Poison Spring, about 14 miles west of Camden, Maxey's Confederates blocked the route while Marmaduke attacked the southern flank of the column. The Federals were pushed back several times and ultimately fled, whereupon the Confederates conquered the four cannons and 170 of the wagons. Almost simultaneously with this victory, General Edmund Kirby Smith, the department commander, and three infantry divisions, which had previously decisively beaten Banks in Louisiana, merged with Price and his riders.
After six days later another isolated Union detachment had been defeated by four Confederate cavalry brigades under General Fagan and another 240 wagons, 1,500 horses and four guns had been lost, General Steele in Camden had to decide what was to be done before his command was fully immobilized and decimated. The only way out seemed an immediate retreat to Little Rock.
By April 30, the now retreating Union forces had already suffered more than 2,000 casualties during their campaign, reducing their strength to less than 9,500 soldiers. In contrast, Price's 4,000 horse soldiers had now been reinforced with over 8,000 troops, most of whom were infantrymen. In addition to the human losses, Steele had additionally forfeited over 2,500 animals and 635 supply wagons. His men were demoralized due to the failures on the battlefield, the agonizing retreat and the poor supply situation. The bad weather did the rest to further weaken the fighting power of the Union Army. Everything was ready for a true catastrophe to occur.
After Confederate cavalry under Colonel Greene had been able to get in touch with the rear guard of the Federals the day before, Kirby Smith and Price did everything they could to catch up with the enemy. At 1 a.m. the long column began its forced night march down a completely muddy and almost impassable road towards Jenkins' Ferry, where Steele and his men were working feverishly to complete a pontoon bridge over the swollen Saline River.
The rain pattered endlessly on the Confederates pounding through the mud. Thanks to the darkness, exhausted infantrymen were ridden over by couriers or mounted officers several times when those tried to get past them. Churchill's Arkansas division led the order of march, followed by two Missouri brigades under Mosby Parsons. The rear was brought up by Walker's Texas division. The Texans had to face the toughest challenge, since Steele's entire army and the rest of Price's command had already moved along one and the same road and the path now looked more familiar to a swamp. Deprivation of sleep and the circumstances of the march caused dozens of men all along the column to leave their ranks due to exhaustion, which significantly affected the Rebel army's effectiveness in the engagement to come.
The Federals, however, had not remained idle throughout the night. While Steele examined the progress of the pontoon bridge at the ferry and, after its completion, had transferred his cavalry division under Eugene Carr immediately to the other side of the river to prevent Fagan's rebel riders from blocking the way towards Little Rock, the Union infantry used their nightly breathing room to improve their defenses. Their lines stretched from Cox Creek in the north, parallel to the main road, to an extensive swamp in the south. The ground was heavily forested and covered by thick undergrowth. In front of the main combat line, Groom's Field, an open but partially fenced area, was located. Salomon's division, brigades under Engelmann and Rice, formed the right wing of the position together with a section of two guns. Located to their left was Adam's brigade from Thayer's frontier division, while the last part until the swamp began was covered by some dismounted cavalrymen under Bassett. Along this line, secured on both flanks, almost 4,000 Federals had formed and lay waiting.
The leading Rebel division, Churchill's, reached a ridge from which one was able to overlook the Saline River valley around 7:30 a.m. While their division commander gave the men a chance to rest, Kirby Smith and Price arrived to consult with him near a local farm house. Since Smith was convinced that his opportunity to smash Steele with the latter's back to the river was slipping away, Price was ordered to put his men immediately into action as soon as they arrived. In doing so, Smith transferred the tactical command completely to his direct subordinate and assigned a high degree of responsibility to him, but at the same time massively restricted his decision-making options via the unmistakable order to attack.
Churchill formed his battered division around 8 a.m. by placing it in a single line of brigades. From left to right, Dockery's, Gause's, Tappan's and Hawthorne's Arkansas brigades , all together nearly 3,200 men, took up positions. Price was determined to send the division forward as a unit to keep the Union defenders busy until he had brought up Parsons' brigades to flank them [1].
The Arkansas men advanced cautiously against lashing rain and howling wind. When they entered Groom's Field from the west, they were greeted by an unexpected sight: A crowded line of blue-clad infantry stood out from the stubble field. It was Colonel Adolph Engelmann's 3rd brigade from Salomon's division. These men had been given the task of intercepting the Confederate advance in front of the main line and thereby shielding the newly erected breastworks manned by Rice's 1st Brigade. They had heard the sounds of heavy skirmishing to their front and the men were prepared to receive the forward elements of the Rebel force. Three of Colonel Lucien C. Gause's four regiments in the left center of Churchill's line, the 36th, 26th and 32nd Arkansas, met Engelmann's brigade, consisting of the 40th Iowa, 43rd Illinois and 27th Wisconsin, out in the open. They were hailed by a firestorm coming from the skillfully deployed Yankees. The afflicted Confederates, several dozens of whom fell victim to the first fierce volley, temporarily sought shelter in a hollow that ran through the middle of the field and found themselves held down by heavy fire. Partly kneeling, partly lying in foot-high mud, the Rebels returned the favor and unloaded into their opponents. Colonel James M. Davie of the 36th Arkansas later succinctly noted: 'There was nothing of the romance of war'. The Federals behind their fence, however, could not be happy for a long time that they had stopped Gause's main push in its tracks. On the extreme left of the Confederate line, Dockery's brigade of about 550 men was moving forward. While the 12th Arkansas sharpshooter battalion engaged in a brief duel with the section of the Springfield 2nd Light Artillery, the 19th Arkansas Mounted Infantry and 20th Arkansas encircled the right flank of the 40th Iowa. Their intense flanking fire meant that Engelmann had to refuse the right side of the regiment, which significantly reduced the volume of its fire. On the other flank of the brigade, the 27nd Wisconsin faced a bypassing attempt of Gause's last remaining regiment, the 39th Arkansas, which methodically attempted to feel out the end of Engelmann's line while moving through the undergrowth. As the fire to their front slackened, Lucien Gause called to his men to rise up and follow him. The colonel waved his sword over his head and stormed ahead of the roaring and yelling Rebel infantry. Pressed from three sides, Engelmann's line collapsed. While the 40th Iowa and 27th Wisconsin were mostly able to detach themselves from the enemy, the 43rd Illinois in the center of the line was less fortunate. 150 of its men had to surrender and were captured while the rest of the brigade disorderly streamed past Rice's main line towards the ferry.
On Gause's right, Tappan's regiments had mixed experiences. While advancing, the brigade made frequent halts as Tappan worked feverishly to realign his skirmishers. Finding his line too long to functionally control, Tappan detached one of his regiments, the 33rd Arkansas, and assigned it as the brigade's reserve. He then led the remaining units forward through the forest against a solid line of earthworks manned by Adams' Brigade from Thayer's frontier division. A few well directed volleys forced the Rebels to halt their forward movement and to engage the bluecoats with their own musketry. Over a distance of more than 200 yards, shots were traded for about twenty minutes until Tappan decided to force his hand. He ordered Colonel Grinstead and his 33rd Arkansas to come forward and assist the brigade in continuing the assault. The freezing and drenched Confederates were greeted in the same fashion as their compatriots before. The 33rd, however, mad it farther, moving to within two dozen yards of the Union line before their attack stalled and the survivors had to make their way back to the rear. On an improvised stretcher they carried their revered regimental commander Hiram Grinstead, who had been shot through the lungs. Nearly 100 of the enlisted men had shared his destiny and were killed or wounded.
Next and last in the line of advance was Hawthorn's brigade. It fared marginally better than Tappan's although becoming entangled with the latter's right. Hawthorn's own southern flank made some progress in temporarily pushing back Bassett's dismounted cavalry troopers. For a moment it seemed that Hawthorn on his own would unhinge the whole Federal defence. Adams and Bassett, however, denied the Confederate success by delivering a sharp counterattack executed with fixed bayonets. For the next nearly two hours, Churchill's division engaged in a vicious firefight with Salomon's and Thayer's brigades from a distance of less than 150 yards. Apart from mounting losses, neither side was able to gain a sustainable advantage. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Mosby Parsons arrived on the field with his two brigades under Colonels Clark and Burns as well as two batteries of Missouri artillery commanded by Captains Leseur and Ruffner. The tables of success were about to be decisively altered.
Because of his strong ties to his home state, Sterling Price did not miss the opportunity to personally instruct and position the Missourians. While ordering Churchill to keep the Yankees before him in place and giving him command over the artillery, he led Parsons' Division south towards the right flank of the Confederates. They passed Hawthorn's brigade and stopped in close proximity to the large swamp where the left flank of the Union army ended. The two brigades of Parsons' division were formed in a row. The spearhead was John B. Clark's brigade, consisting of the 8th and 9th Missouri, followed by Simon P. Burns' brigade, the 10th, 11th, 12th and 16th Missouri and the 9th Missouri sharpshooter battalion.
As the Confederate advance began, Brigadier General John B. Clark again and again sent word down the line to 'Hold your fire, keep low'. The order was carried out to the letter. Clark' men waited until they got within forty paces of the Federals. Then a sheet of fire blazed into the Yankee flank, although many troops had raised their muskets without seeing their targets. The enemy line of battle, Bassett's dismounted cavalry, was caught fully unprepared for this new attack and ran towards the rear in great confusion. General Price himself showed poise as he directed volley after volley into the Federal ranks directly from the front. A special benefit of the successfull assault was captured weapons. While the Missourians collected many of the precious carbines left behind, Clark and his staff rode down the line and complimented the men on their performance.
Only a few instances later, Parsons brought up Burns' brigade. As it emerged from the trees, the troops were able to see where the Federals had been routed, the dead lying on the field. Some of the men stopped and gave water to wounded bluecoats who were begging for something to drink. While the Confederates maneuvered and readied themselves for the next assault, Thayer and Adams feverishly tried to establish a new line at right angles to counter the threat. Although the men worked busy, well directed fire from Ruffner's and Leseur's batteries threw case shot and shells into the packed ranks. When Burns finally advanced, he struck the Federals like a hammer. What appeared to be hordes of infantry swarmed over their works, coming in unbroken lines and howling the Rebel yell. From south to north, Churchill's brigades en echelon joined the charge and unhinged the whole Union line. On the Rebel's far left, Dockery's men dashed forward, withstood a last round of canister and overran both guns of the Springfield 2nd Light Artillery. Rice's and Adam's brigades were roughly handled and abandoned at least 350 men that were captured. Many more were killed and wounded as the Federals double timed towards Jenkin's Ferry in disorder, leaving most of their equipment behind. Albeit having sustained heavy casualties themselves, the Confederats had broken the best that Frederick Steele had been able to throw against them. Kirby Smith met Price, who had taken a flesh wound on the right upper arm, halfway through Groom's Field and congratulated him on his success.
Churchill's and Parsons' troops were in no condition to start the pursuit, so this task was entrusted to the recently arrived Texas division under Major General John G. Walker. Their strength, however, had melted thanks to the circumstances of the march to about 3,100 effectives. After they had been informed of the situation by their commander, mounted on his iron-gray stallion, the troops, although broken down with fatigue, became fired with new life and energy, and redoubled their efforts to overhaul the flying Federals. About midday, Walker made contact with Steele's remaining men who were in the act of crossing the Saline River at Jenkins' Ferry. In order to protect the last wagons during their crossing, Steele formed a new line of battle with his formerly beaten troops in the form of a crescent around his pontoon bridge. His position was strong and further strengthened by logs. The location was in a thickly-timbered bottom, and the ground was covered with water, precluding the use of artillery. Within a few minutes, Walker's brigades under Brigadier Generals Waul, Randall and Scully went into action. For the next hours the tide of battle ebbed and flowed, but at not time did the front lines traverse for more than 250 yards. Owing to the dense fog and clouds of smoke which hung in the thick woods, in several insances opposing lines could only be discovered by the flash of their muskets. In the midst of the fighting General Walker galloped along the lines, cheering his men forward. Near 4 p.m. the Federals endeavored to turn the Texans' right flank by extending their lines. This required a corresponding extension of the Confederate lines to prevent this maneuver, which weakened the whole line of battle, that finally extended over a space of three miles. Walker dispatched orders to General Kirby Smith for reinforcements while staying on the alert in watching the action unfold. In the meantime, all commanding brigadiers of the division had been wounded. A few minutes before the battle was over, Parsons' division led by Sterling Price himself once again went into position on the army's right flank. For a second time they dashed against Steele's left with loud shouts and in good order, and for the second time they drove the Federals from their positions. They commenced to retreat, first in goof order, and finally in much confusion. Before finishing their crossing of the river, the Union army destroyed everything in the shape of transportation. The remaining wagons were driven into the Saline River and the dead and wounded were left on the field. Having crossed the river, Steele ordered the destruction of the pontoon bridge, rendering further pursuit on the Confederate part impossible. A few minutes after the battle was over, General Fagan's cavalry, composed of Arkansians and Missourians, arrived on the battlefield, having taken a wrong detour and therefore depriving Kirby Smith and Price of the option to deny Steele the road towards Little Rock. The Federal casualties were heavy, nearly 1,000 men killed or wounded and more than 500 taken prisoner. The Rebels' loss was severe as well. Slightly less than 1,000 men killed or wounded, including the mortally wounded Generals Scurry and Randall, who died a few days later, and minorly wounded Generals Waul and Price.
[1] This is the POD. In OTL the Arkansas Division went into action piecemeal and suffered heavily without any gains, leading to heavy criticism from Kirby Smith directed against Price and his leadership capabilities. In this TL the (although limited) success of Price strengthens Smith's opinion of the former and therefore warms him to the thought of entrusting him with a much higher degree of responsibility in the future.
Chapter I: Jenkins' Ferry and the conclusion of the Camden Expedition
In September 1863, Major General Frederick Steele conquered Little Rock with 20,000 men, whereupon the Confederate state government of Arkansas fled to the southwestern part of the state and established a provisional seat of government in Washington. On March 23, 1864, Steele left Little Rock to join General Nathaniel Banks' march on Texas. The latter operated from the lower Red River region of Louisiana while the former's Union forces crossed the Ouachita River at Rockport and pressed on in a southwestern direction towards Shreveport.
Steele's army for the first time encountered serious resistance while crossing the Little Missouri River. In a bloody struggle, his leading division met 3,000 dismounted Confederate cavalrymen. Further south on Prairie De Ann, near Prescott, the Confederate force dug in. It took almost two days of hard fighting to push the outnumbered Rebels out of their positions.
The fight at Prairie De Ann as well as the onset of spring rain slowed Steele down. The roads were slowly but surely turning into mud swamps. After two weeks of marching, Steele had traveled only 70 miles and the Confederate resistance under the command of Major General Sterling Price increased. Steele then decided to change his plan and turned east towards Camden. The Federals entered the city without great difficulty on April 13, 1864.
Steele's army at that time consisted of some 11,500 men, 9,000 horses and mules, 800 wagons and 30 guns. The supply situation was critical and food supplies in particular were almost exhausted. The reduced rations ensured that many soldiers left their units to gather food in all possible ways and by all means.
On April 17, a procession of nearly 200 wagons, that was on a procurement mission and was only accompanied by less than 1,000 men and four cannons, fell victim to an attack. Sterling Price had dispatched some 3,100 cavalrymen and eight guns under the command of Brigadier Generals Maxey and Marmaduke to intercept the Union force. At Poison Spring, about 14 miles west of Camden, Maxey's Confederates blocked the route while Marmaduke attacked the southern flank of the column. The Federals were pushed back several times and ultimately fled, whereupon the Confederates conquered the four cannons and 170 of the wagons. Almost simultaneously with this victory, General Edmund Kirby Smith, the department commander, and three infantry divisions, which had previously decisively beaten Banks in Louisiana, merged with Price and his riders.
After six days later another isolated Union detachment had been defeated by four Confederate cavalry brigades under General Fagan and another 240 wagons, 1,500 horses and four guns had been lost, General Steele in Camden had to decide what was to be done before his command was fully immobilized and decimated. The only way out seemed an immediate retreat to Little Rock.
By April 30, the now retreating Union forces had already suffered more than 2,000 casualties during their campaign, reducing their strength to less than 9,500 soldiers. In contrast, Price's 4,000 horse soldiers had now been reinforced with over 8,000 troops, most of whom were infantrymen. In addition to the human losses, Steele had additionally forfeited over 2,500 animals and 635 supply wagons. His men were demoralized due to the failures on the battlefield, the agonizing retreat and the poor supply situation. The bad weather did the rest to further weaken the fighting power of the Union Army. Everything was ready for a true catastrophe to occur.
After Confederate cavalry under Colonel Greene had been able to get in touch with the rear guard of the Federals the day before, Kirby Smith and Price did everything they could to catch up with the enemy. At 1 a.m. the long column began its forced night march down a completely muddy and almost impassable road towards Jenkins' Ferry, where Steele and his men were working feverishly to complete a pontoon bridge over the swollen Saline River.
The rain pattered endlessly on the Confederates pounding through the mud. Thanks to the darkness, exhausted infantrymen were ridden over by couriers or mounted officers several times when those tried to get past them. Churchill's Arkansas division led the order of march, followed by two Missouri brigades under Mosby Parsons. The rear was brought up by Walker's Texas division. The Texans had to face the toughest challenge, since Steele's entire army and the rest of Price's command had already moved along one and the same road and the path now looked more familiar to a swamp. Deprivation of sleep and the circumstances of the march caused dozens of men all along the column to leave their ranks due to exhaustion, which significantly affected the Rebel army's effectiveness in the engagement to come.
The Federals, however, had not remained idle throughout the night. While Steele examined the progress of the pontoon bridge at the ferry and, after its completion, had transferred his cavalry division under Eugene Carr immediately to the other side of the river to prevent Fagan's rebel riders from blocking the way towards Little Rock, the Union infantry used their nightly breathing room to improve their defenses. Their lines stretched from Cox Creek in the north, parallel to the main road, to an extensive swamp in the south. The ground was heavily forested and covered by thick undergrowth. In front of the main combat line, Groom's Field, an open but partially fenced area, was located. Salomon's division, brigades under Engelmann and Rice, formed the right wing of the position together with a section of two guns. Located to their left was Adam's brigade from Thayer's frontier division, while the last part until the swamp began was covered by some dismounted cavalrymen under Bassett. Along this line, secured on both flanks, almost 4,000 Federals had formed and lay waiting.
The leading Rebel division, Churchill's, reached a ridge from which one was able to overlook the Saline River valley around 7:30 a.m. While their division commander gave the men a chance to rest, Kirby Smith and Price arrived to consult with him near a local farm house. Since Smith was convinced that his opportunity to smash Steele with the latter's back to the river was slipping away, Price was ordered to put his men immediately into action as soon as they arrived. In doing so, Smith transferred the tactical command completely to his direct subordinate and assigned a high degree of responsibility to him, but at the same time massively restricted his decision-making options via the unmistakable order to attack.
Churchill formed his battered division around 8 a.m. by placing it in a single line of brigades. From left to right, Dockery's, Gause's, Tappan's and Hawthorne's Arkansas brigades , all together nearly 3,200 men, took up positions. Price was determined to send the division forward as a unit to keep the Union defenders busy until he had brought up Parsons' brigades to flank them [1].
The Arkansas men advanced cautiously against lashing rain and howling wind. When they entered Groom's Field from the west, they were greeted by an unexpected sight: A crowded line of blue-clad infantry stood out from the stubble field. It was Colonel Adolph Engelmann's 3rd brigade from Salomon's division. These men had been given the task of intercepting the Confederate advance in front of the main line and thereby shielding the newly erected breastworks manned by Rice's 1st Brigade. They had heard the sounds of heavy skirmishing to their front and the men were prepared to receive the forward elements of the Rebel force. Three of Colonel Lucien C. Gause's four regiments in the left center of Churchill's line, the 36th, 26th and 32nd Arkansas, met Engelmann's brigade, consisting of the 40th Iowa, 43rd Illinois and 27th Wisconsin, out in the open. They were hailed by a firestorm coming from the skillfully deployed Yankees. The afflicted Confederates, several dozens of whom fell victim to the first fierce volley, temporarily sought shelter in a hollow that ran through the middle of the field and found themselves held down by heavy fire. Partly kneeling, partly lying in foot-high mud, the Rebels returned the favor and unloaded into their opponents. Colonel James M. Davie of the 36th Arkansas later succinctly noted: 'There was nothing of the romance of war'. The Federals behind their fence, however, could not be happy for a long time that they had stopped Gause's main push in its tracks. On the extreme left of the Confederate line, Dockery's brigade of about 550 men was moving forward. While the 12th Arkansas sharpshooter battalion engaged in a brief duel with the section of the Springfield 2nd Light Artillery, the 19th Arkansas Mounted Infantry and 20th Arkansas encircled the right flank of the 40th Iowa. Their intense flanking fire meant that Engelmann had to refuse the right side of the regiment, which significantly reduced the volume of its fire. On the other flank of the brigade, the 27nd Wisconsin faced a bypassing attempt of Gause's last remaining regiment, the 39th Arkansas, which methodically attempted to feel out the end of Engelmann's line while moving through the undergrowth. As the fire to their front slackened, Lucien Gause called to his men to rise up and follow him. The colonel waved his sword over his head and stormed ahead of the roaring and yelling Rebel infantry. Pressed from three sides, Engelmann's line collapsed. While the 40th Iowa and 27th Wisconsin were mostly able to detach themselves from the enemy, the 43rd Illinois in the center of the line was less fortunate. 150 of its men had to surrender and were captured while the rest of the brigade disorderly streamed past Rice's main line towards the ferry.
On Gause's right, Tappan's regiments had mixed experiences. While advancing, the brigade made frequent halts as Tappan worked feverishly to realign his skirmishers. Finding his line too long to functionally control, Tappan detached one of his regiments, the 33rd Arkansas, and assigned it as the brigade's reserve. He then led the remaining units forward through the forest against a solid line of earthworks manned by Adams' Brigade from Thayer's frontier division. A few well directed volleys forced the Rebels to halt their forward movement and to engage the bluecoats with their own musketry. Over a distance of more than 200 yards, shots were traded for about twenty minutes until Tappan decided to force his hand. He ordered Colonel Grinstead and his 33rd Arkansas to come forward and assist the brigade in continuing the assault. The freezing and drenched Confederates were greeted in the same fashion as their compatriots before. The 33rd, however, mad it farther, moving to within two dozen yards of the Union line before their attack stalled and the survivors had to make their way back to the rear. On an improvised stretcher they carried their revered regimental commander Hiram Grinstead, who had been shot through the lungs. Nearly 100 of the enlisted men had shared his destiny and were killed or wounded.
Next and last in the line of advance was Hawthorn's brigade. It fared marginally better than Tappan's although becoming entangled with the latter's right. Hawthorn's own southern flank made some progress in temporarily pushing back Bassett's dismounted cavalry troopers. For a moment it seemed that Hawthorn on his own would unhinge the whole Federal defence. Adams and Bassett, however, denied the Confederate success by delivering a sharp counterattack executed with fixed bayonets. For the next nearly two hours, Churchill's division engaged in a vicious firefight with Salomon's and Thayer's brigades from a distance of less than 150 yards. Apart from mounting losses, neither side was able to gain a sustainable advantage. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Mosby Parsons arrived on the field with his two brigades under Colonels Clark and Burns as well as two batteries of Missouri artillery commanded by Captains Leseur and Ruffner. The tables of success were about to be decisively altered.
Because of his strong ties to his home state, Sterling Price did not miss the opportunity to personally instruct and position the Missourians. While ordering Churchill to keep the Yankees before him in place and giving him command over the artillery, he led Parsons' Division south towards the right flank of the Confederates. They passed Hawthorn's brigade and stopped in close proximity to the large swamp where the left flank of the Union army ended. The two brigades of Parsons' division were formed in a row. The spearhead was John B. Clark's brigade, consisting of the 8th and 9th Missouri, followed by Simon P. Burns' brigade, the 10th, 11th, 12th and 16th Missouri and the 9th Missouri sharpshooter battalion.
As the Confederate advance began, Brigadier General John B. Clark again and again sent word down the line to 'Hold your fire, keep low'. The order was carried out to the letter. Clark' men waited until they got within forty paces of the Federals. Then a sheet of fire blazed into the Yankee flank, although many troops had raised their muskets without seeing their targets. The enemy line of battle, Bassett's dismounted cavalry, was caught fully unprepared for this new attack and ran towards the rear in great confusion. General Price himself showed poise as he directed volley after volley into the Federal ranks directly from the front. A special benefit of the successfull assault was captured weapons. While the Missourians collected many of the precious carbines left behind, Clark and his staff rode down the line and complimented the men on their performance.
Only a few instances later, Parsons brought up Burns' brigade. As it emerged from the trees, the troops were able to see where the Federals had been routed, the dead lying on the field. Some of the men stopped and gave water to wounded bluecoats who were begging for something to drink. While the Confederates maneuvered and readied themselves for the next assault, Thayer and Adams feverishly tried to establish a new line at right angles to counter the threat. Although the men worked busy, well directed fire from Ruffner's and Leseur's batteries threw case shot and shells into the packed ranks. When Burns finally advanced, he struck the Federals like a hammer. What appeared to be hordes of infantry swarmed over their works, coming in unbroken lines and howling the Rebel yell. From south to north, Churchill's brigades en echelon joined the charge and unhinged the whole Union line. On the Rebel's far left, Dockery's men dashed forward, withstood a last round of canister and overran both guns of the Springfield 2nd Light Artillery. Rice's and Adam's brigades were roughly handled and abandoned at least 350 men that were captured. Many more were killed and wounded as the Federals double timed towards Jenkin's Ferry in disorder, leaving most of their equipment behind. Albeit having sustained heavy casualties themselves, the Confederats had broken the best that Frederick Steele had been able to throw against them. Kirby Smith met Price, who had taken a flesh wound on the right upper arm, halfway through Groom's Field and congratulated him on his success.
Churchill's and Parsons' troops were in no condition to start the pursuit, so this task was entrusted to the recently arrived Texas division under Major General John G. Walker. Their strength, however, had melted thanks to the circumstances of the march to about 3,100 effectives. After they had been informed of the situation by their commander, mounted on his iron-gray stallion, the troops, although broken down with fatigue, became fired with new life and energy, and redoubled their efforts to overhaul the flying Federals. About midday, Walker made contact with Steele's remaining men who were in the act of crossing the Saline River at Jenkins' Ferry. In order to protect the last wagons during their crossing, Steele formed a new line of battle with his formerly beaten troops in the form of a crescent around his pontoon bridge. His position was strong and further strengthened by logs. The location was in a thickly-timbered bottom, and the ground was covered with water, precluding the use of artillery. Within a few minutes, Walker's brigades under Brigadier Generals Waul, Randall and Scully went into action. For the next hours the tide of battle ebbed and flowed, but at not time did the front lines traverse for more than 250 yards. Owing to the dense fog and clouds of smoke which hung in the thick woods, in several insances opposing lines could only be discovered by the flash of their muskets. In the midst of the fighting General Walker galloped along the lines, cheering his men forward. Near 4 p.m. the Federals endeavored to turn the Texans' right flank by extending their lines. This required a corresponding extension of the Confederate lines to prevent this maneuver, which weakened the whole line of battle, that finally extended over a space of three miles. Walker dispatched orders to General Kirby Smith for reinforcements while staying on the alert in watching the action unfold. In the meantime, all commanding brigadiers of the division had been wounded. A few minutes before the battle was over, Parsons' division led by Sterling Price himself once again went into position on the army's right flank. For a second time they dashed against Steele's left with loud shouts and in good order, and for the second time they drove the Federals from their positions. They commenced to retreat, first in goof order, and finally in much confusion. Before finishing their crossing of the river, the Union army destroyed everything in the shape of transportation. The remaining wagons were driven into the Saline River and the dead and wounded were left on the field. Having crossed the river, Steele ordered the destruction of the pontoon bridge, rendering further pursuit on the Confederate part impossible. A few minutes after the battle was over, General Fagan's cavalry, composed of Arkansians and Missourians, arrived on the battlefield, having taken a wrong detour and therefore depriving Kirby Smith and Price of the option to deny Steele the road towards Little Rock. The Federal casualties were heavy, nearly 1,000 men killed or wounded and more than 500 taken prisoner. The Rebels' loss was severe as well. Slightly less than 1,000 men killed or wounded, including the mortally wounded Generals Scurry and Randall, who died a few days later, and minorly wounded Generals Waul and Price.
[1] This is the POD. In OTL the Arkansas Division went into action piecemeal and suffered heavily without any gains, leading to heavy criticism from Kirby Smith directed against Price and his leadership capabilities. In this TL the (although limited) success of Price strengthens Smith's opinion of the former and therefore warms him to the thought of entrusting him with a much higher degree of responsibility in the future.
- Lothar
- Word Count: 3.1k