Tupelo
Harrisburg
Civil War Mississippi


American Civil War
July 14-15, 1864

Major General A.J. Smith, commanding a combined force of more than 14,000 men, left LaGrange, Tennessee, on July 5, 1864, and advanced south. Smith's mission was to insure that Major General Nathan B. Forrest and his cavalry did not raid Major General William T. Sherman's railroad lifeline in Middle Tennessee and, thereby, prevent supplies from reaching him in his campaign against Atlanta.

Laying waste to the countryside as he advanced, Smith reached Pontotoc, Mississippi, on July 11. Forrest was in nearby Okolona with about 6,000 men, but his commander, Lieutenant General Stephen D. Lee, told him he could not attack until he was reinforced. Two days later, Smith, fearing an ambush, moved east toward Tupelo. On the previous day, Lee arrived near Pontotoc with 2,000 additional men and, under his command, the entire Confederate force engaged Smith.

Within two miles of the Federals, on the night of the 13th, Lee ordered an attack for the next morning. Lee attacked at 7:30 am the next morning in a number of uncoordinated assaults which the Yankees beat back, causing heavy casualties. Lee halted the fighting after a few hours. Short on rations, Smith did not pursue but started back to Memphis on the 15th.

Criticized for not destroying Forrest's command, Smith had caused much damage and had fulfilled his mission of insuring Sherman's supply lines.

Result(s): Union victory

Location: Lee County

Campaign: Forrest's Defense of Mississippi (1864)

Date(s): July 14-15, 1864

Principal Commanders: Major General A.J. Smith [US]; Lieutenant General Stephen D. Lee and Major General Nathan Bedford Forrest [CS]

Forces Engaged: 1st and 3rd Infantry Divisions and Cavalry Division, XVI Army Corps, and 1st Brigade, U.S. Colored Troops (14,000) [US]; Department of Alabama, Mississippi, and East Louisiana [CS]

Estimated Casualties: 1,948 total (US 648; CS 1,300)


Mississippi's Civil War: A Narrative History
A great treatment of wartime Mississippi that includes a lot of social and political material in addition to information on battles. It also includes a lot of great stories, from the dramatic resignation of Jefferson Davis from the U.S. Senate in 1861 to Ulysses S. Grant's drinking habits during the siege of Vicksburg

Kindle Available
Civil War Firearms

Standard Catalog of
Civil War Firearms

Over 700 photographs and a rarity scale for each gun, this comprehensive guide to the thousands of weapons used by Billy Yank and Johnny Reb will be indispensable for historians and collectors.
Civil War: Uniforms, US and Confederate Armies, c.1895
Civil War: Uniforms, US and Confederate Armies, c.1895 Giclee Print
48 in. x 31.5 in. $169.99
Buy at AllPosters.com
Framed

Civil War Revolver Pistol
Civil War Model 1851 Naval Pistol


Civil War Replica Musket
Civil War Musket
Wood & Steel Frontier Rifle Designed After The Original Rifle
Vicksburg Mississippi Campaign
Vicksburg Battle Map
Mississippi State Battle Map
State Battle Maps
American Civil War Exhibits
Civil War Timeline
Women in the War
Kids Zone Causes of the Civil War
General Stonewall Jackson
Civil War Submarine
Sid Meiers
Sid Meier's Civil War Collection
Take command of either Confederate or Union troops and command them to attack from the trees, rally around the general, or do any number of other realistic military actions. The AI reacts to your commands as if it was a real Civil War general, and offers infinite replayability. The random-scenario generator provides endless variations on the battles
American Civil War Book Titles
Kindle Available

Vicksburg: The Campaign That Opened the Mississippi
Confederate troops surrendered Vicksburg on July 4, 1863 a crucial port and rail depot for the South was lost
Kindle Available

Champion Hill
Decisive Battle for Vicksburg

The Battle of Champion Hill was the decisive land engagement of the Vicksburg Campaign. The May 16, 1863, fighting took place just 20 miles east of the river city, where the advance of Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's Federal army attacked Gen. John C. Pemberton's hastily gathered Confederates
Beauregard
P.G.T. Beauregard
Napoleon in Gray

Beauregard often gets overlooked, he was never as beloved as Lee or Stonewall Jackson, but he was capable, the man had a sharp mind and Lee understood this, even if Jefferson Davis did not

Mississippi's Civil War: A Narrative History
A great treatment of wartime Mississippi that includes a lot of social and political material in addition to information on battles. It also includes a lot of great stories, from the dramatic resignation of Jefferson Davis from the U.S. Senate in 1861 to Ulysses S. Grant's drinking habits during the siege of Vicksburg

Vicksburg: 47 Days of Siege
First-hand accounts of life during the 47 days Vicksburg was under siege. Ranging from housewives to soliders on both sides, a good idea of what life was like, from ways to pass the time to what to eat, in and around Vicksburg. A large photo album and a glossary

The Beleaguered City: The Vicksburg Campaign, December 1862-July 1863
Shelby Foote explains all engagements in and around Vicksburg. Every event is descriptively written covering naval strategies along the Mississippi, Yazoo and other rivers which were of importance to naval affairs of each opposing side
Kindle Available

Grant Wins the War
Decision at Vicksburg

A brilliantly constructed new account,A penetrating analysis of Grant's strategies and actions leading to the Union victory at Vicksburg. Approaching these epic events from a unique and well-rounded perspective, and based on careful research

Sherman's Mississippi Campaign
Sherman set out from Vicksburg on February 3, 1864, with an army of some 25,000 infantry and a battalion of cavalry. An opportunity to observe how this large-scale raid presaged Shermans Atlanta and Carolina campaigns, revealing the transformation of Shermans strategic thinking

Civil War History Documentary DVD Movie Titles
       
       



Sources:
U.S. National Park Service
U.S. Library of Congress.

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