We and our partners use data for Personalised ads and content, ad and content measurement, audience insights and product development. Successive Union attacks buckled the Confederate lines. On January 30, 1862, the Western Theater commander, General Henry Halleck, reluctantly approved Brigadier General Ulysses S. Grant's request to attack Fort Henry, located on the Tennessee River. While in Port Gibson, a visit to Windsor Ruins is a must. A late 1862 advance south from Tennessee ended with Confederates severing Grants supply lines. The American Battlefield Trust and our members have saved more than 56,000 acres in 25 states! Sherman's feint against the Yazoo Bluffsthe Battle of Snyder's Bluffwas a complete success, and only a single Confederate brigade was detached south. By mid-April, his men had carved a path through the Louisiana wilderness that would enable Grant to march the Army of the Tennessee past Vicksburg, cross the river, and then attack the city from the south. Fighting in the scattered fields and forest around the Shaifer House intensified as more Union regiments and batteries came into action. Within six weeks, Grant captured Fort Henry and Fort Donelson on the Cumberland River, establishing federal control of both waterways. 1. Almost by mutual consent, the fighting ebbed by 3:00 a.m., and the weary soldiers in blue and gray rested on their arms. A single brigade of reinforcements from Vicksburg under Brig. As a result, the landing was unchallenged and the only Confederates nearby were Major General John S. Bowen's force of 6,000-8,000 soldiers who had marched to Port Gibson after thwarting Grant's landing at Grand Gulf the previous day. Records 53-97. It was a Union victory that sent Confederates in retreat, giving Grant a firm foothold in Mississippi south of Vicksburg. Port Gibson: Featured Resources Civil War | Video Vicksburg Campaign Civil War | Article 10 Facts: The Vicksburg Campaign Civil War | Biography James B. McPherson Rather than moving forward to confront the Union invasion force at Bruinsburg, where it was most vulnerable, Pemberton kept most of his troops in garrison at Vicksburg. The American Battlefield Trust is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. The men act nobly, but the odds are overpowering. After two desperate Rebel counterattacks failed in the late afternoon, Bowen recognized the futility of further resistance against the Union onslaught and ordered a retreat, leaving behind several hundred prisoners. By mid-April, his men had carved a path through the Louisiana wilderness that would enable Grant to march the Army of the Tennessee past Vicksburg, cross the river, and then attack the city from the south. The first Union objective was Port Gibson, roughly ten miles east of Bruinsburg and commanding the local road network. Battle of Chickasaw Bayou (December 2629, 1862), The Union victory at the Battle of Port Gibson, Battle of Big Black River Bridge (May 17). This FREE annual event brings together educators from all over the world for sessions, lectures, and tours from leading experts. 4. Federal Identification Number (EIN): 54-1426643. . Bowen deployed Brigadier General Martin E. Green's Brigade west of Port Gibson along Rodney Road and he stationed Brigadier General Edward D. Tracy's brigade across Bruinsburg Road. Subscribe to the American Battlefield Trust's quarterly email series of curated stories for the curious-minded sort! Point Pleasant, Ohio, Birthplace of Ulysses S. Grant, Surrender at Appomattox Court House, McLean House Location, Ohio Generals and Officers of the Civil War, Image Gallery, Battle of the Wilderness, Federal Lines on North Side of Orange Plank Road, Photo, Siege of Vicksburg, Fight in the Crater of Fort Hill, June 25, 1863, Illustration. Green quickly mounted and raced back to Magnolia Church to alert his brigade. Stay up-to-date on our FREE educational resources & professional development opportunities, all designed to support your work teaching American history. Night fighting such as this was rare in the Civil War as it was difficult to maintain command and control of the troops. This survey was of a two-acre borrow area . Grant, however, would have other plans; the roads on the west bank of the Big Black River were open all the way to the Mississippi state capital and the critical rail link to Vicksburg. Sporadic skirmishing and artillery fire continued until 3 a.m. This victory not only secured his position on Mississippi soil, but enabled him to launch his campaign deeper into the interior of the state. Part of the battle was fought on the Bruinsburg Road at Point Lookout. MOVING INLAND: BATTLE OF PORT GIBSON The first day ashore, Grant pushed McClernand two miles inland to high, dry ground and on toward the town of Port Gibson, where a bridge across Big Bayou Pierre led to Grand Gulf (which Grant coveted as a supply base on the Mississippi). A few miles to the south, McClernands Corps traveled along Rodney Road. The general tried to calm their fears by telling them that the enemy could not possibly arrive before daylight. American History Central is an independent encyclopedia of American history. Soon after, Tracy was killed by a snipers bullet. In June, the Union tightened its grip on the Mississippi, when federal forces captured the river city of Memphis, Tennessee. In July 1862, President Abraham Lincoln summoned Major General Henry W. Halleck to Washington to serve as chief of all Union armies. May 1, 1863 The Federal landing at Bruinsburg, Mississippi, on April 30, 1863, and the ensuing victory at the Battle of Port Gibson the next day, cemented a Union presence in western Mississippi that led to the eventual downfall of the Confederate stronghold of Vicksburg on the Mississippi River. Port Gibson, ten miles east of Bruinsburg on the Little Bayou Pierre River, commanded the road network between Grand Gulf and Jackson and was Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grants first objective after crossing the Mississippi. A desperate Confederate counterattack by Cockrells Missourians was repulsed and Bowen ordered a retreat. The area is now largely wooded, with a scattering of non-historic houses and other buildings, mainly along Rodney Road which roughly bisects the battlefield. Port Gibson Battlefield The A. K. Shaifer House was the site of the opening shots in the Battle of Port Gibson. An example of data being processed may be a unique identifier stored in a cookie. Send Students on School Field Trips to Battlefields Your Gift Tripled! Noted are the Battle of Port Gibson, May 1, 1863, the Battle of Raymond, May 12, 1863, the Battle of Jackson, May 14, 1863, the Battle of Champion Hill, May 16, 1863, and the Battle of Big Black River Bridge, May 17, 1863. Subscribe to the American Battlefield Trust's quarterly email series of curated stories for the curious-minded sort! Gen. Peter Osterhaus. The city was known as "The Gibraltar of the Confederacy," because it is situated on a high bluff overlooking a horseshoe-shaped bend in the river. The Majority of our funds go directly to Preservation and Education. He would march his army down the Louisiana side of the [] Admiral David Farragut captured the port city of New Orleans on May 18, 1862, closing down Confederate access to the Gulf. Battlefield map courtesy of the American Battlefield Trust. The Confederate victory proved to be inconsequential, however. Night fighting such as this was rare during the Civil War because it was difficult to maintain command and control of the troops. The A. K. Shaifer House was the site of the opening shots in the Battle of Port Gibson. The house was used by Maj. Gen. John A McClernand for his headquarters and later used as a hospital. Gen. Eugene A. Carr engaged Confederate pickets near the Shaifer House. Tracy dispatched infantry and artillery to Greens assistance minutes before cannons began to pound his own line, signaling the advance of a new Union column under Brig. Struck with the realization that McPherson could cut him off from the bridge over the Big Black River, Bowen ordered the formidable defenses at Grand Gulf abandoned, the magazine exploded, and the heavy artillery destroyed. Johnstons removal prevented him from uniting his forces with Pemberton, now isolated at Vicksburg. Meanwhile, Grant approached the city with the bulk of his army from the east, but Rebel cavalry cut his supply lines, forcing him to retreat before launching an assault. Gen. Edward Tracy, who anchored the Confederate right flank roughly a mile and half to the northwest. The terrain is a tangle of ravines and terraces, caused by the soil type (sedimentary loess) and a history of intensive agricultural use up to the 20th century. In late April, Grant finally struck gold. As the Union forces came ashore, they secured a beachhead and began marching toward Port Gibson by late afternoon on April 30. The battle secured a Union beachhead east of the Mississippi River and enabled Grant to move northeastward unopposed. The Port Gibson Battlefield is the site near Port Gibson, Mississippi where the 1863 Battle of Port Gibson was fought during the American Civil War. Defending that border was difficult for the Confederacy because three major rivers (the Mississippi, which flows south to the Gulf of Mexico, and the Tennessee and Cumberland Rivers, which flow north to the Ohio River) provided relatively easy access to the South. Now on the Vicksburg side of the river, Grants men marched toward their first objective, Port Gibson, situated roughly ten miles east of Bruinsburg, which commanded the local road network. The invasion of Mississippi by roughly 23,000 Union soldiers on April 30, 1863, was the largest amphibious offensive in American history prior to the invasion of Normandy, France, during World War II. Port Gibson | May 1, 1863 (June 2020) American Battlefield Trust Port Gibson, ten miles east of Bruinsburg on the Little Bayou Pierre River, commanded the road network between Grand Gulf and Jackson and was Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's first objective after crossing the Mississippi. Vicksburg sits on a high bluff on the eastern side of the Mississippi River, south of the mouth of the Yazoo River. Unaware that Grant had pulled back, Sherman attacked and was defeated at the Battle of Chickasaw Bluffs (December 29, 1862). Grant understood the nature of the explosion and rode to Grand Gulf with a small escort, enjoying his first bath in weeks, and celebrating the capture of what would become his central supply depot as he moved inland. Gen. John Bowen clashed with elements of two Union corps commanded by Maj. Gen. U.S. Grant. Grant launched his campaign against Vicksburg, Mississippi, in the spring of 1863, starting his army south from Milliken's Bend on the west side of the Mississippi River. At dawn the battle was renewed in fury as Maj. Gen. John A. McClernand threw most of his XIII Corps toward Greens thin gray line. Defending that border was difficult for the Confederacy because three major rivers (the Mississippi, which flows south to the Gulf of Mexico, and the Tennessee and Cumberland Rivers, which flow north to the Ohio River) provided relatively easy access to the South. In July 1862, General Henry Halleck was called to Washington and promoted to chief of all Union armies, leaving Grant in charge of operations in the Western Theater. The American Battlefield Trust and our members have saved more than 56,000 acres in 25 states! The 1st Light Artillery destroyed a Confederate battery, but the 6th and 12th batteries took no important part in the battle. The Battle of Port Gibson was fought near Port Gibson, Mississippi, on May 1, 1863, between Union and Confederate forces during the Vicksburg Campaign of the American Civil War. Stay up-to-date on our FREE educational resources & professional development opportunities, all designed to support your work teaching American history. On January 30, 1862, the Western Theater commander, General Henry Halleck, reluctantly approved Brigadier General Ulysses S. Grants request to attack Fort Henry, on the Tennessee River. Although most of the Port Gibson battlefield is still privately owned, the Civil War Trust (a division of the American Battlefield Trust) and its partners have acquired and preserved 644 acres (2.61km2) of the Port Gibson battlefield. The American Battlefield Trust and our members have saved more than 56,000 acres in 25 states! Twenty minutes after the troops had been staged for the assault, the Confederates were retreating into the Bayou Pierre bottoms, having left behind several hundred prisoners. The American Battlefield Trust and our members have saved more than 56,000 acres in 25 states! The Majority of our funds go directly to Preservation and Education. This strategic battle was fought eight miles west of Bethel Church on May 1, 1863. Port Gibson Confederate Official Records. After a prolonged siege, Grant eventually forced Pemberton to surrender on July 4, 1863. If Union forces could gain control of the Mississippi, they could deny the Confederacy easy access to supplies from the Gulf of Mexico and territories in the American West. These stately columns are all that remain of Windsor, one of the most magnificent homes in the antebellum South. In the Battle of Port Gibsons aftermath, Major General Ulysses S. Grant turned his army east and drove General Joseph E. Johnstons forces away from the state capital at Jackson, Mississippi, on May 14, 1863. Meanwhile, Grant's troop barges ran past Fort Cobun under the protection of Porter's gunboats. Show your pride in battlefield preservation by shopping in our store. The brigades of Brig. During the winter, Grant made several unsuccessful attempts to approach Vicksburg from other directions. In late April 1863, Union troops on the west bank advanced toward Vicksburg. Subscribe to the American Battlefield Trust's quarterly email series of curated stories for the curious-minded sort! United States. Vicksburg is located on the eastern side of the Mississippi, south of the mouth of the Yazoo River. Windsor survived the war, becoming a prominent landmark along the Mississippi River. The Battle of Georgia Landing or Battle of Labadieville (October 27, 1862) was fought between a Union Army force led by Brigadier General Godfrey Weitzel and a Confederate States Army force commanded by Brigadier General Alfred Mouton near Labadieville, Assumption Parish, Louisiana, during the American Civil War.After a sharp clash, the Union troops compelled Mouton's outnumbered force to retreat. The house was used by Maj. Gen. John A McClernand for his headquarters and later used as a hospital. Forced to defend two approaches to Port Gibson, Bowen divided his already heavily outnumbered forces. Later that night, Grant ordered McClernand and Major General James B. McPherson to march their 13th and 17th Army Corps down the Louisiana side of the Mississippi past Grand Gulf. The land on the Louisiana side of the river, opposite Vicksburg, was rough, etched with poor roads and many streams. The First American President: Setting the Precedent, African Americans During the Revolutionary War, Save 42 Historic Acres at the Battle of Chancellorsville, Phase Three of Gaines Mill-Cold Harbor Saved Forever Campaign, An Unparalleled Preservation Opportunity at Gettysburg Battlefield, For Sale: Three Battlefield Tracts Spanning Three Wars, Preserve 128 Sacred Acres at Antietam and Shepherdstown. Bowen moved south from Grand Gulf with Brig. The Union troops pushed forward all along the line, and fierce fighting continued throughout the afternoon. Battle of Port Gibson - Grant's March Marker. The Federal soldiers clambered aboard the barges at Disharoons plantation on the Louisiana side of the river, crossed over, and disembarked at Bruinsburg, on the Mississippi side. Resounding Union victories at the Battle of Champion Hill (May 16) and the Battle of Big Black River Bridge (May 17), forced Pemberton to take refuge within the City of Vicksburg proper. McPhersons Corps marched along Bruinsburg Road. On the night of April 16, seven gunboats and three supply ships under the command of Rear Admiral David Dixon Porter ran the gauntlet of Confederate batteries along the river. A 2,080-acre (840ha) area surrounding part of the site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1972, and a larger area was designated a National Historic Landmark in 2005. "Through Storm and Sunshine": Valorous Vivandires in the Civil War. [5] In 2011, the Civil War Preservation Trust was renamed the Civil War Trust, which in 2018 became a division of the American Battlefield Trust. This FREE annual event brings together educators from all over the world for sessions, lectures, and tours from leading experts. Windsor Ruins. The Union Army was led by Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, and they were victorious. At dawn the battle was renewed in fury as Maj. Gen. John A. McClernand threw most of his XIII Corps toward Greens thin gray line. The creators behind Ohio Civil War Central are historians, developers, and website specialists. Stay up-to-date on the American Battlefield Trust's battlefield preservation efforts, travel tips, upcoming events, history content and more. To the east, a ring of forts, mounting 172 guns, shielded the city from an overland assault. The First American President: Setting the Precedent, African Americans During the Revolutionary War, Save 42 Historic Acres at the Battle of Chancellorsville, Phase Three of Gaines Mill-Cold Harbor Saved Forever Campaign, An Unparalleled Preservation Opportunity at Gettysburg Battlefield, For Sale: Three Battlefield Tracts Spanning Three Wars, Preserve 128 Sacred Acres at Antietam and Shepherdstown. Confederate units, outnumbered more than 3-to-1, made a fierce but vain defense of the town throughout the day. #2 Port Gibson Battlefield National Register of Historic Places Updated: 2020-05-09 The Port Gibson Battlefield is the site near Port Gibson, Mississippi where the 1863 Battle of Port Gibson was fought during the American Civil War. Green called for reinforcements from Brig. Donations to the Trust are tax deductible to the full extent allowable under the law. Battle of Vicksburg Map. Official Records. Admiral David Farragut captured the port city of New Orleans on May 18, 1862, closing down Confederate access to the Gulf. With the aid of Admiral Porter's gunboats, Grant attempted to move Major General John A. McClernand's 13th Army Corps down the Mississippi River on transport barges and execute a landing on the east bank at Grand Gulf, located at the juncture of the Mississippi and the Big Black River roughly thirty miles below Vicksburg. The Union fleet, however, failed to silence the Confederate batteries at Grand Gulf. As an Amazon Associate, the owner of AHC can earn from qualifying purchases. The site is owned, operated, and funded by R.Squared Communications, LLC. To the north, nearly impenetrable swamps and bayous protected Vicksburg. The Majority of our funds go directly to Preservation and Education. Nothing seemed to work. The house was used by Maj. Gen. John A McClernand for his headquarters and later used as a hospital. 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