Island No. 10

Struggle for the Mississippi Valley

Nonfiction, History, Americas, United States, Civil War Period (1850-1877), Military
Cover of the book Island No. 10 by Larry J. Daniel, Lynn N. Bock, Larry J. Daniel, University of Alabama Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Larry J. Daniel, Lynn N. Bock, Larry J. Daniel ISBN: 9780817389864
Publisher: University of Alabama Press Publication: June 25, 2015
Imprint: University Alabama Press Language: English
Author: Larry J. Daniel, Lynn N. Bock, Larry J. Daniel
ISBN: 9780817389864
Publisher: University of Alabama Press
Publication: June 25, 2015
Imprint: University Alabama Press
Language: English

By February 1862 Confederate forces in Kentucky and Tennessee were falling back in disorder. Fort Henry on the Tennessee River and Fort Donelson on the Cumberland River fell to combined land and naval forces under Brigadier General Ulysses S. Grant and Flag Officer Andrew H. Foote. These losses necessitated the abandonment of the Rebel stronghold of Columbus, Kentucky. The entire upper Mississippi Valley lay open to Federal invasion. Toward that end, a new Union army under Major General John Pope began organizing at Commerce, Missouri.

Confederate Major General John P. McCown was sent to plug the breach by fortifying Island No. 10, a one-mile-long island positioned in a bend in the Mississippi River that straddled the boundaries of Tennessee, Missouri, and Kentucky. Pope's army had to be held in check long enough for the main Confederate force, under generals Albert Sidney Johnston and P. G. T. Beauregard, to concentrate and launch a counterattack against Grant's advancing army.

The ensuing campaign at Island No. 10 created the first extensive siege of the Civil War. The ultimate capture of the garrison resulted in a new army command for Pope in Virginia. As for the Confederates, the campaign pointed to a faulty western strategy. Simply to concede the rivers and their adjoining cities to the Federal navy was politically unacceptable. Garrison after garrison was captured, however, in the attempt to defend the rivers to the last extremity. Between February 1862 and July 1863 the Confederates lost 64,400 troops, some nine divisions, in defending the rivers. This strategy was a significant contributing factor for Confederate defeat in the West.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

By February 1862 Confederate forces in Kentucky and Tennessee were falling back in disorder. Fort Henry on the Tennessee River and Fort Donelson on the Cumberland River fell to combined land and naval forces under Brigadier General Ulysses S. Grant and Flag Officer Andrew H. Foote. These losses necessitated the abandonment of the Rebel stronghold of Columbus, Kentucky. The entire upper Mississippi Valley lay open to Federal invasion. Toward that end, a new Union army under Major General John Pope began organizing at Commerce, Missouri.

Confederate Major General John P. McCown was sent to plug the breach by fortifying Island No. 10, a one-mile-long island positioned in a bend in the Mississippi River that straddled the boundaries of Tennessee, Missouri, and Kentucky. Pope's army had to be held in check long enough for the main Confederate force, under generals Albert Sidney Johnston and P. G. T. Beauregard, to concentrate and launch a counterattack against Grant's advancing army.

The ensuing campaign at Island No. 10 created the first extensive siege of the Civil War. The ultimate capture of the garrison resulted in a new army command for Pope in Virginia. As for the Confederates, the campaign pointed to a faulty western strategy. Simply to concede the rivers and their adjoining cities to the Federal navy was politically unacceptable. Garrison after garrison was captured, however, in the attempt to defend the rivers to the last extremity. Between February 1862 and July 1863 the Confederates lost 64,400 troops, some nine divisions, in defending the rivers. This strategy was a significant contributing factor for Confederate defeat in the West.

More books from University of Alabama Press

Cover of the book Captain Billy's Troopers by Larry J. Daniel, Lynn N. Bock, Larry J. Daniel
Cover of the book In the Shadow of Hitler by Larry J. Daniel, Lynn N. Bock, Larry J. Daniel
Cover of the book Free Speech On Trial by Larry J. Daniel, Lynn N. Bock, Larry J. Daniel
Cover of the book Survival Pending Revolution by Larry J. Daniel, Lynn N. Bock, Larry J. Daniel
Cover of the book The Moon over Wapakoneta by Larry J. Daniel, Lynn N. Bock, Larry J. Daniel
Cover of the book Confederate Arkansas by Larry J. Daniel, Lynn N. Bock, Larry J. Daniel
Cover of the book Sinclair Lewis Remembered by Larry J. Daniel, Lynn N. Bock, Larry J. Daniel
Cover of the book Towns and Temples Along the Mississippi by Larry J. Daniel, Lynn N. Bock, Larry J. Daniel
Cover of the book Education for Liberation by Larry J. Daniel, Lynn N. Bock, Larry J. Daniel
Cover of the book F. Scott Fitzgerald and the American Scene by Larry J. Daniel, Lynn N. Bock, Larry J. Daniel
Cover of the book Southeastern Grasslands by Larry J. Daniel, Lynn N. Bock, Larry J. Daniel
Cover of the book Imagining Legality by Larry J. Daniel, Lynn N. Bock, Larry J. Daniel
Cover of the book Women in a Man's World, Crying by Larry J. Daniel, Lynn N. Bock, Larry J. Daniel
Cover of the book Sloss Furnaces and the Rise of the Birmingham District by Larry J. Daniel, Lynn N. Bock, Larry J. Daniel
Cover of the book Speaking with the Ancestors by Larry J. Daniel, Lynn N. Bock, Larry J. Daniel
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy