Battle of Bayou Fourche order of battle explained

The Battle of Bayou Fourche (September 10, 1863) saw Union forces under the overall command of Frederick Steele clash with Confederate forces led by Sterling Price near Little Rock, Arkansas. The only fighting occurred when Steele's cavalry commanded by John W. Davidson crossed to the south side of the Arkansas River and compelled the Confederate cavalry under John S. Marmaduke to abandon its defensive position behind Bayou Fourche. Price's outnumbered forces evacuated Little Rock and withdrew south to Arkadelphia. The Union occupation of Little Rock was the final action in a campaign that started on August 18 when Steele's troops marched west from DeValls Bluff.

Abbreviations used

Military rank

• Maj. Gen. = Major General
• Brig. Gen. = Brigadier General
• Col. = Colonel
• Lieut. Col. = Lieutenant Colonel
• Maj. = Major
• Capt. = Captain
• 1st Lieut. = First Lieutenant

Other

• (k) = killed in action
• (w) = wounded
• (c) = captured

Artillery

• 10lb PR = 10-pounder Parrott rifle
• 12lb How = M1841 12-pounder howitzer
• 14lb JR = 14-pounder James rifle
• 3-in OR = 3-inch Ordnance rifle
• 6lb Gun = M1841 6-pounder field gun
• 6lb Rifle = M1841 6-pounder field gun (rifled)
• Mtn How = M1841 mountain howitzer

Union forces

Union Army: Maj. Gen. Frederick Steele

• Present aggregate (Aug. 18, 1863): 13,000, 57 guns (18 guns with Davidson), 14,500 including True's brigade.
• Present for duty (Sept. 10, 1863): 10,477
• Present aggregate (Aug. 18, 1863): 13,207, 49 guns
• Present for duty (Aug. 18, 1863): 4,652 cavalry, 4,493 infantry, 288 artillery, 9,433 total
• Casualties: 18 killed, 118 wounded, 1 missing
• Cavalry Escort:
  • Company D, 3rd Illinois Cavalry Regiment, 1st Lieut. James K. McLean
  • Kane County, Illinois Cavalry, 1st Lieut. Eben C. Litherland

Division! width=15%

Brigade	width=30%	Unit	width=15%	Commander
First (Cavalry) Division Brig. Gen. John W. Davidson 6,000 cavalry and 18 guns	First Brigade Col. Lewis Merrill	2nd Missouri Volunteer Cavalry Regiment (Merrill's Horse)	Maj. Garrison Harker
			Lieut. Col. John L. Chandler
			Col. Washington F. Geiger
	Second Brigade Col. John Montgomery Glover		Col. Dudley Wickersham Lieut. Col. James Stuart
			Lt. Col. Daniel Anderson Maj. Joseph W. Caldwell
			Lieut. Col. T. G. Black Capt. J. H. Reed
	Reserve Brigade Col. John. F. Ritter		Maj. Lothar Lippert
			Maj. George Duffield
			Capt. J. W. Fuller
		32nd Iowa Volunteer Infantry Regiment (mounted)	Lieut. Col. Edward H. Mix Maj. Gustavus A. Eberhard
	Artillery Capt. Julius L. Hadley	Battery K, 2nd Missouri Light Artillery (4 x 3-in OR, 2 x 12lb How)	1st Lieut. T. S. Clarkson
		Battery M, 2nd Missouri Light Artillery (4 x Mtn How)	Capt. Gustav Stange
		Howitzer Battery, 2d Missouri Cavalry	1st Lieut. G. F. Lovejoy (w)
		25th Ohio Battery (2 x 3-in OR, 4 x 6lb Rifle)	1st Lieut. E. B. Hubbard
Second Division Col. William E. McLean Col. Adolph Englemann	First Brigade Col. William H. Graves		Col. Daniel H. Brush
			Maj. Charles Stephani
			Col. Greenville M. Mitchell
			Lieut. Col. Simon P. Ohr
			Lieut. Col. Henry Yates
			Lieut. Col. Dwight May
	Second Brigade Col. Oliver Wood		Lieut. Col. Ezra M. Beardsley
			Lieut. Col. Samuel F. Cooper
			Col. Christopher C. Andrews
			Lieut. Col. Homer Thrall
			Col. Conrad Krez
Third Division Brig. Gen. Samuel Allen Rice	First Brigade Col. Charles W. Kittredge		Lieut. Col. John C. Major
			Lieut. Col. Francis M. Drake
			Col. William B. Mason
			Lieut. Col. Robert F. Patterson
			Lieut. Col. Cyrus H. Mackey
			Maj. Calvert C. White
Independent Cavalry	Independent Brigade Col. Powell Clayton		Lieut. Col. Thomas N. Pace
			Lieut. Col. Wilton A. Jenkins
Independent Infantry	Independent Brigade Col. James M. True		Col. Phineas Pease
			Lieut. Col. Stephen M. Meeker
			Lieut. Col. Samuel T. Wells
			Col. James Isham Gilbert
		Springfield Illinois Light Artillery (6 x 14lb JR)	Capt. Thomas F. Vaughn
Independent Artillery	Artillery Brigade Capt. Mortimer M. Haden	3rd Iowa Independent Battery Light Artillery (4 x 6lb Gun, 3 x 12lb How, 1 x 3-in OR, 1 x 10lb PR)	1st Lieut. Melvil C. Wright
		Battery K, 1st Missouri Light Artillery (4 x 10lb PR)	Capt. Stillman O. Fish
		5th Ohio Battery (2 x 6lb Gun, 2 x 14lb JR)	1st Lieut. John D. Burner
		11th Ohio Battery (2 x 6lb Gun, 2 x 12lb How, 1 x 6lb Rifle)	Capt. Frank C. Sands

Confederate forces

Confederate Army: Maj. Gen. Sterling Price

• On July 23, 1863, the department commander Lieut. Gen. Theophilus H. Holmes became ill and was superseded by Price.
• On September 6, 1863, Brig. Gen. Marmaduke mortally wounded Brig. Gen. Walker in a duel. Col. Dobbins assumed command of Walker's division.
• Marmaduke placed Dobbins under arrest on September 10 for disobedience of orders and command devolved upon Col. Newton. Price later suspended Dobbins's arrest.
• Present for duty: 7,749. About 6,500 were north of the Arkansas River and 1,250 south of the river.
• Aggregate present (September): 10,665, 32 guns. Present for duty: 8,532.
• Casualties: 12 killed, 34 wounded, 18 missing.

Division! width=15%

Brigade	width=30%	Unit	width=15%	Commander
Marmaduke's Cavalry Division Brig. Gen. John S. Marmaduke	Shelby's Brigade Lieut. Col. Benjamin F. Gordon		Lieut. Col. B. F. Gordon
			Col. Gideon W. Thompson
			Maj. Benjamin Elliott
		2nd Missouri Field Battery (2 x 6lb Gun, 2 x 10lb PR)	Capt. Joseph Bledsoe
	Marmaduke's Brigade Col. William L. Jeffers		Lieut. Col. S. J. Ward
			Maj. L. A. Campbell
			Lieut. Col. W. J. Preston
			Lieut. Col. M. L. Young
		Prairie Gun Battery, Missouri Artillery	1st Lieut. T. J. Williams
Walker's Cavalry Division Brig. Gen. Lucius M. Walker Col. Archibald S. Dobbins Col. Robert C. Newton	Dobbin's Brigade Col. A. S. Dobbins Col. R. C. Newton		Maj. S. Corley (k) Capt. M. M. Bateman
			Col. R. C. Newton, Maj. J. P. Bull
			Capt. C. B. Etter
	Carter's Brigade Col. George W. Carter	21st Texas Cavalry Regiment^[1]	Lieut. Col. Dewitt C. Giddings
			Maj. Charles L. Morgan
		Johnson's Spy Company, Texas Cavalry	Capt. Alf Johnson
		Denson's Company, Louisiana Cavalry	Capt. William B. Denson
			Capt. Joseph H. Pratt
Price's Division Brig. Gen. Daniel M. Frost	McRae's Brigade Brig. Gen. Dandridge McRae		Col. L. C. Gause
			Col. J. E. Glenn
			Col. R. A. Hart
			Capt. John G. Marshall
	Parsons's Brigade Brig. Gen. M. Monroe Parsons		Col. L. M. Lewis
			Col. S. P. Burns
			Col. J. D. White
			Col. A. C. Pickett
			Maj. L. A. Pindall
		3rd Missouri Field Battery (4 x 6lb Gun)	Capt. C. B. Tilden
	Fagan's Brigade Brig. Gen. James F. Fagan		Col. Alexander T. Hawthorn
			Col. W. H. Brooks
			Col. J. P. King
			Maj. T. H. Blacknall
			Capt. W. D. Blocker
	Clark's Brigade Col. John B. Clark Jr.		Col. Charles S. Mitchell
			Lieut. Col. M. W. Buster
			Lieut. Col. Richard H. Musser
		1st Missouri Field Battery (2 x 6lb Rifle, 2 x 6lb Gun)	Capt. S. T. Ruffner

See also

• List of orders of battle

Notes

Footnotes

Citations

References

• • Book: . Battles and Leaders of the Civil War . 3 . 1987 . 1883 . Castle . Secaucus, N.J. . 0-89009-571-X .
• Book: Dimitry . John . Harrell . John M. . Confederate Military History: Louisiana and Arkansas . 10 . 1899 . Atlanta, Ga. . Blue & Gray Press .
• Book: McGhee, James E. . Guide to Missouri Confederate Units, 1861-1865 . 2008 . University of Arkansas Press . Fayetteville, Ark. . 978-1-55728-870-7 .
• Web site: Swain . Craig . Summary Statement, 3rd Quarter 1863, Iowa's Batteries . To the Sound of the Guns . 2018a .
• Web site: Swain . Craig . Summary Statement, 3rd Quarter 1863, Ohio Independent Batteries, Part 1 . To the Sound of the Guns . 2018b .
• Web site: Swain . Craig . Summary Statement, 3rd Quarter 1863, Ohio Independent Batteries, Part 2 . To the Sound of the Guns . 2018c .
• Web site: Swain . Craig . Summary Statement, 4th Quarter 1863, 1st Missouri Artillery . To the Sound of the Guns . 2019a .
• Web site: Swain . Craig . Summary Statement, 4th Quarter 1863, 2nd Missouri Artillery . To the Sound of the Guns . 2019b .
• Web site: Swain . Craig . Summary Statement, December 31 1862, Independent Illinois Batteries and "Others" . To the Sound of the Guns . 2015 .
• Web site: . United States War Dept. . The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union And Confederate Armies. Series 1, Volume 22, In Two Parts. Part 1, Reports . 22 . 1888 . July 26, 2013 . University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History .

Notes and References

1. The 21st Texas Cavalry was picketing the Arkansas River and missed the fighting.