Overview
The Battle of Hatchie’s Bridge took place in Hardeman and McNairy counties, Tennessee, on October 5, 1862. The engagement followed General Earl Van Dorn’s failed attempt to recapture Corinth, Mississippi, in the Second Battle of Corinth. After Union forces under General William S. Rosecrans drove the Confederates from Corinth on October 4, Van Dorn ordered his army to withdraw.
General Ulysses S. Grant sent forces under General Edward O.C. Ord and General Stephen A. Hurlbut to reinforce Rosecrans. Their forces united on October 5, and Ord assumed overall command. Grant ordered Ord to block Van Dorn’s escape route across the Hatchie River at Davis Bridge while Rosecrans pursued from Corinth.
Van Dorn ordered Confederate troops to defend Davis Bridge while he searched for another crossing. He found one at Crum’s Mill, south of the bridge. Ord’s soldiers attacked the front of the Confederate column and drove it back toward Davis Bridge. Ord suffered a wound during the fighting, and Hurlbut assumed command.
Union forces captured Davis Bridge and inflicted about 500 Confederate casualties while suffering about 400. However, most of Van Dorn’s army crossed at Crum’s Mill and escaped to Holly Springs, Mississippi. The battle ended as a Union victory, but the Federals missed an opportunity to destroy Van Dorn’s army and clear Grant’s eastern route toward Vicksburg.
Essential Facts
- Also Known As: Battle of Davis Bridge and Battle of Matamora.
- Date: October 5, 1862.
- Location: Hardeman and McNairy counties, Tennessee.
- Participants: The United States of America (USA) and the Confederate States of America (CSA).
- USA Commanders: Edward O.C. Ord and Stephen A. Hurlbut.
- CSA Commanders: Earl Van Dorn.
- Who Won: The United States won the Battle of Hatchie’s Bridge.
- Campaign: Iuka and Corinth Operations.
- Era: Civil War, July–December, 1862.
Statistics
United States of America
- Casualties: About 400 soldiers killed, wounded, captured, or missing.
- Forces Engaged: The 4th Division of the District of Jackson and a detachment from the Army of the Tennessee.
- Troop Strength: About 5,000 soldiers.
Confederate States of America
- Casualties: About 500 soldiers killed, wounded, captured, or missing.
- Forces Engaged: Army of West Tennessee.
- Troop Strength: About 1,000 soldiers.
Significance
The Battle of Hatchie’s Bridge is important to American History because Union forces defeated part of General Earl Van Dorn’s retreating army after the Second Battle of Corinth. The Federals captured Davis Bridge and caused more Confederate casualties than they suffered. However, most of Van Dorn’s army escaped across the Hatchie River at Crum’s Mill. This escape made the battle a lost opportunity for the Union. Had Union forces trapped Van Dorn, General Ulysses S. Grant would have had a clear path toward Vicksburg from the east. Instead, Van Dorn’s army continued to block the route, and Grant needed nine more months and considerable effort to capture Vicksburg and secure the Mississippi River.
History
Bright Union Prospects
Union prospects were bright for a successful end of the American Civil War in the early part of 1862. In the East, Major General George McClellan’s Army of the Potomac (USA) had advanced up the Virginia Peninsula and was threatening the Confederate capital at Richmond by early June.
West of the Appalachians, Union victories at Middle Creek (January 10, 1862) and Mill Springs (January 19, 1862) forced Confederate forces out of eastern Kentucky and back south into Tennessee.
In the Mississippi Valley, the Union capture of Fort Donelson (February 11–16, 1862) and Fort Henry (February 6, 1862) opened the door for a federal invasion that culminated with a bloody victory at the Battle of Shiloh (April 6–7, 1862) and the capture of the vital railroad center at Corinth, Mississippi (May 30, 1862). One week later, Flag Officer David G. Farragut’s Union fleet captured the city of New Orleans.
Tide Reversed
By late summer, the tide had reversed. General Joseph Johnston, the Confederate commander of the Army of Northern Virginia (CSA), was wounded at the Battle of Seven Pines (May 31–June 1, 1862). Confederate President Jefferson Davis replaced Johnston with the more aggressive General Robert E. Lee. Lee immediately launched an offensive against McClellan that drove the Army of the Potomac off of the Virginia Peninsula by August. By September, Lee’s army was in Maryland, endangering the nation’s capital. In the near West, Confederate General Braxton Bragg threatened Union control of Kentucky by launching his Heartland Campaign in August. Only in the Mississippi Valley did Union prospects remain bright.
Federal Changes in Military Leadership
Two months after the capture of Corinth, President Abraham Lincoln summoned Major General Henry Halleck to Washington to assume command of all federal armies. Before departing, Halleck dismantled the imposing army captured at Corinth. Halleck dispatched Major General Don Carlos Buell’s Army of the Ohio (USA) to Nashville, Tennessee, where it operated as a separate command. Halleck’s second-in-charge during the Corinth operations, Major General Ulysses S. Grant, resumed his command of the Army of the Tennessee (USA). Grant also oversaw Major General William S. Rosecrans’ Army of the Mississippi (USA). In total, Grant commanded roughly 100,000 soldiers near Corinth.
Confederate Heartland Campaign
On the Confederate side, General P.G.T. Beauregard’s evacuation of Corinth without a fight displeased President Jefferson Davis. On June 17, Davis relieved Beauregard of his command and replaced him with General Braxton Bragg. Later that month, Bragg launched his Confederate Heartland Campaign, hoping to restore Kentucky to the Confederacy. When Bragg moved north, he ordered Major General Sterling Price to leave Tupelo, Mississippi, and to bring his 3,000-man Army of the West (CSA) north to join Bragg in Tennessee.
Confederates Occupy Iuka
By September 13, 1862, Price had reached the town of Iuka, Mississippi, roughly 20 miles east of Corinth. As Price’s army advanced on the Union garrison posted at Iuka, the Union commander, Colonel Robert C. Murphy, set fire to the Union supplies, abandoned his post, and marched his 2,000-man brigade back to Corinth. Price then settled in at Iuka to await Major General Earl Van Dorn’s 7,000-man Army of West Tennessee (CSA).
Federals Dislodge Confederates from Iuka
The two Confederate generals intended to merge their armies and attack Grant’s supply and communication lines as they moved north to join Bragg. Ever the aggressor, Grant had no intention to sit by idly and let the two Confederate armies unite. Instead, he dispatched two Federal forces toward Iuka to trap Price in a pincer movement and destroy his army. Although the attack was poorly coordinated, Rosecrans’ Army of the Mississippi defeated Price at the Battle of Iuka on September 19. The victory proved hollow, however, because the Confederate army escaped the Union trap.
Price and Van Dorn Unite
After his escape at Iuka, Price marched his army west to Ripley, Mississippi, and successfully merged forces with Van Dorn’s army on September 28, 1862. With 22,000 soldiers under his command, Van Dorn resolved to recapture Corinth for the Confederacy before moving north into Middle Tennessee to support Bragg.
Van Dorn Attacks Corinth
Meanwhile, concerns about Bragg’s actions in Tennessee prompted Grant to move his headquarters to Jackson, Tennessee, leaving Rosecrans in command of the 15,000 Union soldiers garrisoned at Corinth. Despite imposing Union defenses, Van Dorn believed that his numerical superiority gave him an opportunity to recapture Corinth.
On October 3, Van Dorn’s troops mounted a spirited attack against the outer federal fortifications in the Second Battle of Corinth, forcing the Yankees back toward the center of the city. As nightfall approached, Van Dorn called off the assault, confident that he could finish the job in the morning. Rosecrans regrouped his soldiers overnight and drove the Confederates back the next day. Realizing that the tide had turned, Van Dorn halted the assault and withdrew. Because the fighting had exhausted his soldiers, Rosecrans chose not to pursue the Confederates until the next day.
Ord Pursues Van Dorn
On the same day that Van Dorn withdrew (October 4), Grant dispatched two separate detachments, led by Major General Edward O.C. Ord and Major General Stephen A. Hurlbut, to reinforce Rosecrans. On the morning of October 5, the two forces united, with Ord assuming overall command. Hoping to catch Van Dorn’s retreating forces in a pincer between Ord and Rosecrans, Grant ordered Ord to cut off the Confederate escape route across the Hatchie River at Davis Bridge.
October 5, 1862 Clash Along Hatchie River
Sensing the gravity of his situation, Van Dorn ordered his men to hold at Davis Bridge while he searched for an alternate route across the river. He found one at Crum’s Mill to the south. Ord’s forces engaged the lead elements of the Confederate force and drove them back to Davis Bridge. During the action, Ord was wounded, and Hurlbut assumed command. Union forces eventually drove the Confederates across Davis Bridge, but not before the bulk of Van Dorn’s army crossed the river at Crum’s Mill and escaped back to Holly Springs, Mississippi.
Aftermath
Technically, the Battle of Hatchie Bridge was a Union victory. Union forces captured Davis Bridge, and the Confederates suffered more casualties. The Confederacy lost about 500 soldiers (killed, wounded, and missing/captured) compared roughly 400 for the Union.
Nevertheless, the battle was a lost opportunity for the North. Had Union forces trapped Van Dorn’s army, Grant would have had a clear path to Vicksburg from the east. As it was, Van Dorn’s army blocked the way, and it took Grant nine more months and considerable effort to capture the Confederate stronghold and secure control of the Mississippi River.
Timeline
- 1862, January 10 — Union forces won the Battle of Middle Creek and helped force Confederate troops out of eastern Kentucky.
- 1862, January 19 — Union forces won the Battle of Mill Springs and pushed Confederate forces toward Tennessee.
- 1862, February 6 — Union forces won the Battle of Fort Henry.
- 1862, February 11–16 — Union forces won the Battle of Fort Donelson.
- 1862, April 6-7 — Union forces won the Battle of Shiloh.
- 1862, May 30— Union forces captured the railroad center at Corinth, Mississippi.
- 1862, May 31-June 1 — Joseph Johnston suffered a wound at the Battle of Seven Pines.
- 1862, June 17 — Confederate President Jefferson Davis removed P.G.T. Beauregard from command and replaced him with Braxton Bragg.
- 1862, June — Bragg launched the Confederate Heartland Campaign.
- 1862, August — Robert E. Lee drove the Army of the Potomac from the Virginia Peninsula.
- 1862, August — Bragg threatened Union control of Kentucky.
- 1862, September 13 — Sterling Price reached Iuka, and Robert C. Murphy abandoned the Union supply depot.
- 1862, September 18 — Edward Ord reached the area near Iuka ahead of William S. Rosecrans.
- 1862, September 19–20 — Union forces won the Battle of Iuka.
- 1862, September 28 — Price and Earl Van Dorn united their forces to form the Army of West Tennessee.
- 1862, October 3–4 — Union forces won the Second Battle of Corinth.
- 1862, October 4 — Grant sent forces under Edward O.C. Ord and Stephen A. Hurlbut to reinforce Rosecrans.
- 1862, October 5
- Ord and Hurlbut united their forces, and Ord assumed overall command.
- Union troops attacked Van Dorn’s retreating Confederates near Davis Bridge.
- Ord suffered a wound, and Hurlbut assumed command.
- Union forces captured Davis Bridge, but most of Van Dorn’s army escaped across the Hatchie River at Crum’s Mill.
AP US History
Definition
Battle of Hatchie’s Bridge (1862) — The Battle of Hatchie’s Bridge was a Union victory fought in Tennessee on October 5, 1862. General Ulysses S. Grant ordered General Edward O.C. Ord to block General Earl Van Dorn’s retreat at Davis Bridge. Union troops drove the Confederates toward the river, Ord suffered a wound, and General Stephen A. Hurlbut assumed command. Although the Federals captured Davis Bridge, most of Van Dorn’s army escaped across the Hatchie River at Crum’s Mill.
Alignment
The Battle of Hatchie’s Bridge is part of the following AP US History sections:
