Overview
After crossing the Mississippi River at Bruinsburg on April 30, 1863, Major General Ulysses S. Grant moved inland during his campaign to capture Vicksburg, Mississippi. Union forces defeated Confederate troops at the Battle of Port Gibson (May 1, 1863). Afterward, Grant had a decision to make. He could march directly against Vicksburg or turn east toward Jackson, Mississippi, the state capital. Because Confederate forces at Jackson could threaten his rear, Grant decided to turn east.
On May 7, Grant’s army, which had grown to about 45,000 men, marched northeast in three columns. Confederate leaders responded by sending General Joseph E. Johnston to Mississippi to take command. Meanwhile, General John Gregg moved his brigade from Jackson to Raymond. On May 12, Gregg mistakenly believed he faced only a Union brigade and fought Major General James B. McPherson’s much larger 17th Corps at the Battle of Raymond. The Union victory forced Gregg back to Jackson.
Johnston arrived in Jackson on May 13 and determined that he could not defend the city against Grant’s approaching army. He ordered an evacuation and directed Gregg to delay the Federals.
On May 14, McPherson advanced toward Jackson from the northwest. After a heavy rainstorm delayed his troops, they attacked and overwhelmed about 900 Confederate defenders near the O.P. Wright farm. At the same time, General William T. Sherman approached from the southwest with about 16,000 soldiers. Confederate troops temporarily slowed Sherman near Lynch Creek, but Union artillery forced them to retreat.
Once Johnston completed the evacuation, Gregg withdrew. Union troops entered Jackson and raised the United States flag over the state capitol. Grant left on May 15 after ordering Sherman to destroy resources that could aid the Confederacy. Union troops damaged railroads, telegraph lines, factories, and machine shops before leaving on May 16. The victory helped isolate Confederate forces at Vicksburg and contributed to Grant’s subsequent victories at Champion Hill and Big Black River Bridge.
Essential Facts
- Date: May 14, 1863.
- Location: Hinds County and Jackson County.
- Participants: The United States of America (USA) and the Confederate States of America (CSA).
- USA Commanders: Ulysses S. Grant, William T. Sherman, James Birdseye McPherson.
- CSA Commanders: Joseph E. Johnston, John Gregg.
- Who Won: The United States won the Battle of Jackson.
- Campaign: Vicksburg Campaign.
- Era: Civil War, January–June, 1863.
Statistics
United States of America
- Casualties: 300, including 42 killed, 251 wounded, and 7 missing.
- Forces Engaged: Army of the Tennessee, 15th and 17th Corps.
- Troop Strength: 28,000.
Confederate States of America
- Casualties: 845 killed, wounded, and missing.
- Forces Engaged: Jackson Garrison.
- Troop Strength: 6,000.
Significance
The Battle of Jackson is important to American History because the outcome strengthened Ulysses S. Grant’s position during the Vicksburg Campaign. By capturing Jackson, Union forces prevented Joseph E. Johnston from joining his army with John C. Pemberton’s forces near Vicksburg. Grant also ordered the destruction of railroads, telegraph lines, factories, and machine shops that could support the Confederate war effort.
History
Grant Crosses the Mississippi
On April 29, 1863, Major General Ulysses S. Grant launched his spring offensive aimed at capturing Vicksburg, the “Gibraltar of the Mississippi.” With the aid of Admiral Porter’s gunboats, Grant attempted to move Major General John A. McClernand’s 13th Army Corps across the Mississippi River at Grand Gulf, below Vicksburg. When the Confederate resistance proved too formidable, Grant bypassed the Confederate works and moved the crossing nine miles farther down the river. On the morning of April 30, 1863, roughly 23,000 Union soldiers disembarked from barges at Bruinsburg, Mississippi, during the largest amphibious offensive in American history prior to the Invasion of Normandy, France, during World War II.
Federals Nearly Unchallenged
Despite the great number of Federals involved, the Confederate forces in the area were still larger. Lieutenant General John C. Pemberton, the commander of Confederate troops in and around Vicksburg, had roughly 30,000 soldiers at his disposal.
Fortunately for Grant, Pemberton took his orders to defend Vicksburg at all costs literally. Rather than moving forward to stem the Union invasion force at Bruinsburg, where it was most vulnerable, Pemberton kept most of his troops in garrison at Vicksburg. As a result, the landing went unchallenged. 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.
Battle of Port Gibson
As the Union forces came ashore, they secured a beachhead and began marching toward Port Gibson, twenty miles to the east. The next day, the Federals defeated Bowen’s outnumbered Confederates at the Battle of Port Gibson (May 1, 1863).
Grant’s Options
After establishing his presence in Mississippi, Grant had three options.
- He could move directly north and assault Vicksburg—his primary target. To do so, however, would expose his army to attack from the rear by the roughly 6,000 Confederate forces garrisoned at Jackson, Mississippi, fifty miles to the east of Vicksburg.
- Alternatively, Grant could turn and face the Confederates at Jackson, commanded by Brigadier General John Gregg, and then assault Vicksburg.
- Finally, Grant could follow his original orders and march his army south to combine with General Nathaniel P. Banks’ Army of the Gulf, capture the river town of Port Hudson, and then return to assault Vicksburg.
Grant Focuses on Jackson
If Grant merged forces with the Army of the Gulf, he would be under Banks’ command because of seniority—a situation that Grant probably did not find appetizing. When Banks informed Grant that he was not ready to assault Port Hudson, Grant focused on Jackson. On May 7, 1863, Grant’s force, which by then had swelled to 45,000 soldiers, began marching northeast toward the state capital in three columns, with each column comprising one corps.
Confederates React
When Grant moved toward Jackson, Confederate Secretary of War James A. Seddon telegraphed General Joseph E. Johnston, commander of the Department of the West, to “Proceed at once to Mississippi and take chief command of the forces, giving to those in the field, as far as practicable, the encouragement and benefit of your personal direction.”
On May 10, 1863, Pemberton ordered Gregg to march his brigade of 3,000 to 4,000 Confederate soldiers from Jackson to Raymond. Gregg’s men arrived in Raymond on the afternoon of May 11 and spent the night preparing for battle the next day.
Battle of Raymond
On the morning of May 12, Confederate scouts erroneously reported to Gregg that a federal brigade of about 2,500 to 3,000 soldiers was moving toward Raymond. Believing that the odds were fairly even, Gregg decided to stand and fight. Unfortunately for Gregg, his scouts had seen only the lead brigade of Grant’s army. Unbeknownst to Gregg, he was about to send his brigade into battle against an entire Union corps numbering 12,000 Union soldiers. The results were predictable. The Union victory at the Battle of Raymond forced Gregg’s brigade to retreat to Jackson.
Confederates Evacuate Jackson
General Johnston arrived in Jackson on May 13, 1863, and witnessed the arrival of Gregg’s retreating troops. Quickly determining that he stood no chance to halt Grant’s approaching juggernaut, Johnston immediately ordered the evacuation of Jackson. Johnston ordered Gregg’s brigade to hold off the Federals until he could complete the withdrawal.
Federals Overwhelm Opponents
With only 6,000 troops at his disposal, Gregg ordered the deployment of 900 men to the O. P. Wright farm, three miles northwest of Jackson. Gregg directed them to delay the advance of Major General James B. McPherson’s 17th Army Corps, numbering 12,000 Bluecoats, which was approaching from the northwest. As McPherson’s soldiers approached the farm at 10 a.m. on May 14, 1863, a cloudburst impeded their progress. Following an hour-long delay, the Federals stormed forward at 11 a.m. and quickly overpowered their opponent in an engagement that featured intense close-quarter fighting.
Sherman Approaches from the Southwest
Meanwhile, unbeknownst to Gregg, Major General William T. Sherman’s 15th Army Corps, numbering 16,000 soldiers, was also marching toward Jackson from the southwest. When Gregg learned of Sherman’s advance, he quickly deployed a force of roughly 1,000 Confederates along Lynch Creek outside of the city, hoping to slow the Federals.
Confederate artillerists arrived in time to establish a temporary battery from which to shell their enemy. Once the Confederate barrage began, Sherman called his corps’ more imposing ordnance forward and forced the Confederates to retreat, leaving the bridge across swollen Lynch Creek intact. Sherman’s soldiers quickly poured across the bridge, chasing their enemy through woods on the other side. When the Confederates emerged from the opposite side of the woods, Confederate artillerymen in Jackson temporarily halted the Federals.
Federals Occupy Jackson
As the Federals pondered their next move, Johnston informed Gregg that the evacuation of Jackson was completed and that he too should abandon the city. Gregg left behind a small contingent of militia and civilian volunteers to man the heavy guns as his garrison escaped. Sherman’s soldiers quickly dispatched the remaining defenders and raised the Stars and Stripes over the Mississippi state capitol building.
Aftermath of the Battle
The Federals did not tarry long in Jackson. Grant left on May 15 after ordering Sherman to destroy anything that might benefit the Confederacy. Sherman’s men severed telegraph lines, destroyed the railroad to Vicksburg, and torched the city’s factories and machine shops before departing on May 16. The Confederates reoccupied what the Federals left intact that evening.
Grant’s victory at the Battle of Jackson and the subsequent destruction of the city’s infrastructure impeded Johnston’s ability to unite his forces with Pemberton, now isolated at Vicksburg, or to come to Pemberton’s aid. 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. After a prolonged siege of Vicksburg, Grant eventually forced Pemberton to surrender the Gibraltar of the Mississippi on July 4, 1863.
Confederate casualties in the Battle of Jackson were 845 (killed, wounded, and missing). Union casualties totaled 300 (42 killed, 251 wounded, and 7 missing).
Timeline
- 1862, July — President Abraham Lincoln called Henry Halleck to Washington, leaving Ulysses S. Grant in charge of operations in the Western Theater.
- 1862, December — Grant divided the Army of the Tennessee and launched his first attempt to capture Vicksburg.
- 1862, May 18 — Admiral David Farragut captured New Orleans, cutting off a major Confederate connection to the Gulf of Mexico.
- 1862, June — Union forces captured Memphis, Tennessee, strengthening Federal control of the Mississippi River.
- 1862, December 26–29 — Confederate forces won the Battle of Chickasaw Bayou.
- 1963, January 9–11 — Union forces won the Battle of Arkansas Post.
- 1863, March 11–18 — Confederate forces won the Battle of Fort Pemberton.
- 1863, March 29 — Grant ordered his troops to construct bridges and roads and drain bayous along the Louisiana side of the Mississippi River.
- 1863, April — Grant’s men completed a route through Louisiana that allowed the Army of the Tennessee to move south of Vicksburg.
- 1863, April 16 — David Dixon Porter led seven gunboats and three supply vessels past the Confederate batteries at Vicksburg.
- 1863, April 22 — Six additional Union vessels passed Vicksburg.
- 1863, April 29 — Confederate forces won the Battle of Grand Gulf.
- 1863, April 30 — Roughly 23,000 Union soldiers crossed the Mississippi River and landed at Bruinsburg.
- 1863, May 1 — Union forces won the Battle of Port Gibson.
- 1863, May 7 — Grant’s army of roughly 45,000 soldiers moved northeast toward Jackson in three columns..
- 1863, May 9 — Confederate Secretary of War James A. Seddon ordered Joseph E. Johnston to travel to Mississippi and take command.
- 1863, May 10 — John C. Pemberton ordered John Gregg to move his brigade from Jackson to Raymond.
- 1863, May 11 — Gregg’s brigade arrived at Raymond and prepared for battle.
- 1863, May 12 — Union forces won the Battle of Raymond.
- 1863, May 13 — Johnston arrived in Jackson and ordered Confederate forces to evacuate the city.
- 1863, May 14
- McPherson’s troops overwhelmed Confederate defenders northwest of Jackson after a rainstorm delayed their advance.
- Sherman’s 15th Corps advanced from the southwest and forced Confederate troops to retreat from Lynch Creek.
- Johnston completed the evacuation of Jackson, and Union forces occupied the city.
- 1863, May 15 — Grant left Jackson after ordering Sherman to destroy resources that could aid the Confederacy.
- 1863, May 16 — Sherman’s troops left Jackson after destroying railroads, telegraph lines, factories, and machine shops.
AP US History
Definition
Battle of Jackson (1863) — The Battle of Jackson was a Union victory fought on May 14, 1863, during the Vicksburg Campaign. After winning at Raymond, Ulysses S. Grant advanced on Jackson from two directions. Joseph E. Johnston ordered the city evacuated, while John Gregg delayed the Union advance. James B. McPherson overwhelmed Confederate defenders northwest of Jackson, and William T. Sherman crossed Lynch Creek from the southwest. Union forces occupied the city and destroyed Confederate infrastructure before advancing toward Vicksburg.
Alignment
The Battle of Jackson is part of the following AP US History sections:
