NOVEMBER 3, 1864:
The Battle of Johnsonville. Nathan Bedford
Forrest, his troopers, and his scratch navy, attack the Union supply depot and
Johnsonville, Tennessee. Forrest is forced to scuttle his “flagship” the C.S.S.
(lately U.S.S.) UNDINE ending his brief naval “career.” Other than that the
Johnsonville Raid is a magnificent success. Forrest reported only 2 men killed
and 9 wounded. He described the Union losses as 4 gunboats (including the
U.S.S. KEY WEST, which was sunk), 14 transports, 20 barges, 26 pieces of
artillery, $6,700,000 worth of property (ammunition, food, and supplies), and
150 prisoners. The supply depot was destroyed in a sheet of flame by his
artillery bombardment, and control of the Tennessee River became contested.
General George H. Thomas U.S.A.’s Army of The Cumberland, which had been
shadowing John Bell Hood, found its main supply source cut off. This slowed,
but ultimately did not stop Union actions in the Tennessee River region. As for
Forrest, he and his men set off a three week rampage through the area.
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