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A Matter Of Marching, A Matter Of Supply: Politics And Logistics In Arkansas, 1863-1864, Alfred Hoyt Wallace

MSU Graduate Theses

In the spring of 1864, Major General Frederick Steele led his men out of Little Rock on orders to cooperate with Major General Nathaniel Banks's campaign up the Red River. The two forces never met as planned. Steele eventually captured Camden, Arkansas, but was obliged to retreat in the face of a determined Confederate force approaching him. The Camden Expedition, as this became known, has typically been cast as an expedition that failed due to a severe shortage of available food along the line of march. Upon closer investigation, however, particularly in the records of common soldiers, a different explanation …