Battle of Mount Elba
{{short description|1864 battle of the American Civil War}}
{{Use American English|date=March 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2025}}
{{Infobox military conflict
| conflict = Battle of Mount Elba
| partof = the American Civil War
| date = {{Start date|1864|3|30}}
| place = Near Mount Elba, Arkansas
| coordinates = {{Coord|33.8509855|-92.232298|region:US-AR_type:event|display=inline,title}}
| result = Union victory
| combatant1 = {{flag|United States|1863}} (Union)
| combatant2 = {{flag|Confederate States|1863}}
| commander1 = {{flagicon|USA|1863}} Col. Powell Clayton
| commander2 = {{flagicon|CSA|army}} Brig. Gen. Thomas Dockery
| strength1 =
| strength2 =
| casualties1 = 4
| casualties2 = 130
| campaignbox = {{Campaignbox Red River Campaign}}
}}
The Battle of Mount Elba (March 30, 1864) was fought near Mount Elba, Arkansas, as part of the Camden Expedition, during the American Civil War.
Prelude
As a supporting effort to the Camden Expedition, to help fix Confederate forces at Monticello, Arkansas, and prevent them from opposing Steel's march to Camden, Arkansas, Colonel Powell Clayton conducted a raid on Longview, Arkansas, a port on the Saline, southwest of Monticello. Clayton's cavalry force crossed the Saline at Mount Elba, after sweeping aside a small guard force.Mark K. Christ, "Action at Mount Elba", Encyclopedia of Arkansas, The Central Arkansas Library System, Accessed 4 February 2016, http://www.encyclopediaofarkansas.net/encyclopedia/entry-detail.aspx?entryID=522
Clayton divided his forces and sent part to establish a blocking position to the west near Marks Mill. One hundred picked men under lieutenants Greathouse and Young were then dispatched to destroy the Confederate pontoon bridge at Longview, Arkansas.{{cite web |title=Mount Elba Battlefield |url=https://www.battlefields.org/visit/heritage-sites/mount-elba-battlefield |website=American Battlefield Trust |access-date=25 October 2021}} On March 29, the lieutenants surprised and captured approximately 250 soldiers belonging to Brigadier General Thomas P. Dockery's brigade at Longview.{{cite news |date=April 7, 1864 |title=The War in Arkansas.; The Rebels Defeated at Longview Destruction of a Bridge and Train Over Three Hundred Prisoners Captured Another Pitched Battle and the Rebels again Routed Operations of Gov. Murphy. Further Particulars. |newspaper=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1864/04/07/news/war-arkansas-rebels-defeated-longview-destruction-bridge-train-over-threehundred.html |accessdate=May 27, 2016}}
Battle
Confederate forces in the area were now alerted to the presence of Clayton's raiders and attempted to cut off Clayton's command by attacking their bridgehead at Mount Elba on March 30, 1864. Clayton was successful in re-crossing the Saline, defeating Confederate forces at the Battle of Mount Elba and returned to Pine Bluff, Arkansas, with over 260 prisoners.United States. War Department. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union And Confederate Armies. Series 1, Volume 34, In Four Parts. Part 1, Reports., Book, 1892; (http://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth146033/m1/808/?q=Mount Elba Long View: accessed May 27, 2016), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, http://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department, Denton, Texas. The Union's casualties throughout the expeditions were only two dead and eight missing.{{Cite book|last=Benson|first=Ned Harold|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=StVrvB2XnGQC&dq=Battle+of+Mount+Elba&pg=PA459|title=The Ancestors and Descendants of John Lewis Benson and His Sisters and Brother: A Genealogy and Social History|publisher=AuthorHouse|year=2011|isbn=978-1-4670-2442-6|location=Bloomington, IN|pages=459|language=en}} The first Union action of the Union expedition was a complete success, but the rest of the expedition would not go as planned.{{Citation needed|date=April 2022}}
References
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Category:Battles of the American Civil War in Arkansas
Category:Battles of the Trans-Mississippi Theater of the American Civil War