DeValls Bluff was one of the busiest military points in Arkansas during the Civil War, with large numbers of Union troops passing through, occupying the town after September 1863, serving garrison duty there, or using it as a base for raids and expeditions into other parts of Arkansas and Missouri. Confederate use of DeValls Bluff is less fully documented, but many regiments likely passed through in 1861 and 1862 on their way east of the Mississippi River, and as many as 6,000 Confederate troops assembled around the town in June and July 1862 to oppose Union forces moving up the White River. Before it became a permanent strategic Union base, several Texas units also occupied the town. Individuals and units tied to DeValls Bluff included Howell “Doc” Rayburn of the 12th Texas Cavalry, who remained in the area and led guerrilla operations after his regiment left; Union soldiers from numerous regiments from states including Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, and Wisconsin; U.S. Regulars; and U.S. Colored Troops. Among those specifically connected with the town were Private John Graff of the 77th Ohio Infantry Regiment, Benjamin Fullager of the 3rd Wisconsin Cavalry Regiment, Lieutenant George Hickenloper of the 36th Iowa Infantry Regiment, Captain Jeremiah Boatman of the 54th Illinois Infantry Regiment, Captain Charles T. Scammon of the 9th Illinois Cavalry Regiment, Captain Joseph Lane of the 43rd Indiana Infantry Regiment, Christopher Columbus Andrews of the 3rd Minnesota Infantry Regiment, and Sergeant L. Smith Cogswell of the 18th Illinois Infantry Regiment.