Grand Junction, named for the intersection of the Memphis and Charleston and Mississippi Central Railroads, held strategic importance for both Confederate and Union forces. After defeats at Shiloh and Corinth, Confederates tore up the tracks to delay the Federal pursuit, and Union Gen. William T. Sherman oversaw much of the repair work in mid-1862. Later, Union Gen. Ulysses S. Grant used the place as a staging ground for his Vicksburg campaign, storing 100,000 rations and basing 40,000 U.S. soldiers there. On December 22, 1862, two days after his raid on Grant's supply depot at Holly Springs, Mississippi, Confederate Gen. Earl Van Dorn's cavalry struck the Union garrison there, but Col. John McDermontt of the 15th Michigan Infantry counterattacked, and Van Dorn escaped while the town remained firmly under Union control. Thousands of refugee slaves, called contrabands, came there for protection and provisions, and although they hindered Union military activities, Grant observed that government orders barred expelling them and humanity forbade letting them starve, while men, women, and children could be employed in saving food crops. Grant appointed Chaplain John Eaton of the 27th Ohio Infantry to organize contraband camps and lead this humanitarian effort with army provisions and tents, and Eaton's plans later influenced the Freedman's Bureau approach to caring for contrabands as he continued the work after the war.