Late in 1862, as Union Gen. Ulysses S. Grant threatened Vicksburg, Mississippi, Confederate Gen. Braxton Bragg ordered Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest to sever Grant’s West Tennessee supply line from Columbus, Kentucky, along the Mobile and Ohio Railroad. Forrest led his cavalry brigade on a raid from December 15, 1862, to January 3, 1863, destroying tracks and bridges in West Tennessee. After crossing the Tennessee River at Clifton, his men defeated Union Col. Robert G. Ingersoll’s cavalry at Lexington, captured Trenton and Union City, and ranged briefly into Kentucky. On Christmas Day, Forrest led his brigade back into Tennessee, while Union Gen. Jeremiah C. Sullivan, headquartered in Jackson, sent brigades under Cols. Cyrus L. Dunham and John W. Fuller to pursue him. Forrest tried to elude the Federals by marching down back roads toward the Tennessee River, but they caught up with him at Parker’s Crossroads on December 31. His men first fought Dunham’s force to a standstill, then Fuller’s command appeared in the Confederate rear. Forrest ordered a breakout in each direction, and the counterattacks succeeded, allowing him and his men to cross the river again at Clifton on January 2, 1863. The successful raid contributed to Grant’s decision to move his supply base to Memphis.