Forrest's Opening Move

With Union Gen. William T. Sherman’s army holding Atlanta and preparing to strike deeper into the Confederacy, Confederate Gen. Nathan Bedford B. Forrest moved in November 1864 to cut Sherman’s supplies by raiding Johnsonville, a vital link in the Union supply chain. Forrest’s Navy blockaded the Tennessee River between Fort Heiman and Paris Landing, and in two days his force burned two supply boats and captured a gunboat and a supply boat. On November 2, 1864, Forrest sent his makeshift two-ship navy, the armed supply boat Venus and the gunboat Undine, toward Johnsonville. Two Union gunboats attacked and recaptured the Venus, and a second naval battle the next day ended the Undine. After losing his fleet, Forrest blockaded the river again, bottling up the Union gunboats at Johnsonville and preventing gunboats from Paducah from aiding them.

Tennessee · United States