Battle of Helena

Confederate General Theophilus Holmes sought to retake Helena, a point of Union control in Arkansas, but his attack ended in decisive Union victory. Before dawn on Independence Day, a signal gun at Fort Curtis alerted the town that Confederate forces were advancing against strong defenses that included Fort Curtis, Batteries A, B, C, and D on Crowley's Ridge, and the gunboat U.S.S. Tyler on the Mississippi River. Holmes ordered an attack at daylight, and at first light General James F. Fagan and General John S. Marmaduke began their assaults. Fagan's Arkansas Brigade struggled up the ridge toward Battery D, but felled trees, heat, and fierce Union resistance stalled the attack by midmorning. Marmaduke's artillery struck the Federal line while his men attacked Battery A, yet difficult terrain and stubborn Union defense stopped that effort as well. Only after those failures did General Sterling Price attack Battery C. Fort Curtis and the Tyler repulsed Price's Confederates twice, but after three costly assaults they captured Battery C. Then, under fire from Battery B and the U.S.S. Tyler, Confederate infantry charged down the slope and attacked Fort Curtis, where the effort collapsed. Miscommunication, lack of information, and determined Union resistance brought the Confederate assault to defeat, and by noon the Confederates were retreating.

Helena-West Helena, Arkansas · United States