Forrest's Opening Move

Forrest's Opening Move (HM1EVQ)

Location: New Johnsonville, TN 37134 Humphreys County
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Country: United States of America
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N 36° 3.636', W 87° 57.6'

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Inscription

The Battle of Johnsonville

— November 4, 1864 —

Union Gen. William T. Sherman's army held Atlanta and was poised to strike deeper into the Confederacy. Confederate Gen. Nathan Bedford B. Forrest was determined to cut off Sherman's supplies and cripple the Union campaign. In November 1864, Forrest launched a raid at a vital link in the Union chain of supply—Johnsonville.

Forrest's Navy
Forrest blockaded the Tennessee River between Fort Heiman and Paris Landing. In two days, Forrest's force burned two supply boats and captured a gunboat and a supply boat.

On November 2, 1864, Forrest moved his makeshift two-ship navy—the now armed supply boat Venus and the gunboat Undine—toward Johnsonville. Two Union gunboats attacked, recapturing the Venus. A second naval battle the next day brought an end to the Undine.

His fleet lost, Forrest again blockaded the river. He bottled up the Union gunboats at Johnsonville and prevented gunboats from Paducah from aiding their comrades.

"That devil Forrest was down about Johnsonville, making havoc with the gunboats and transports." Gen. William T. Sherman.

(captions)
(upper right) Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest, C.S.A Alabama Department of Archives and Library
(lower left) Forrest leads his cavalry along the river bank as the Venus cruises toward Johnsonville in The Horse Marines by John Paul Strain.
(lower right) Gen. William T. Sherman, U.S.A. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division
Details
HM NumberHM1EVQ
Tags
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Placed ByTennessee State Parks
Marker ConditionNo reports yet
Date Added Friday, September 5th, 2014 at 11:03am PDT -07:00
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Locationbig map
UTM (WGS84 Datum)16S E 413542 N 3991096
Decimal Degrees36.06060000, -87.96000000
Degrees and Decimal MinutesN 36° 3.636', W 87° 57.6'
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds36° 3' 38.16" N, 87° 57' 36.00" W
Driving DirectionsGoogle Maps
Area Code(s)931
Closest Postal AddressAt or near 300-398 Old Johnsonville Rd, New Johnsonville TN 37134, US
Alternative Maps Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap

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