Camden Water Battle
Civil War
— 1864 —
In September 1864, Confederate troops in Arkansas under the command of Major General J.B. Magruder faced in the task of defending Camden against aggressive Union patrons in the area. Magruder recognized the need for the Construction on the Little Missouri and Ouachita Rivers. These fortifications would be occupied by Magruder’s Confederate forces and built by slaves from Texas.
Magruder’s forces were authorized to construct batteries and rifle pits along the west banks at Sandy Beach on the Ouachita River located to the southeast of Camden. These close range batteries were assigned to this area to preserve and protect the Camden waterfront against the Union aggressors from both North and South of Camden. The primary objective was to destroy all Union vessels coming up and down the Ouachita River. The guns in the water battery would have been situated to fire broadside at vessels and other targets on the river.
The ten batteries and rifle pits along the banks of the river were completed in November 1864 but never witnessed a shot fired in anger. The remnant fortifications on the river remain today as silent
this page online
The Camden Water Battery would never be tested under combat conditions. Many Union troops would be transferred east of the Mississippi River to take part in operations against the Confederate Troops in Alabama and elsewhere. After the collapse of Confederate Armies in the east, the major Confederate Armies in the Trans-Mississippi would themselves lay down their arms in June 1865.
Camden Historical Advisory Commission
Sponsored by
Camden A&P Commission
2007
Erected 2007 by Camden Historical Advisory Commission.
Topics. This memorial is listed in these topic lists: War, US Civil • Waterways & Vessels. A significant historical year for this entry is 1864.
Location. 33° 35.538′ N, 92° 49.294′ W. Marker is in Camden, Arkansas, in Ouachita County. Memorial is on Sandy Beach Road. Located in Sandy Beach Park. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Camden AR 71701, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Ouachita County Desert Storm Memorial (approx. ¾ mile away); Ecore A-Fabre or Fabre’s Bluff (approx. ¾ mile away); To Our Confederate Women (approx. ¾ mile away); Fort Lookout (approx. 0.8 miles away); Redoubt B
Credits. This page was last revised on August 14, 2017. It was originally submitted on August 12, 2017, by Karen Emerson-McPeak of Triune, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 425 times since then and 33 times this year. Photo 1. submitted on August 12, 2017, by Karen Emerson-McPeak of Triune, Tennessee. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.
Editor’s want-list for this marker. A wide view photo of the marker and the surrounding area together in context. • Can you help?
