Island No. 63/Island No. 62/Old Town Bend

Island No. 63/Island No. 62/Old Town Bend. Mississippi River Walk. , A) Island No. 63 , Mile 638.0 AHP, Early in the U.S. Civil War, Island No. 63 was a favorite location for Confederate snipers who harassed Union gunboats. After one attack caused several casualties, Union transports landed infantry on both sides of the river at Island No. 63, burning crops and buildings in retaliation. A large wood yard operated by freed slaves was established on the island late in the war to provide firewood for Union steamboats. It was discovered that some of the former slaves were conspiring with Confederates and hiding explosives in the wood to disable Union ships. A garrison of Federal troops was placed on the Island to protect the fuel supply. , B) Island No. 62 , Mile 638.5 AHP, The navigation channel around Islands No. 62 and No. 63 was extremely hazardous in the early 1800s. Snags were numerous, and the river divided into several channels at low water. Henry Shreve's pioneer snag boat, Heliopolis, removed much of the debris in 1830, but sandbars continued to menace steamboat traffic. After the flood of 1858, the chute behind Island No. 62 filled up, and the island became attached to the Arkansas shore. Dikes constructed in the 1960s and 1970s have narrowed and stabilized the channel. , C) Old Town Bend , Mile 644.5 AHP, This bend and the oxbow lake to its northwest were named for the "Old Town" of the Arkansas Native Americans, which was located nearby. Spanish explorer, Hernando DeSoto, may have marched through this area in 1541. The Frenchmen, Jolliet and Marquette, visited the Arkansas tribe in this area in 1673, turning back upstream after they were informed of Spanish forces to, the south.