Mulatto Bend/Springfield Bend/Profit Island

A group of Mulatto Freedmen of French dissent established a settlement here in the early 1800’s and the river pilots named it Mulatto Bend. Wilkinson Point at the crook of the bend suffered a major washout in 1950, and a more than 4 million cubic yards of riverbank slid into the water.

B. Springfield Bend , Mile 244.7 AHP

The Springfield Plantation Landing, on the east side of this bend, was the main supply depot for the Union Army’s siege against Port Hudson, eleven miles upriver. The rebels raided the Springfield bend Depot in the summer of 1863, routing the garrison and burning an estimated one million dollars in military supplies. Despite their efforts, Port Hudson surrendered a short time later.

C. Profit Island , Mile 249.5 AHP

One of the larger island in the modern river, Profit Island was formed from the Island No. 123 and 124 in the 1800’s. During the resettlement of Southern Native American Tribes in 1837, the steamer Monmouth collided with another vessel. The Monmouth was carrying 700 Creek Indians and when the boat broke apart over 400 Native Americans drown. During the U. S. Civil War, the Confederate’s mined the Profit Island Chute with a submerged bomb the hung from a line between the east bank and the island. It failed to expose when struck by the Union Ironclad, Essex, and the vessel’s crew removed it from the river and exploded it on the bank nearby.