The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union And Confederate Armies. Series 1, Volume 34, In Four Parts. Part 1, Reports. Page: 673
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THE CAMDEN E EXPEDITION.
met with long and steel) hills of a sticky red clay, which clung to
the wheels with great tenacity, and to overcome it the animals had to
exert their utmost strength. So exhausted were the mules that they
were unable to make but a short march. The whole command en-
camped in and around the town of Rockport on the 20th. This town
lies on the east side of the Washita (Ouachita) River, on quite high
but gently rolling ground. It was almost entirely deserted. The
river here was a beautiful and clear stream, flowing over a fine grav-
elly bed. It was fordable opposite the town for single horsemen,
and was fordable 1- miles below the town for the whole army. I ex-
amined this ford very minutely and found its greatest depth, for a
distance of 150 feet in width, to be not more than 30 inches at that
time. This river rising very quickly, and affected by showers even,
it was decided to lay the bridge across the stream above the ford, so
as to be certain and at the same time to pass the infantry over. At
daylight the bridge was in position and its construction commenced.
The cavalry and train forded the river and took up the march for
Arkadelphia. The mountain howitzers and infantry crossed on the
bridge. It was thrown to an island, making its length 217 feet.
From the island to the west bank it was bridged by a temporary one
made by the pioneer company of the Third Division. The bridge
was dismantled, loaded on the wagons, and continued the day's
march in the rear of the train. Our march proceeded without delay
to Arkadelphia. We found Bayou Roche well named, for the ford
was quite deep and filled with bowlders of considerable size. Caddo
Creek was a beautiful, flowing stream of about 150 feet, where we
forded it. The pioneer company, by taking an old ferry-boat and
anchoring it below the ford where it was more narrow, extemporized
a bridge of about 75 feet in length, over which the infantry passed.
The whole command encamped in and around Arkadelphia on the
29th of March, where the general expected to make a junction with
General Thayer by the 1st of April.
Excepting continual skirmishing with the enemy by our advance
from the time we reached Benton until we arrived at Arkadelphia,
we had nothing todisturb us or our progress, save the natural obsta-
cles incident to bad roads and crossing of streams. Scouts and spies
had been sent in the direction that General Thayer was expected, but
we could hear nothing from him. This was explained afterward by
the fact that watt of forage and bad roads ha(d caused him to follow
another line of march, and in consequence a much longer one.
General Steele proposed to move his command on the 1st, on the
road to Washington as far as Spoonville, a distance of 12 miles. His
instructions were to go by the way of Camden and Arkadelphia.
From Arkadelphia to go to Camden were three traveled routes by
citizens-one to cross the Washita at that point and follow down
the east bank of the river and recross it in the vicinity of Camden;
another down the west bank of the river and cross the Little Mis-
souri near its mouth; and another, well known and most traveled,
which crosses the Little Missouri River at Tate's Ferry. Upon a
careful examination all were rejected-the first from plain military
motives; the second because the first 30 miles lay entirely in the allu-
vial bottom of the river, and its utter impracticability for a wagon
train like ours; and the third because of the crossing of the Terre
Noir Creek, the long bottom on the north side of the river at the
ferry with the high bluff on the south side, and the enemy expected
43 R R-VOL XXXIV, PT I673
CaP. XLVI.]
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The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union And Confederate Armies. Additions and Corrections to Series 1, Volume 34. (Pamphlet)
Errata sheets for the Records of the War of the Rebellion include additions and corrections to the text and the index for Series 1, Volume 34.
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United States. War Department. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union And Confederate Armies. Series 1, Volume 34, In Four Parts. Part 1, Reports., book, 1892; Washington D.C.. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth146033/m1/702/?q=African: accessed April 26, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.