Fort Pillow, Battle of
Fort Pillow, Battle of (1864).By 1864, the captured Confederate earthwork Fort Pillow, located 40 miles above Memphis, Tennessee, on the Mississippi River, was garrisoned by 557 Union soldiers under Maj. Lionel F. Booth. Of these men, 262 belonged to the 11th U.S. Colored Troops and Battery F, 4th U.S. Colored Light Artillery. On 12 April, Confederate Maj. Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest ordered Brig. Gen. James R. Chalmers's 1,500 men to attack the fort.
Beginning at 5:30 A.M., Confederate sharpshooters located on hills above the fort opened a devastating fire, killing many soldiers, including Booth. Forrest arrived on the field at midmorning and directed the assault that gained part of the fort for the Confederates. By 3:30 P.M., Forrest sent a surrender demand to Maj. William F. Bradford, now in command of the Union force. When Bradford delayed, Forrest attacked,...
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