Battle of Jenkins' Ferry

Battle of Jenkins' Ferry
Part of the American Civil War
DateApril 30, 1864 (160 years ago) (1864-04-30)
Location34°12′47.4″N 92°32′50.6″W / 34.213167°N 92.547389°W / 34.213167; -92.547389
Result Union victory
Belligerents
 United States (Union)  Confederate States
Commanders and leaders
United States Frederick Steele

Confederate States of America E. Kirby Smith

Units involved
Department of Arkansas Army of Arkansas
Strength
12,000 10,000
Casualties and losses
700 1,000
Jenkins' Ferry is located in Arkansas
Jenkins' Ferry
Jenkins' Ferry
Location in Arkansas

The Battle of Jenkins' Ferry, also known as the Engagement at Jenkins' Ferry, was fought on April 30, 1864, at Jenkins' Ferry, southwest of Little Rock (present-day Grant County, Arkansas), during the American Civil War. Although the battle ended with a Union victory, the Confederates saw it as a strategic success as they claimed to have prevented Frederick Steele from holding southwest Arkansas. Due to the chaotic nature of the battle, casualty figures vary.

Jenkins' Ferry was the decisive engagement of Steele's Camden Expedition (a part of the Red River Campaign) and E. Kirby Smith's last. As a result of the battle, U.S. forces could complete a retreat from a precarious position at Camden to their defenses at Little Rock. The battlefield has largely been preserved.