West Tennessee Raids

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Forrest's Expedition into West Tennessee was a raid conducted by Confederate Brigadier General Nathan Bedford Forrest in Tennessee from December 1862 to January 1863, during the American Civil War. Forrest led an expedition of 1,800^[1] to 2,500^[2] men into Union-held West Tennessee to disrupt the supply lines of Major General Ulysses S. Grant, who was campaigning south along the Mississippi River toward Vicksburg.

The Confederate objective was to dismantle segments of the Mobile and Ohio Railroad between Columbus, Kentucky and Jackson, Tennessee in an attempt to slow Grant's advance.^[2] In meeting this objective the raid was largely successful, and Forrest returned with more men and supplies than he had started with. Ultimately, however, Grant's army was only marginally delayed, and Vicksburg fell to Union forces six months later. The West Tennessee raid consisted of three main actions at Lexington, Jackson and Parker's Cross Roads.^[3]