Forrest's Bivouac
McCracken County, McCracken County, Kentucky
Marker Inscription
Forrest's Bivouac. Gen. Nathan B. Forrest and his CSA troops bivouacked one mile southwest of this spot after Battle of Paducah, March 25, 1864. Forrest moved to Mayfield next day where he paroled his men in order that they could visit their homes in western Kentucky and Tennessee. After three-day furlough troops joined Forrest at Trenton, Tennessee, without loss of a man.
Erected by Kentucky Historical Society
The Story
After the Battle of Paducah on March 25, 1864, Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest and his cavalry bivouacked about a mile southwest of this spot. The next day Forrest moved to Mayfield and paroled his men on a three-day furlough so they could visit their western Kentucky and Tennessee homes; every soldier rejoined him afterward at Trenton, Tennessee.
Why it matters
It marks a moment in Forrest's 1864 raids, when hard-riding Confederate cavalry carried the war deep into the Kentucky borderland.
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Related people
- · Nathan Bedford Forrest
Related events
- · Battle of Paducah
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Forrest's Raid on Paducah
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On March 25, 1864, Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest raided Paducah with Kentucky and Tennessee brigades, but Union Fort Anderson held with the aid of gunboats on the Ohio. Forrest's men captured warehouse guards, burned part of the town, and carried off supplies as they withdrew. When a Union newspaper boasted that Forrest had missed a stock of horses, he sent General Abe Buford back to seize them—a stinging coda to the raid.
The Confederate Flag of Welcome
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