Fort Jefferson Union Supply Base
Ballard County, Ballard County, Kentucky
Marker Inscription
Union Supply Base. One of first Kentucky positions, Fort Jefferson, occupied by Union troops after Confederate seizure of Columbus, Sept. 1861. From this base, General Ulysses S. Grant directed demonstration against Columbus, Jan. 1862. Troops from here joined in capturing Ft. Henry, Feb. 1862. One of four river ports in area used as Union supply bases for operations in the western theater.
Erected by Kentucky Historical Society
The Story
After Confederate forces seized Columbus in September 1861, Union troops occupied nearby Fort Jefferson, one of the first Kentucky positions held for the Union. From this base along the Mississippi, General Ulysses S. Grant directed a demonstration against Columbus in January 1862, and troops staged here helped capture Fort Henry the following month. It was one of four area river ports serving as Union supply bases for the war's western theater.
Why it matters
These river bases fueled Grant's early victories that cracked open the western Confederacy, launching the campaigns that would carry him to national command.
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Related people
- · Ulysses S. Grant
Related events
- · Capture of Fort Henry
Themes & tags
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