Fort Pillow recruited many African American troops for the Union cause. In short, Forrest surrounded Fort Pillow and demanded its surrender. General Bradford, commander of the fort, replied: “My name is not Hawkins,” alluding to the surrender of Colonel Hawkins at Union City two weeks earlier. He continues, “General; I will not surrender.” Forrest then gave the order of an all out assault.
With the lingering embarrassment from the Paducah raid, Forrest’s men produced a deadly onslaught of vengefulness. General William T. Sherman, (not present at the battle) said: “Forrest’s men acted like a set of barbarians, shooting down the helpless negro garrison after the fort was in their possession.” In his official report Forrest said:
The river was dyed with the blood of the slaughtered for two hundred yards. The approximate loss was upward of five hundred killed, but few of the officers escaping. My loss was about twenty killed. It is hoped that these facts will demonstrate to the Northern people that negro soldiers cannot cope with Southerners.
From the first to the last shot, The Battle of Paducah lasted twelve hours. The total Union dead totaled 46 to 50. The total Confederate dead totaled 14 to 25. These numbers are officially reported in the battle records, but are thought to be much lower than actual. Both sides wanted to claim victory, therefore the death tolls were probably understated.
In summary, March 25, 1864 will probably never be remembered in many text books. Today there is no trace of the battle and those who died there. There is a plaque in the sidewalk where the fort stood so diligently. There are a few markers that the citizens of Paducah drive by, most without even knowing what they say. If one was to walk around the downtown area today and ask people if they knew the historical significance of their town, few would know. Few know, that had the Battle of Paducah not occurred, many history books would be changed forever. The Massacre at Fort Pillow would be known as, “ The Battle of Fort Pillow.” All of this, stimming from a battle that many historians consider, “a skirmish.”
Bibliography
Jerry Wooten, interview by author, tape recording, Paducah, Ky., 26 October 2000.
Henry George, “History of the 3D, 7th, 8th and 12th Kentucky C.S.A.” (Melber: Simmons Historical Publications, 1987), 74.
Ibid.
Ibid.
U.S. War Department. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, vol. 32, part III (Washington D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1880 – 1901), 91.
George, Kentucky C.S.A., 75.
Ibid.
Wooten, Interview.
Author Unknown, “Rebel Advance in Tennessee,” The New York Times, 25 March 1864.
George, Kentucky C.S.A., 75.
U.S. War Department. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, vol. 32, part I (Washington D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1880 – 1901), 503.
George, Kentucky C.S.A., 75.
Wooten, Interview.
Berry Craig, “The Battle of Paducah: A Fierce Onslaught Met by a Sheet of Flame…,” Paducah Sun, 19 March 1989, E1.
Fred G. Neuman, Paducahans in History (Paducah: Young Printing Company, 1922), 57.
Hall Allen, Center of Conflict, (Paducah: The Paducah Sun Democrat, 1961), 162.
Ibid., 163.
Allen, Center of Conflict , 163.
Neuman, Paducahans in History, 58.
Allen, Center of Conflict, 163.
Wooten, Interview.
U.S. Navy Department, Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion, vol. 26, series I (Washington D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1894 – 1922), 198.
Craig, “The Battle of Paducah” E1.
Ibid.
George, Kentucky C.S.A. , 76.
Allen, Center of Conflict 163.
Ibid., 164.
George, Kentucky C.S.A. , 76.
U.S. War Department. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, vol. 32, part I (Washington D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1880 – 1901), 551.
Neuman, Paducahans in History, 60.
Ibid.
U.S. War Department. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, vol. 32, part I (Washington D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1880 – 1901), 547.
Ibid.
Wooten, Interview.
Neuman, Paducahans in History, 61.
Ibid., 62.
Wooten, Interview.
Craig, “The Battle of Paducah”, E3.
Wooten, Interview.
Neuman, Paducahans in History, 63.
A.M. Pennock, “The Rebel Attack on Paducah,” New York Times, 29 March 1864.
U.S. War Department. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, vol. 32, part I (Washington D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1880 – 1901), 607.
Fred G. Neuman, “Paducah was Scene of Blood and Terror 68 Years Ago Today, As Battle of City Was Fought”, Paducah Sun, 25 March 1932.
Ibid., 548.
Wooten, Interview.
U.S. War Department. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, vol. 32, part I (Washington D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1880 – 1901), 548.
Ibid.
Neuman, Paducahans in History, 66.
Hall Allen, “It has been 100 Long Years since the Battle of Paducah” , Paducah Sun – Democrat, 22 march 1964.
Wooten, Interview.
Craig, “The Battle of Paducah” E1.
U.S. War Department. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, vol. 32, part I (Washington D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1880 – 1901), 549.
Wooten, Interview.