Combat· American Civil War
Battle of Memphis
The river battle that destroyed the Confederate fleet on the upper Mississippi.
On 6 June 1862 the Union ram and gunboat squadrons closed with the Confederate River Defense Fleet in front of Memphis, in full view of the city's people lining the bluffs, and shattered it in a swirling melee of ramming and gunfire. Most of the Confederate vessels were sunk, rammed, or driven ashore, and the rest dispersed; the city surrendered. Marine detachments aboard the Union flotilla took part in the action. The victory completed the Union seizure of the Mississippi down to Vicksburg and gave the Federal river squadron mastery of the upper river for the rest of the war. No Marine casualties are recorded. Memphis was the decisive river battle of the upper Mississippi, ending organized Confederate naval resistance above Vicksburg and bringing an important city under Union control.
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Record no. 444