Steele’s Retreat from Camden and the Battle of Jenkins’ Ferry

First published in mimeographed form during the Civil War Centennial in 1961, Steele’s Retreat from Camden and the Battle of Jenkins’ Ferry (published as a book in 1967) is the longest work by celebrated historian Edwin C. Bearss focusing on the Civil War in Arkansas. It is the first book-length examination of the Camden Expedition and continues to serve as an important resource for historians.

Born in Billings, Montana, on June 26, 1923, Edwin Bearss grew up near Hardin. He attended a one-room schoolhouse and spent time at a military school in Wisconsin before graduating from Hardin High School. He enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps in 1941 and saw action in the Pacific Theater. After spending twenty-six months in the hospital after being wounded in 1944, he graduated from Georgetown University with a BS in foreign service in 1949, followed by an MA in history from Indiana University, Bloomington, in 1955. His thesis focused on Major General Patrick Cleburne.

Hired by the National Park Service, he served as the historian at Vicksburg National Battlefield for more than a decade. He was chief historian of the NPS from 1981 to 1994, then becoming the NPS director’s special assistant for military sites. After retiring in 1995, he was named NPS Historian Emeritus. During his career, he wrote many books and completed historical studies for parks across the country. Arkansas-related works include Fort Smith: Little Gibraltar on the Arkansas and nineteen articles in the Arkansas Historical Quarterly.

After being contacted by the Grant County Chamber of Commerce in 1961 to write an examination of the Engagement at Jenkins’ Ferry, Bearss visited Sheridan (Grant County) and the surrounding area that summer. While speaking with locals about the battle, he realized that the final work needed to include the events at Poison Spring and Marks’ Mills to allow readers to better understand the expedition. The work only briefly covers the background or beginning stages of the campaign and opens on April 15, 1864, after Federal forces under the command of Major General Frederick Steele are ensconced in Camden (Ouachita County).

The first two chapters of the six-chapter book detail the background and battle surrounding the wagon train attacked at Poison Spring as the Federal troops tried to gather food. The third chapter covers the attack and capture of another Union wagon train at Marks’ Mills. Chapters four and five recount the Union retreat from Camden and the battle that followed at Jenkins’ Ferry. The final chapter covers the last days of the campaign as the Federal army returned to Little Rock (Pulaski County) and the Confederates regrouped in southern Arkansas.

Bearss relied heavily on the official records contained in The War of the Rebellion series to recount the expedition. Other sources used include works published by veterans after the war, newspaper articles, and unit histories.

The book was originally published in mimeographed form by the Grant County Chamber of Commerce in fall 1961, but the Arkansas Civil War Centennial Commission published the work in book form in 1967. It was reprinted in 1995 and continues to be an important work on the history of the campaign.

For additional information:
Bearss, Edwin C. Steele’s Retreat from Camden and the Battle of Jenkins’ Ferry. Little Rock: Arkansas Civil War Centennial Commission, 1967.

David Sesser
Southeastern Louisiana University