Part Twelve: One Last Push
Union Staff Meeting
Grant called his generals to his headquarters for a meeting at noon. The generals, dusty and filthy after a full morning of combat, were growing disheartened. The Rebel line simply would not break. Grant admitted the abandonment of LaGrange was a good move by the Rebels as they had no need to secure all of the railroad depots, just two, “it is what I would have done,” he told them.
McArthur then spoke up to recap the situation they then faced. The army was exhausted, casualties were high, and the only reserves remaining were the Iowans who were about to reach the Hickory Pike fighting. McArthur then listed their strategic options as he saw them by midday:
Our first goal was to out-casualty the Rebs, taking out more of them than they did of us, and forcing them to surrender through massive casualties. That has not worked - we continue to lose more men than they do.
Realizing that we were losing men faster than the Rebs were, we shifted our goal to that of taking Grand Junction. We did force the Rebs to draw in their flanks, but despite taking substantial casualties ourselves we have not gained significant ground in this direction. I think our closest unit to Grand Junction is now only a mile away, as opposed to a mile and a half when we began this drive, but our units closest to Grand Junction are disrupted and fatigued. And General McPherson's wing has now joined Sherman's in being so fatigued as to be virtually useless in continuing this drive.
That leaves just one option, that of taking both LaGrange and Saulsbury. The Rebs abandoned LaGrange, leaving it wide open for my cavalry to slip in and take it. I have no delusions about Saulsbury being so lightly defended. So, to force the Rebs back we must take Saulsbury and hold on to LaGrange. I've started a ring of cavalry around LaGrange, but they wouldn't be able to hold for long against a dedicated attack.
Because the Rebs have pulled in forces from their flanks, we might just have a chance to take Saulsbury.
McArthur then proposed that Stanley’s Wing disengage at North Hill and begin moving for Saulsbury at once. Veatch’s brigade, then crossing Spring Creek to the north after the Rebels abandoned the ford, would reinforce them for the effort.
McPherson, wiping the sweat from his brow as he cooled down in the shade of a large tree, agreed with McArthur’s assessment. His wing had broken itself on the Rebel defenses and his men were no longer an effective force. McPherson stated that, “As it currently stands I cannot see a continued push directly upon Grand Junction succeeding without substantial pressure being applied on the eastern flank in order to draw off Rebel forces. I therefore agree that General McArthur's plan is worthy of consideration with the cautionary note that any advance upon Saulsbury must be bold, decisive and rapid. I, personally, very much doubt we will get there without some very good luck. Nonetheless, let us sally forth I say, and in good cheer, we have nothing to lose and everything to gain.”
Stanley though, would not hear of it. Clearing his throat, he stated, emphatically, that his men were used up. Stanley’s Wing had lost 28% of its men along with its leader, Rosecrans, killed the day before. On paper he still had 8,199 infantrymen in 25 regiments, but of these, only seven were still in fighting shape. To move to the east he would have to disengage an enemy only a few hundred yards away, move across their front from right to left, then move through miles of enemy-held territory. It was impossible. He argued that it was “pure folly” to suggest his men move on Saulsbury. “The last thing we need to do is weaken our already battered front lines. I suggest I keep moving forward toward Grand Junction... Movement is slow but better than splitting our forces and making the front line even thinner than it already is.”
McPherson and Stanley then debated back and forth as neither could convince the other that their plan was the more advisable.
General Grant was now in a quandary. He could order Stanley to move to the east but felt that without his full support the effort would likely come to naught. But he also agreed with McArthur and McPherson that the continued drive on Grand Junction was suicidal.
The more Grant looked at his options the quicker they seemed to be getting ruled out. Both time, and his army’s strength, were running out.
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As the generals talked about their plans the battle continued to rage north of Grand Junction. Confederate cannons roared and the Federal soldiers were falling by the dozens in the open fields north of the town. Soon a steady stream of men began moving rearward, but it quickly became a torrent as units began to rout off the line in droves. A staff officer rushed into the meeting to announce a dozen regiments had fled the field and were then heading back towards Memphis.
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Realizing his army could not hold together much longer, Grant ordered the attack in the center to continue. Veatch would move for Saulsbury, but the main goal had to remain Grand Junction. There was just not enough time to do anything more complex than just barrel forward and take Grand Junction.
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This wasn't going to be easy.
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The Battlefield at 1 PM
Tilghman's Attack
The roar the Federal general has heard was the fighting that exploded, once more, on Stanley's left flank. The Confederate counterattack, led by Tilghman's Division on the Union left, struck the Federals on their exposed flank and rear. This was the fourth attack since dawn for Tilghman's Division - each time recrossing the same ground. This time his attack enjoyed greater success and quickly scooped up the 27th and 63rd Ohio regiments as prisoners. The Confederates now far outflanked the increasingly disorganized and weakened Federal left flank.
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Tilghman's Fourth Attack
Despite the success of the attack, Tilghman halted his advance. Tilghman must have felt the attack was too exposed or that the army was too weak for him to risk moving his men further away from the main defensive line. For whatever reason though, the attack stopped as quickly as it had begun. Tilghman fell back to the same woods he had been attacking out of since dawn. Stanley, watching helplessly from North Hill, crossed himself and likely thanked the God's of War which had smiled upon him all day. He then turned his attention back to the real battle in the center where his men and guns continued to wear down the Confederates north of Grand Junction.
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The Last Full Measure
The Federals had regrouped as best they could before once more moving forward to try and break the final Confederate defenders. Union artillery concentrated their fire on just a few key areas in order to cause maximum damage to those specific units. Confederate Brigadier General Martin Green was killed in the bombardment and three of his regiments broke for the rear. Elsewhere the Confederates continued managed to hold their lines against the Federal forces still trying to break through. By 1 PM the two sides were still locked in a perpetual struggle for control north of Grand Junction.
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The Iowa Brigade, which was originally to be sent to the east but was instead just simply sent to the Hickory Pike, now attacked. This elite brigade was fresh and well-led. They slammed into Cleburne's front capturing four cannons and routing two of Cleburne's regiments. For a brief moment, the road to Grand Junction was wide open. Cleburne's Division was split, and Little's Division was hardly able to form a continuous line any longer on their right. The only units then between the Iowa Brigade and Grand Junction were routed, reformed, or highly fatigued units which were greatly reduced in numbers and effectiveness.
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Nonetheless, Cleburne managed to save the situation by stretching his line and plugging the hole in the center with Liddell's Brigade and a section of artillery. But the Federals would not stop! Slamming into Liddell's Brigade the Iowans, joined by other units from both Sherman's and Ord's wings, quickly drove back and routed all of Liddell's Brigade in just twenty minutes of fighting. At the height of the fighting, Col. Marcellus Crocker was shot and killed as his Iowans drove back the Rebel defenders. For Liddell, he could only watch as his regiments fled southward towards Grand Junction.
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Union Breakthrough
There was now almost nothing standing between the spearhead of the Union attack and the depot at Grand Junction. Only routed units, a hundred demoralized infantrymen, and a single cavalry regiment were left to confront the Union tidal wave which was threatening to sweep over them all.
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One Last Push:
Commentary
I often write these After Action Reports in real time. Right now, I have no idea what will happen next. But what an incredible turn of events! Like a phoenix rising from the ashes, the Yanks have been reinvigorated by the arrival of the Iowa Brigade. They have smashed through Cleburne's Division and are now within a half-mile of the depot at Grand Junction.
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Both sides are exhausted. Nearly every unit on the map is worn out and heavily fatigued. Both sides have suffered severely. The Federals are close to their casualty limit and may reach it at any time. The Confederates are not so close to theirs - but their backs are against the wall at Grand Junction and they have very little left to throw into the maelstrom.
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Whatever happens over the next turn or two will decide the battle.
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Interestingly, the battle would likely be over right now if Tilghman's attack would have continued. His men were poised to sweep around Stanley's flank with almost no resistance. That would have netted them many more prisoners and ended this battle sooner. For whatever reason, Tilghman thought he was more vulnerable than he was and halted his advance. This gave the Federals a little more life. They are making this second chance count!
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Can the Federals take Grand Junction? If you had asked me an hour or two ago, the answer was no. My answer is now - maybe! It would take a small miracle and some lucky die rolls, but it is possible. There is a chance!
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