Prologue: Strategies
Confederate Plans
At 3 PM, as Forrest's cavalrymen wrecked the railroad line and captured the enemy rail depots, the cavalry scouts sent ahead reported siting Union infantry moving in force southward on Hickory Pike towards Grand Junction. Word was quickly sent back to Beauregard that the enemy were moving aggressively on their lines. Forrest mounted up his old brigade and began moving them north on the pike to investigate the Union activity north of Grand Junction.
Beauregard received word of this while still a mile and a half south of Grand Junction. Behind him marched Maj. Gen. Sterling Price’s Corps and behind them Maj. Gen. Simon Buckner’s Corps. To the west the corps of Maj. Gen. John Breckinridge was about 40 minutes behind schedule moving on LaGrange, while to the east the corps of Maj. Gen. Earl Van Dorn was moving on Saulsbury.
With the siting of Union infantry, Beauregard decided to call his commanders to meet with him to discuss how best to defend the railroad line. Losing Grand Junction was not an option, it must be held at all costs. But if cut off to the east and west simultaneously, losing both LaGrange and Saulsbury, Beauregard knew he would also have to retreat. He must defend the depots along the railroad to ensure the link between the Union forces in northern Mississippi and west Tennessee were permanently cut.
Beauregard posed the following question to his commanders as they gathered around his command tent.
“First, do we wish to concentrate on defending Grand Junction and either LaGrange or Saulsbury, or do we attempt to defend all three positions? Second, should we be thinking differently in that the best defense is a good offense? Letting the enemy control the initiative is a sure fire way to get defeated.”
Van Dorn was the first to speak up in response to Beauregard. “On the first point, I believe we are giving the Yankees an advantage immediately if we abandon either Saulsbury or LaGrange at once. If they bag one without a fight, they can concentrate on either of the others; if they take either of the other depots remaining to us they will then force us to retreat. On the second point, I am not suggesting we take up a passive defense, but if we do attack, we want to do so because we think it'll help us hold the railroad, not because we're out of other options.” Van Dorn went on to suggest that Saulsbury might be the preferable depot to hold in conjunction with Grand Junction if a choice had to be made between LaGrange and Saulsbury. He favored this as his Corps was closer to Saulsbury than Breckinridge’s was to LaGrange.
Price spoke after Van Dorn and stated that he had favored taking the offensive until he heard the reports that the Union infantry was already spotted moving on the Hickory Pike towards Grand Junction. “They are much closer to the depot than I would like them to be.” Price favored defending both Grand Junction and LaGrange as their closer proximity allowed for easier support. Van Dorn’s Corps should be moved to the west to join the main army in defense of those depots.
Beauregard interrupted the discussion to admit that all their talk was speculative “without our knowing where the damn yanks are.” He continued as he gazed northward toward Grand Junction and the heights beyond. “We need intelligence; we can't make an informed decision without it. Meaning, our first priority is to gain as much of it as we can without getting ourselves into trouble. So, how do we go about maximizing our intelligence gathering? I say, ‘look for the high ground!’ We must know what is coming at us and from where, to adequately defend what we need to defend. Or to attack if an opportunity presents itself.”
Beauregard continued by stating his belief that both Saulsbury and LaGrange were harder to defend because of their geography than Grand Junction was. “To the north of the town is a large valley where any approach can be easily spotted. Well garrisoned I believe this town would be a very tough nut to crack as the woods, elevations, and quick access allowing defending troops to move from side to side make it nearly impregnable! I don't see the enemy moving in mass down the Hickory Pike, it could be interdicted by our artillery on nearby heights, the approach seen from a long way, too much open ground. I think the enemy will try and maneuver through the woods and across creeks heading south to gain Saulsbury. With LaGrange and Saulsbury captured we would be forced to fall back from the railroad. I believe they are more likely to attack our flanks than our center.”
Buckner then voiced his view that LaGrange was an easier position to defend than Saulsbury because of the limited road network around it. It was also closer to Grand Junction than Saulsbury and might be easier to support as a result. He favored pushing out the cavalry from LaGrange to guard the Beasley River crossing north of the town to secure the left flank of the army.
Beauregard cleared his throat and began to talk rapidly to his commanders as he smoothed out a hand-drawn map against a portable table his orderly had set up. “The Yanks have already dictated some of our movements. It is clear they are hell-bent on getting as far south as they can before nightfall with a view to retake the railroad. Price supported by Buckner will have to defend Grand Junction, if we lose the fight here, the battle is lost. Breckinridge is going to LaGrange and Van Dorn will safeguard Saulsbury. Cavalry plans are for Forrest’s Brigade to slow down the oncoming Yanks along Hickory Pike to give Price time to move to Grand Junction. Armstrong’s and Jackson’s brigades will move north to gather intel and secure creek crossings to the east and west. I happen to believe this affair will be a large one. We must make the Yanks pay a steep price for every foot of ground they try to gain. Give them hell!” With that the meeting came to a close and the generals returned to their columns. The battle was about to begin.
The map above shows the general Confederate plans as decided upon at the start of the battle. The Confederates will spread out their forces to cover all three depots to begin the battle.
Union Plans
A few miles to the north along the Hickory Pike, Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant was meeting with his own generals as they prepared to move to retake the railroad line supplying Corinth. Grant began by asking his commanders their views on the situation.
Brig. Gen. John McArthur, although the most junior officer in the conference, spoke first. He pointed out that two wings of the army, and his own cavalry forces, were still over an hour from reaching the battlefield. Only Maj. Gen. Williams Rosecrans’s and Maj. Gen. William Sherman’s wings were present on the field and moving south along Hickory Pike for Grand Junction. McArthur suggested that the army concentrate their efforts on LaGrange and Grand Junction, leaving Saulsbury as a secondary objective to be maneuvered against in order to distract the enemy forces. McPherson’s Wing should, he stated, attack LaGrange while his own force of cavalry would arrive from the west and “will time their movement to coincide with McPherson's arrival in the area. We would use Rosecrans & Sherman to shield LaGrange, preventing the Rebs from reinforcing LaGrange when it is attacked by McPherson and the cavalry. The attack could also be shifted to Grand Junction if the opportunity arises.” Lastly, he pointed out that the 400-man diversionary force approaching Saulsbury from the east could try to tie down enemy forces in numerous ways depending on the circumstances once they arrived. The wings of Rosecrans and Sherman would move against Grand Junction to support the attack on LaGrange while Maj. Gen. Edward Ord’s wing would send a division towards Saulsbury to distract the enemy and send the other to the main body concentrating against the Confederate forces in the west, “by concentrating our forces in the center/west, we may have enough strength to push down and take Grand Junction itself.”
Ord then spoke up to state that the obvious fact is “with so much riding on holding their central position at Grand Junction, I would expect them to concentrate a good number of their forces there. I guess they could say the same about us in trying to capture it.” As for his own wing, he would follow orders and move where ordered.
Viewing the battlefield through his binoculars, as his men marched by along Hickory pike, Rosecrans spoke up next. Pointing to some high ground north of Grand Junction, he stated that it would be “beneficial to capture that ground to view the battlefield to the south and keep the enemy from viewing our own movements.”
Grant then spoke up and shared his views as they continued to formulate in his mind. “The Rebel army is our objective. If we hurt them bad enough they will have to retreat or be destroyed. This plays into our strength of more troops, more artillery, and more ammo. I say we use these to our advantage and go Rebel hunting. Let us not concentrate on multiple objectives along the railroad but on the central one at Grand Junction. In my opinion, it is much better to consolidate our forces and use the topography to our advantage, especially against experienced Rebel officers and soldiers who are very hard to rout. I feel the Rebels will divide their forces and try to do too much against us and weaken themselves against our main force.” He then turned to McArthur and approved of his use of the eastern forces seeking to distract the enemy at Saulsbury. As for the main cavalry force coming from the west, “I think you should do exactly the same thing and attack LaGrange from the south and west in force. It will take time for you to sneak through the woods, but our enemies should be fully committed around Grand Junction making it easier for you since we should be drawing off the Rebs from the west. I understand this is a risky plan, if cut-off and attacked, your force would be very vulnerable. I will defer to your judgment on this matter General McArthur.”
McArthur took a deep breath and removed his hat before replying to Grant. “For us to get to the south of LaGrange we would have to cross some open terrain. If there are no Rebs posted there, fine - but I would be surprised if that is the case. If Forrest and his troopers are present in force on that side of the battlefield, or we are discovered before any infantry support can reach us, our cavalry could be chewed up, with our backs to Beasely Creek.” Grant puffed on his cigar as his new cavalry chief continued. “As an alternative, I suggest slipping our cavalry southeastward, through the woods, and then moving north to cross Beasely Creek. We could easily turn and hold that crossing, protecting the right flank of our army, with just a small contingent. The rest of our cavalry could support McPherson's drive toward LaGrange. If you want McPherson to concentrate more toward the center in support of the army's primary goal of Grand Junction, the cavalry will still be positioned to protect the right flank.”
Rosecrans spoke up again to propose a two-pronged attack towards Grand Junction. The main attack would move down the Hickory Pike with Rosecrans’s Wing moving for the high ground and Sherman’s Wing moving directly on the pike for the depot. McPherson chimed in that his wing would then be able to march to support the attack on the right flank since this plan would take longer to execute. Rosecrans also proposed the possibility of his wing taking to the woods and moving southward under cover, though he admitted the time necessary to do this would be greater.
Grant had heard enough at this point and wiped the sweat from his brow before putting his hat back on and clearing his throat.
“The railroad be damned. We are here to destroy the Rebel army. We will concentrate our forces against Grand Junction and look to take the hill north of the town. I am going to call it North Hill moving forward – you will take that hill General Rosecrans. The other piece of high ground to the west of Grand Junction will be the objective of McPherson’s Wing. We will call that West Hill. If we can take some key terrain around the large depot at Grand Junction it may force them to counterattack against us and we may catch them in the open under our larger guns. I am counting on the Rebels aggressiveness and the likelihood that they won't tolerate our artillery firing at will on them from the hill tops. General Ord, you will take one division from your wing and move to join the main effort against Grand Junction. Your other division will guard our left flank and the creek crossings to the east. Cump will take his wing and move it straight up the pike towards Grand Junction to support the efforts of Rosecrans and McPherson on his flanks. That leaves McArthur and his cavalrymen. John, when your men arrive from the west I will allow you to decide whether to move directly against LaGrange from the west or, more preferably, to move to support McPherson’s right flank from the north.”
With that Grant placed an unlit cigar between his teeth and bid his generals good hunting. Beyond the gathering the man of Rosecrans’s Wing shuffled southward towards the town of Grand Junction.
The map above shows the general Union plans as decided upon at the start of the battle. Sherman and Rosecrans would move directly south to strike at Grand Junction and the hill north of town. McPherson would move to support them on their right flank while Ord divided his corps to make a feint at Saulsbury while supporting the rest of the army with his other division. McArthur would arrive from the west and either move against LaGrange or seek to cross north of the Beasley Creek to come in on McPherson's right.