Battle of Old River Lake

Other Names: Ditch Bayou, Lake Chicot, Lake Village, Furlough, Fish Bayou, Grand Lake

Location: Chicot County, Arkansas

Campaign: Expedition to Lake Village (1864)

Date:  June 6, 1864

Principal Commanders: Brig. Gen. Joseph A. Mower [US]; Col. Colton Greene [CS]

Forces Engaged: Two brigades of XVI Army Corps [US]; Marmaduke's Division [CS]

Casualties and losses: 280 total (US 180; CS 100)

Result(s): Union victory

Brief Description:

Maj. Gen. A.J. Smith ordered Brig. Gen. Joseph A. Mower to demonstrate against Lake Village. Mower camped near Sunnyside Landing on the evening of June 5 and took up his line of march again the next morning. The skirmishing Confederates fell back to Red Leaf where Col. Colton Greene and his men were encamped. As the Federals advanced, Greene's men, assisted by artillery, fought a delaying action at Ditch Bayou and then withdrew to Parker's landing on Bayou Mason. The Union troops advanced to Lake Village, camped there overnight, and the next day rejoined the flotilla on the Mississippi River at Columbia. The Rebels delayed the Union advance but, eventually, allowed them to continue to their objective: Lake Village.