Fortunate it was that the Confederates at the Yazoo shipyards were poor mechanics. When the Arkansas reached the Union squadrons her machinery was in such bad order that she was making barely one knot an hour. The captured ram General Bragg had steam up, but her captain waited for orders, and so missed the chance of a lifetime, as Farragut remarked at the time.
Boldly steering through the unprepared squadron, the Arkansas fired right and left and took a position under the Vicksburg batteries. Her crew numbered forty-one. The two Union flag officers were greatly mortified because they were caught napping, and Farragut, to retrieve himself, took his squadron down past the batteries that night, hoping to destroy the Arkansas as he passed, but he failed because she was safely moored. Two days later Farragut and part of his ships went to New Orleans, and the handful of Union troops that had been on the point opposite Vicksburg went to Baton Rouge.
On October 5th Breckenridge attacked the Union forces at Baton Rouge, and the Arkansas went there to help. The Union ironclad Essex, Capt. William Porter, with four other gunboats, were below Vicksburg at the time, three of the others being of Farragut’s fleet. The Katahdin and Kineo were able to give the Union army a good support in a fight against superior numbers. The Arkansas, while trying to come to the aid of Breckenridge, broke down and ran ashore. While she lay in the mud the Essex came up looking for her, and as she could not be moved her crew set her on fire and escaped. She was of the usual form of the river ironclads, and was armored with railroad iron. The design and the material were good for that day, but she was doomed to defeat by her builders before she was launched.
- Queen of the West.
- Taylor.
- Carondelet.
- Arkansas.
Battle between the Carondelet and the Arkansas.
From a painting by Admiral Walke.
- Arkansas.
- Carondelet.
Battle between the Arkansas and the Carondelet.