Talk:Skirmish at Threlkeld's Ferry

Details; Notability?
After victories at the Battle of Prairie Grove, Arkansas, about 10 miles west of Fayetteville, Arkansas, in Washington County, Arkansas, on December 7, 1862, and the Battle of Van Buren, Arkansas, in Crawford County, Arkansas, on December 29, 1862, the Union Army gained control of northwest Arkansas. Only some small Confederate cavalry units and guerrilla bands remained in the area to oppose the Union presence.

The Skirmish at Threkeld's Ferry was a minor engagement typical of the the reconnaissance and scouting patrols and resulting small, but occasionally intense, battles that were fought in the area thereafter. It was not part of a major campaign. If it were to be grouped or categorized, presumably it would be considered part of the ongoing anti-guerrilla campaign in northwest Arkansas starting in early 1863.

The action is not mentioned in Christ, Mark K. Civil War Arkansas 1863: The Battle for a State. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press, 2010. ISBN 978-0-8061-4087-2.

Confederate Colonel Charles A. Carroll is mentioned in the book in connection with the rear guard action at the Battle of Cane Hill on November 28, 1862 in Washington County, Arkansas, which preceded the Battle of Prairie Grove by 10 days. Union Colonel James Stuart is mentioned in the book in connection with his actions at the Battle of Bayou Fourche, also known as the Battle of Little Rock, on September 10, 1863.

According to Allardice, Bruce S. Confederate Colonels: A Biographical Register. Columbia: University of Missouri Press, 2008. ISBN 978-0-8262-1809-4, Carroll was arrested for drunkenness on December 2, 1862 and resigned on April 12, 1863. In the Encyclopedia of Arkansas article on this skirmish, the only source that I could find other than the Official Records cited in the article, The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies. Series 1, Vol. 22, Part 1, which is Stuart's report. It has few additional details and the Encyclopedia article is obviously taken from the report. The author of the report echoes Stuart by stating: "The Union force determined that the only Confederate force in the area was cavalry under the command of Colonel Charles A. Carroll." The article does not specifically state that Carroll was in command in the minor actions during Stuart's scout and Stuart refers to "Carroll's men." Union Colonel M. La Rue Harrison, the post commander, in his cover letter, refers to men of "Carroll's command." Given Carroll's arrest in December and the vague references, Carroll may not have been present at either skirmish during the scout. No Confederate report accompanies Harrison's and Stuart's reports in the Official record.

No book concerning Union colonels from Illinois has yet been published. It would seem that it would be difficult to find any more information about a Union colonel with the unlikely name of James Stuart among all the information available about Confederate Major General James Ewell Brown Stuart. 2021 note: The book has now been published but none of the information about Stuart is relevant to this article.

The infobox states 15 Union killed but Stuart and the Encyclopedia in turn report only 1 man lost, drowned in crossing the Arkansas River. Stuart says his men killed "several" of the Confederates and took 21 prisoners, another source says 7.

It seems that only a few details can be added from the Encyclopedia of Arkansas article and some of them relate to the further actions during the scout. Stuart briefly describes finding and building some skiffs to cross the Arkansas River to attack the discovered Confederate camp and the drowning death of a Private Douglass. While the fight at the ferry was taking place, some of Stuart's men destroyed some log building further down the river which they thought could provide defensive cover for the Confederates but any Confederates in the area heard them coming and departed before the Union troopers arrived. On February 10, about 8 miles of east of Van Buren, Stuart's column was attacked by about 100 Confederates, who were soon driven off. Casualties are not mentioned. Other sources about the skirmish at Threkeld's Ferry and the entire 7-day scout could not be found. Although perhaps some mention is made in some source that was not searched, it is difficult to see what more could be added.

Under the circumstances, this article, even if slightly expanded, may be of questionable notability. Donner60 (talk) 07:40, 10 September 2015 (UTC)


 * Nothing has changed except for the inclusion of this article in User:Hog Farm/ACW battle stubs for review of battle stubs, and apparently candidates for AfD. Despite my old comments, I am going to add a few details and other sources that I have recently found, place the action in context, and thus see whether that is enough of an improvement. Donner60 (talk) 11:56, 30 June 2021 (UTC)

Skirmish at Threlkeld's Ferry
I have moved the title of this stub from Skirmish at Threkelds Ferry to Skirmish at Threlkeld's Ferry to correct the typo in the spelling of the location. Although the title of the Encyclopedia of Arkansas has "aka Skirmish at Threkeld's Ferry" in the title, it has the other spelling in the article. At least three other sources also use the Threlkeld's Ferry spelling. Donner60 (talk) 11:57, 30 June 2021 (UTC)