CAPTURE OF HAINES’S BLUFF.
May 18, 1863.
The operations of Rear-Admiral Porter, which had an important bearing on the movements of General Grant’s army at that time, are thus detailed in the reports of that officer, and of Lieutenant Walker.
On the morning of the 16th I came over to the Yazoo to be ready to cooperate with General Grant, leaving two of the iron-clads at Red river, one at Grand Gulf, one at Carthage, three at Warrenton, and two in the Yazoo, which left me a small force. Still I disposed of them to the best advantage. On the 18th, at meridian, firing was heard in the rear of Vicksburg, which assured me that General Grant was approaching the city. The cannonading was kept up furiously for some time, when, by the aid of glasses, I discovered a company of artillery advancing, taking position, and driving the rebels before them. I immediately saw that General Sherman’s division had come on to the left of Snyder’s Bluff, and that the rebels at that place had been cut off from joining the forces in the city.
I dispatched the DeKalb, Lieutenant-Commander Walker, the Choctaw, Lieutenant-Commander Ramsay, the Borneo, and Forest Rose, all under command of Lieutenant-Commander Breese, up the Yazoo, to open communication in that way with Generals Grant and Sherman. This I succeeded in doing, and in three hours received letters from Generals Grant, Sherman, and Steele, informing me of this vast success, and asking me to send up provisions, which was at once done. In the mean time, Lieutenant-Commander Walker in the DeKalb pushed on to Haines’s Bluff, which the enemy had commenced evacuating the day before, and a party remained behind in the hopes of destroying or taking away a large amount of ammunition on hand. When they saw the gunboats they ran away and left everything in good order, guns, forts, tents, and equipage of all kinds, which fell into our hands.
As soon as the capture of Haines’s Bluff and the fourteen forts was reported to me, I shoved up the gunboats from below to fire on the hill batteries, which fire was kept up for two or three hours. At midnight they moved up to the town and opened on it for about an hour, and continued at intervals during the night to annoy the garrison. On the 19th I placed six mortars in position, with orders to fire night and day as rapidly as they could.
The works at Haines’s Bluff are very formidable. There are fourteen of the heaviest kind of mounted eight and ten inch and seven and a half inch rifle guns, with ammunition enough to last a long siege. As the gun carriages might again fall into the hands of the enemy, I had them burned, blew up the magazine, and destroyed the works generally. I also burned up the encampments, which were permanently and remarkably well constructed, looking as though the rebels intended to stay some time. Their works and encampments covered many acres of ground, and the fortifications and rifle pits proper of Haines’s Bluff extend about a mile and a quarter. Such a network of forts I never saw.
As soon as I got through with the destruction of the magazines and other works, I started Lieutenant-Commander Walker up the Yazoo river with sufficient force to destroy all the enemy’s property in that direction, with orders to return with all dispatch, and only to proceed as far as Yazoo City, where the rebels have a navy yard and storehouses.
In the mean time General Grant has closely invested Vicksburg, and has possession of the best commanding points. In a very short time a general assault will take place, when I hope to announce that Vicksburg has fallen, after a series of the most brilliant successes that ever attended an army.
There never has been a case during the war where the rebels have been so successfully beaten at all points, and the patience and endurance shown by our army and navy for so many months is about being rewarded. It is a mere question of a few hours, and then, with the exception of Port Hudson, which will follow Vicksburg, the Mississippi will be open its entire length.
Sir: I have the honor to report that in obedience to your order, I started from Snyder’s Bluff on the 20th, with the DeKalb, Choctaw, Forest Rose, Linden, and Petrel, on an expedition to Yazoo City. Arriving at Haines’s Bluff, I landed a force and spiked an 8-inch gun on the fort there, and burned the carriage. I also burned some forty tents left standing, and a steam sawmill.
Arriving at Yazoo City at one P. M., 20th, I was met by a committee of citizens, who informed me that the place had been evacuated by the military authorities, and asking protection. The navy yard and vessels had been fired by the enemy. I sent a working party to insure the destruction of everything valuable to the rebels. The vessels burned were the Mobile, a screw vessel, ready for plating; the Republic, which was being fitted out for a ram; and a vessel on the stocks—a monster, three hundred and ten feet long, seventy-five feet beam. The navy yard contained five saw and planing mills, an extensive machine shop, carpenter and blacksmith shops, and all necessary fixtures for a large building and repairing yard, which, with a very large quantity of lumber, were burned. I also burned a large sawmill above the town. Most of the public stores had been removed; such as I found in town were taken on board the vessels or destroyed. Enclosed I send a list of articles removed or destroyed by Acting Volunteer Lieutenant Brown, the officer detailed for that purpose. In the hospital I found and paroled one thousand five hundred prisoners, a list of whom I enclose.
Returning, I left Yazoo City this morning, arriving here at four P. M. At Liverpool Landing, in a sharp bend in the river, we were attacked by some field guns, and about two hundred riflemen concealed in the bushes, and for a few minutes the firing was very sharp. The enemy retreated as soon as the vessels got into position to use their guns with effect. The Petrel, Linden, and Choctaw were struck with shot, but received no particular injury. Sergeant Stockinger, of this vessel, was killed by a rifle shot. The Linden had five wounded, the Petrel two, and the Choctaw one. Most of the wounds are slight.