Audio
Tour Stop #4 - Ransom's Gun Path
Transcript
On June 15th, Union soldiers under the command of General Thomas E. G. Ransom began digging approach trenches toward rifle pits manned by the 37th Mississippi Infantry, some 200 yards away.
In order to better protect his men, General Ransom directed Captain John Wesley Powell of the 2nd Illinois Light Artillery to place an artillery battery a mere 100 yards from the Confederate line.
Although Powell had already lost an arm in the battle of Shiloh, he was up to the task. Powell had his men disassemble two cannon and haul them by hand into position where they were reassembled.
The guns pounded the Mississippians at point blank range and effectively kept the riflemen’s heads down while the Union slowly constructed the approach trenches in preparation for a charge that would never be ordered.
In 1869, after the Civil War, Powell became famous for leading a successful expedition of nine men in four boats down Colorado River through the Grand Canyon.
In 1881 he became director of the U.S. Geological Survey, and later director of the Bureau of Ethnology at the Smithsonian Institution.
Description
This track discusses the location of General Thomas E.G. Ransom's approach trench that was supported by Captain John Wesley Powell's Illinois artillerymen.
Date Created
12/31/2021
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