Part of the Trans-Mississippi Theater of the American Civil War
Map shows Yellow Bayou Battlefield core and study areas by the American Battlefield Protection Program. The fighting occurred midway between Yellow Bayou and Rosewood. The Atchafalaya River is at right.
Date
May 18, 1864 (1864-05-18)
Location
Simmesport, Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana
Result
Union strategic victory
Belligerents
United States
Confederate States
Commanders and leaders
Nathaniel P. Banks Joseph A. Mower
Richard Taylor John A. Wharton
Units involved
XVI Corps
District of Western Louisiana
Strength
4,500 plus cavalry
5,000
Casualties and losses
267–360
452–608
v
t
e
Red River campaign
Louisiana
Fort DeRussy
Henderson's Hill
Mansfield
Pleasant Hill
Blair's Landing
Monett's Ferry
26–27 April
Alexandria
Mansura
Yellow Bayou
Arkansas
Mount Elba
Elkin's Ferry
Prairie D' Ane
Poison Spring
Marks' Mills
Jenkins' Ferry
The Battle of Yellow Bayou, also known as the Battle of Norwood's Plantation,[1][2] (May 18, 1864) saw Union Army forces led by Brigadier General Joseph A. Mower clash with Confederate States Army troops commanded by Brigadier General John A. Wharton in Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana during the American Civil War. This was the final action of the Red River campaign in which a Union army under Major General Nathaniel P. Banks was repulsed by Confederate forces led by Major General Richard Taylor. The failed Union campaign almost ended in disaster when an accompanying Union fleet led by Rear Admiral David Dixon Porter was trapped at Alexandria, Louisiana, by low water in the Red River. An engineering feat saved the fleet, allowing Banks' army to complete its withdrawal.
While Banks' army waited for a bridge to be built across the Atchafalaya River, Wharton's forces began pressing the Union troops from the rear. Mower was ordered to halt their advance. Mower's forces subsequently drove the Confederates back to their main line. The Confederates then counter-attacked and a back-and-forth battle erupted, with the Confederates finally repulsed. A thicket between the contending sides caught fire, ending the fighting after a few hours. Mower's holding action allowed the Union army to safely cross the Atchafalaya on May 19–20.
^Lawson 2009.
^NPS 2023.
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Global Information
United States
Confederate States
Richard Taylor
XVI Corps