In October, 1863 the Union Army, Department of the Ohio, commanded by Maj. Gen. Ambrose Burnside advanced into East Tennessee as part of a campaign to secure saltworks in southwest Virginia and control transport and communications in that region. On October 10, 1863 Brig. Gen. Samuel Carter’s Cavalry Division (XXIII Corps) engaged Confederate forces on the East Tennessee and Virginia railroad commanded by Brig. Gen. John Williams near Bull’s Gap at Blue Springs, Tennessee. Later in the day, Brig. Gen. Edward Ferrero’s 1st Division, IX Corps broke the Confederate line and advanced to the enemy’s rear before being checked. The Confederates withdrew after dark, and the Federals took up the pursuit in the morning. Within days, Williams and his men had retired to Virginia.
Fort Pillow
On April 12, the cavalry force of Maj. Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest’s force surrounded Fort Pillow on the Mississippi River.