View of the Tishomingo Creek bridge from Log Cabin Knoll, Brices Cross Roads Battlefield Tour

BRICES CROSSROADS BATTLEFIELD TOUR STOP 9

The ninth stop on a tour of Brices Crossroads battlefield is Log Cabin Knoll. This and the rest of the stops on the tour follow the route of the Union retreat back to Memphis after being soundly defeated at the Battle of Brices Crossroads.

When leaving the previous tour stop, Bethany Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church Cemetery and the National Park Service’s Brices Cross Roads National Battlefield Site on Bethany Road, turn right to stay on Highway 370. Log Cabin Knoll is about a quarter mile down on the right.

Log Cabin Knoll overlooks the Tishomingo Creek area where the Union soldiers retreated after being routed in the battle. From here, Confederate Captain John Morton fired his battery of artillery into the retreating Union soldiers below, causing even more panic among the men. Earlier, the Union had made a serious mistake by bringing nearly 250 supply wagons across Tishomingo Creek via the only bridge over the water. Now, with the entire army in retreat, the bridge was clogged by the wagons. Panicked soldiers jumped into the waters that had been swollen by recent rain; many drowned. The remains of one soldier who was washed away was not found until 1953. In the end, nearly 170 supply wagons were abandoned, leaving the Confederates with a smorgasbord of food, ammunition, horses and mules, guns, artillery, and wagons, not to mention 1,600 prisoners.

There are three wayside exhibits located next to the parking area for Log Cabin Knoll. There is also a very short interpretive trail, the Union Retreat Trail, that leads to two more wayside exhibits. The trail is .3 mile one way, but there is absolutely nothing to see beyond the two exhibits, which come right at the start. Read them and head back to the car. DO NOT walk to the end of the trail unless you have nothing better to do with your time. You can read all the information and hike the trail in no more than 15 minutes.