Drawing depicts the Confederate retreat at Shiloh
SHILOH BATTLEFIELD TOUR STOP #14
Up until this point on the Shiloh National Military Park battlefield tour, all of the stops have marked events that took place on the initial day of fighting, April 6, 1862, a day on which the Confederates drove the Union Army all the way back to where they came from, Pittsburg Landing. The Confederate’s fatal error was not defeating Grant and his men on the 6th, which would have entailed hounding them into the night. Instead, commanding officer General Pierre Beauregard was certain he could finish off Grant in the morning and chose to give his men a rest. Beauregard even sent a telegram to Confederate President Jefferson Davis announcing the victory.
However, the next day the Union counterattacked, routing the Confederates and sending them retreating back to Corinth. How could this have happened? As it turns out, the Army of the Ohio under General Don Carlos Buell arrived at Pittsburg Landing during the night, and as a result, the Union had an entire army of fresh reinforcements. Total Union troops now numbered 50,000.
On the morning of the 7th, Confederate troops located closest to the Union defensive line were taken completely by surprise when they saw the wave of men coming towards them. Most took off in a panicked retreat. By noon the Confederate left flank had been driven back to Shiloh Church. The remaining troops tried to stop the Union by forming a defensive line nearly three miles wide along the Hamburg-Purdy Road.
Water Oaks Pond area battle map, April 7, 1862
The Union troops hit heavily on the Confederate left at Water Oaks Pond just north of the Shiloh Church area. Confederate troops fought back and often had temporary success at halting or even driving back the Union attackers, but ultimately the overwhelming numbers of Union troops caused the Confederate line to collapse. In the early afternoon around 2:30 PM, Beauregard ordered his remaining men to retreat back to Corinth. While Grant’s men recaptured their original forward camps, they made no attempt to pursue the Confederates.
Water Oaks Pond at Shiloh National Military Park
When visiting Water Oaks Pond, you can also take a U-shaped spur road that leads to a Confederate mass grave, one of five on the Shiloh battlefield.
Confederate mass grave near Water Oaks Pond at Shiloh National Military Park
Shiloh casualty count
There is a large monument in a field located across Confederate Road from the Water Oaks Pond parking area. The Shiloh battlefield tour never stops near this monument, so if you’d like to see it and maybe take a photo, you might as well walk to it from here. This is the Illinois State Memorial, one of the largest monuments at Shiloh National Military Park.
Illinois State Memorial at Shiloh National Military Park
The field near Water Oaks Pond also contains artillery exhibits and the Tennessee State Memorial.
Tennessee State Memorial at Shiloh National Military Park
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Last updated on February 5, 2022
