After a contentious battle of wills, with US Major General Henry Halleck, US Brigadier General Ulysses S. Grant is given approval to open the Tennessee River.
Grant would depart Cairo, Illinois, with Rear Admiral Andrew H. Foote, in early February 1862. On February 4 and 5, Grant would land his infantry, and artillery, north of Fort Henry¹. He would march his divisions, overland, to the shore opposite the fort. In the meantime, Foote’s ironclad gunboats would open a devastating fire on the fort. Inundated by rising flood waters, the fort’s commander, CS Brigadier General Lloyd Tilghman would send most of his garrison east to Fort Donelson. Tilghman manning the fort, with a small garrison had no chance. He would surrender the fort to Foote, as Grant had not arrived with his land forces.
While Foote received honorable mention from Grant, for the decisive battle at Fort Henry, Grant would become a celebrity in the North – at a time when Union fortunes were not bright. The navy, and Grant’s troopers would arrive in Cairo with whistles blowing, flying Confederate flags upside down.
The aftermath of the battle would be Grant’s stunning victory, ten days later, at Fort Donelson.
¹ Fort Henry on Wikipedia, and BattlefieldPortraits.com were used to research this article.
