Confederate Preparations For Union Red River Campaign

MARCH 18TH, 1864: Lt. gen. E. Kirby Smith, CSA, ordered steamer New Falls City taken to Scopern's Cut-Off below Shreveport, Louisiana, on the Red River where she was to be sunk as an obstruction. On the 19th, he directed that 30 torpedoes be placed at Grand Ecore. //// The sunken steamer did block the Union gunboats and the USS Eastport was badly damaged by a torpedo (and Selfridge wasn't even on it). //// --Old B-R'er