27th Arkansas Infantry Regiment The 27th Arkansas Infantry Regiment ( 1862 – 1865 ) was a Confederate Army infantry regiment during the American Civil War . The unit served entirely in the Department of the Trans - Mississippi and eventually surrendered at Marshall Texas at the end of the war . Organization . 27th Infantry Regiment was organized at Yellville , Arkansas , in July 1862 , composed of a handful of companies of mounted volunteers , which were dismounted and reinforced with several companies of conscripts . James R . Shaler , a Missourian who had previously served in the Missouri State Guard , was appointed colonel of the new regiment . The field officers were Colonels Beal Gaither and James R . Shaler , and Lieutenant Colonels A . J . Magenis and James M . Riggs . The unit was composed of companies from the following counties : Battles . The 27th Arkansas participated in most of the principal battles fought in the Trans - Mississippi Department after September 1862 , among which were the Battle of Prairie Grove , the Battle of Bayou Fourche , the Battle of Pleasant Hill , and the Battle of Jenkins Ferry . The 27th Arkansas was initially was assigned to Colonel Robert G . Shaver ' s 2nd Brigade of Daniel M . Frost ' s 3rd Division of Major General Thomas C . Hindman ' s 1st Corps of the Army of the Trans - Mississippi for the Battle of Prairie Grove on December 7 , 1862 . The other regiments in the brigade were the 27th , 38th , and Adams Arkansas Infantry Regiments . According to Colonel Robert G . Shaver ' s report on the Battle of Prairie Grove , the 27th , did not become actively engaged in the fighting at Prairie Grove because the regiment was without arms . After Prairie Grove the unit retreated to Van Buren , with the rest of Hindman ' s Army . On February 28 , 1862 , Brigadier General J . C . Tappan , formerly commander of the 13th Arkansas Infantry Regiment , was ordered to assume command of Shaver ' s brigade , consisting of the 38th Arkansas Infantry Regiment , commanded by Colonel Robert G . Shaver , the 27th Arkansas Infantry Regiment commanded by Colonel James R . Shaler , and the 33rd Arkansas Infantry Regiment commanded by Colonel Hiram L . Grinstead . They remained with Tappan ' s Brigade through the remainder of the war . General Tappan was ordered to move his brigade to Louisiana to support General Richard Taylor ' s operations against General Grant ' s forces laying siege to Vicksburg Mississippi . The 33rd spent the month of July 1863 in the vicinity of Delhi , Louisiana where they conducted raids on Federal interests between Delhi and the Mississippi River . Tappan ' s brigade was ordered to return to Arkansas , via Pine Bluff , in August 1863 . The Tappan ' s Brigade and the 33rd Arkansas missed the Battle of Helena on July 4 , 1863 , because of its operations in Louisiana . The 27th returned to Arkansas in August 1863 , and was involved in the defense of Little Rock . In the first weeks of September , 1863 , the 27th served in the Little Rock defenses near present - day North Little Rock . After General Price abandoned Little Rock on September 10 , 1863 , the 27th retreated down the Southwest Trail to Benton and on to the vicinity of Arkadelphia , while they spent the winter of 1863 . Colonel Shaler proved to be unpopular with his men and junior officers . Shaler was a Missourian and made several attempts to have the 27th added to a brigade of Missouri Troops . The regiment was eventually consolidated with Colonel Robert G . Shaver ' s 38th Arkansas Infantry Regiment . Because of this consolidation , and because of the similarities between the names Shaver and Shaler , several historian ' s have mistakenly reported that Colonel Robert Shaver was elected as commander of both regiments . Upon the launch of the Union Army ’ s Red River Campaign , seizing Alexandria , Louisiana and moving on Natchitoches and Shreveport , General Kirby Smith ordered Churchill ' s Arkansas Division which had most of his infantry ( including Tappan ' s and Gause ' s brigades ) south to Shreveport , Louisiana in early March , 1864 to assist in countering Union General Nathaniel Banks ' advance along the Red River . Churchill ’ s division reached Keatchie , Louisiana in time to support Richard Taylor ’ s main force who routed Banks ’ army in the Battle of Mansfield ( Sabine Crossroads ) on April 8 , 1864 . The next day , the Confederate forces united to attack the Union rear guard at Pleasant Hill on the afternoon of April 9 . The Confederates had endured a long forced march from south central Arkansas to Mansfield , and another of ten hours to Pleasant Hill that day with only two hours ’ rest . The Union troops held a formidable position , and although the Arkansans and Missourians fought valiantly , they were repulsed and retreated six miles to the nearest water . After the battle of Pleasant Hill , Churchill ' s Division made a hasty return with General Kirby Smith back to Arkansas to assist General Price in dealing with the other half of the Red River campaign , Union General Frederick Steele ' s Camden Expedition moving southwest from Little Rock . The Division and Tappan ’ s Brigade arrived just in time to join the pursuit of Steele ' s army as it retreated from Camden , and join in the attack on Steele as he tried to cross the Saline River at Jenkins ' Ferry on April 30 , 1864 . After an all - night march through a rainstorm and ankle - deep mud , Tappan ’ s Brigade reinforced Gause ' s Brigade , and personally led by General Churchill , the Confederate force made repeated attacks on the Union federals attempting to cross the river . During the Battle of Jenkins Ferry , the consolidated command reported 4 killed and 22 wounded . Tappan ' s Brigade and the 27th Arkansas returned to the vicinity of Camden following Jenkins ' Ferry , and saw no substantial combat for the remainder of the war . The regiment participated in the following battles : Surrender . This regiment surrendered with the Department of the Trans - Mississippi , General E . Kirby Smith commanding , May 26 , 1865 . With few exceptions , the Arkansas Infantry regiments in the Trans - Mississippi simply disbanded without formally surrendering . When the Trans - Mississippi Department surrendered , all of the Arkansas infantry regiments were encamped in and around Marshall , Texas ( war - ravaged Arkansas no longer able to subsist the army ) . The regiments were ordered to report to Shreveport , Louisiana , to be paroled but none of them did so . Some individual soldiers went to Shreveport on their own to be paroled , others reported to Union garrisons at Fort Smith , Pine Bluff or Little Rock to receive their paroles , but for the most part , the men simply went home .