2nd Arkansas Light Artillery 2nd Arkansas Light Artillery , ( 1860 – 1865 ) was a Confederate Army artillery battery which served during the American Civil War . The battery spent the majority of the war serving in Confederate forces east of the Mississippi River . The battery is also referred to as the Clark County Artillery , Robert ' s Arkansas Battery and Wiggins Arkansas Battery . Organization . The battery was recruited and organized in Arkadelphia , Arkansas by Captain Franklin Roberts , a local watch maker . On December 29 , 1860 , militia commissions were issued to the officers of a " Volunteer Light Artillery Company " in the 28th Regiment , Arkansas State Militia . Arkansas had yet to secede from the Union so these new organizations were formed under the Arkansas Militia Law which authorized each county for form four volunteer companies , in additional to its infantry regiment . The original battery officers were : On March 29 , 1861 , Colonel William M . Bruce , commander of the 28th Regiment , Arkansas State Militia , wrote to Arkansas Governor Henry Rector to report the election of officers in his regiment and to request a fife and drum set for the Clark County Artillery under Captain Frank Roberts . Adjutant General Burgevin wrote to Captain Roberts informing him of the availability of a pair of 6 pounder guns and mini rifles for his unit . is assume that this letter was written following the seizure of the Federal Arsenal at Little Rock by state militia forces . The battery was made up mostly of Clark County men , with a few from Hot Springs County . The battery was enrolled in Confederate service at Little Rock , Arkansas on July 15 , 1863 On July 15 , 1861 , Confederate Brigadier General William J . Hardee arrived in Little Rock to assume unified Confederate command in the state . The following day the state Military Board signed an " Article of Transfer " , which provided that all state forces ( excepting the militia ) , would be transferred on a voluntary basis to the command of the Confederate States of America . All weapons , ammunition , and supplies were also to be transferred . The " Clarke County Artillery , Commanded by Captain Roberts " was included in the articles of transfer . The batteries enlistment documents indicate that they were enrolled into Confederate service by Adjutant General Edmond Burgevin . The battery officers when transferred to Confederate service were : The new unit was initially sent to the depot at Pitman ' s Ferry , near Pocahontas , Arkansas . The unit is included in Brigadier General William Hardee ' s return of troops assigned to the Upper District of Arkansas , dated August 31 , 1861 , and is listed as included two officers and 85 enlisted men . Apparently the Battery had either never received the guns promised by Adjutant General Edmond Burgevin , or the guns had been condemned by General Hardee as unserviceable . Hardee ' s new command was drilled and disciplined until the last of August , when Hardee ' s brigade marched by land to Point Pleasant , Misssouri on the Missouri River , and then traveled by steamboat to the Confederate stronghold at Columbus , Kentucky . Unlike the rest of Hardee ' s Brigade , Roberts Company remained at Pittman ' s Ferry , apparently with out guns and was designated as an independent infantry company . General Hardee eventually ordered Roberts ' company to join him in Kentucky as infantry but Colonel Solon Borland , placed a hold on the unit opting to instead keep them at the depot , and arm the with the discarded cannon to defend against a possible Union attack from Missouri into norhteast Arkansas . On November 5 , 1861 , Col Borland reported : Colonel Borland , mentioned the unit again on November 10 , 1861 in a report to Generla Polk : The battery remained on duty in northeast Arkansas for two months , then was sent for service in east of the Mississippi River . Battles . The unit moved from Pittman ' s Ferry to Kentucky where and joined Major General William J . Hardee ' s Army of Central Kentucky . After the losses of Fort Henry and Fort Donelson in February 1862 , Confederate General Albert Sidney Johnston withdrew his forces into western Tennessee , northern Mississippi , and Alabama to reorganize . Then retreated through western Tennessee to northern Mississippi . The unit ' s muster roll for the period January 1 , 1862 to February 28 , 1862 stated : On March 29 , 1862 , the Army of Central Kentucky was merged into the Army of Mississippi in preparation for the Battle of Shiloh . During the Battle of Shiloh , a . k . a , Pittsburg Landing , Tennessee , Sunday , April 6 , 1862 – Monday , April 7 , 1862 , the battery , the battery , armed with two 6 - pounder smoothbores and two 12 - pounder howitzers . was listed as unattached . The unit became involved in the largest concentration of artillery in North American up to that time . By the afternoon of Sunday , April 6 , 1862 , men of Prentiss ' s and W . H . L . Wallace ' s divisions had established and held a position nicknamed the " Hornet ' s Nest " . The Confederates assaulted the position for several hours rather than simply bypassing it , and they suffered heavy casualties during these assaults . It was not until the Confederates , led by Brig . Gen . Daniel Ruggles , assembled over 50 cannons , including Robert ' s Arkansas Battery , into a position known as " Ruggles ' s Battery " to blast the line at close range that they were able to surround the position , and the Hornet ' s Nest fell after holding out for seven hours . In early May 1862 , Confederate forces underwent an army - wide reorganization due to the passage of the Conscription Act by the Confederate Congress in April 1862 . All twelve - month regiments and units had to re - muster and enlist for two additional years or the duration of the war ; a new election of officers was ordered ; and men who were exempted from service by age or other reasons under the Conscription Act were allowed to take a discharge and go home . Officers who did not choose to stand for re - election were also offered a discharge . The reorganization was accomplished among all the Arkansas regiments and unit in and around Corinth , Mississippi , following the Battle of Shiloh . On May 25 , 1862 , Captain Roberts resigned , and Jannedens H . Wiggins , who had risen from first sergeant to first lieutenant , was elected captain . The battery would hereafter be known as Wiggins ’ Battery , and the compiled service records of the men are filed under this designation at the National Archives . Roberts ' s Arkansas Battery is listed in General P . G . T Beauregard ' s report of the Confederate Army of the Mississippi on May 26 , 1862 . The unit is assigned to Colonel Robert G . Shaver ' s 1st Brigade of General Hardee ' s 3rd Army Corps . By June 30 , 1862 , Robert ' s Battery , now under the command of Jannedens H . Wiggins , is assigned to Colonel St . John R . Liddell ' s brigade of General Hardee ' s 3rd Army Corps . Larry Daniels , in Cannoneers in Gray : The Field Artillery of the Army of Tennessee , 1861 - 1865 . ( Tuscaloosa , AL : Fire Ant Books , 2005 ) . , mis - identifies Trigg ' s Battery as the Clark County Light Artillery . This confusion was apparently caused by the transfer of several former members of Trigg ' s / Austin ' s Arkansas Battery to Roberts ' Clark County Artillery following the breakup of Trigg ' s Battery . On July 23 , 1862 , a number of men from Captain Thomas M . Austin ’ s ( formerly Trigg ' s Arkansas Battery disbanded Arkansas light battery were assigned to the Clark County Artillery . The battery was augmented with replacements twice during the war , to replace casualties suffered . In late 1862 they received a number of replacements from the 1st Alabama Cavalry . Also during this time , the battery was apparently assigned to Montgomery ’ s 14th Georgia Light Artillery Battalion as Company E . This assignment was apparently temporary , but a requisition signed by Lieutenant J . Wylie Callaway of Wiggins ’ Battery , dated 4 October 1862 refers to the organization as " Roberts ’ Battery , Montgomery ’ s Battalion Georgia Artillery . " The battery did not participate in the Kentucky Campaign , from June to October , 1862 . The unit ' s muster roll for the period July to August 1862 , and again in October 1862 list the battery ' s station as Camp Randolph , Georgia . It appears that Roberts ' Battery was transferred from Liddell ' s Brigade to the reserve artillery of the army at the reorganisation at Chattanooga prior to the invasion of Kentucky although no definite order to that effect can be found . Swett ' s Mississippi Battery was assigned to Liddell instead . The battery then became part of The Army of Middle Tennessee when that unit was organized in October 1862 . It was then transferred to cavalry service und Brigadier General Nathan B . Forrest , probably in late October . Major Rice E . Graves , Chief of Artillery of Major General John C . Breckinridge ’ s Army of Middle Tennessee , reports on 11 November 1862 that Roberts ’ Battery along with Freeman ’ s Tennessee Battery had been assigned to Forrest ’ s Cavalry Brigade . The battery at this time comprised 2 six - pounder guns and 2 12 - pounder bronze howitzers . Graves also provides information on the disposition of the batteries that made up Montgomery ’ s Battalion . Brigadier General Forrest praised the conduct of Captain J . H . Wiggins , commanding Roberts ' Battery in his report of the action at Nashville on 5 November 1862 . Sometime prior to The Battle of Stones River the battery was transferred from General Forrest to General Wheeler ' s Cavalry . During the Battle of Stone ' s River , December 31 , 1862 , to January 2 , 1863 , the battery was assigned to Brigadier General Joseph Wheeler ' s Cavalry Brigade . During the skirmishing leading up to the battle , the battery fought as independent sections under Lieutenants J . P . Bryant , and J . W . Calloway . Lieutenant Bryan lead one gun of one section which accompanied Major General John C . Breckinridge ' s attack on the Union left flank on January 2 , 1863 . During the Tullahoma Campaign , which followed the Confederate defeat at Stones River , the battery was assigned to Brigadier General William T . Martin ' s Brigade of Wheeler ' s Cavalry . In April 17 , 1863 , Brigadier General William T . Martin ordered the battery to exchange two of its old guns for new howitzers . Martin was concerned that the two guns being turned in could not be moved due to their poor condition . Captain Wiggins compiled service records contain correspondence relating to Brigadier General Martin ' s orders to turn in two of his guns . Wiggins reports that he had two rifled guns that had become very inaccurate due to the rifling becoming worn . He indicated that the howitzers in his battery were U . S . manufactured . Wiggins indicated that he had mounted his rifled guns on 12 lbs Howitzer carriages because these carriages required fewer horses to draw . Captain Wiggins indicated that he had been directed to obtain horses for a six gun battery and that he was in need of a forge . On April 26 , 1863 Major General Gordon Granger , commanding the reserve corps indicated that Martin ' s Division and Wiggins Battery had moved toward Chapel Hill , Tennessee . As the Union Army of the Cumberland , commanded by Maj . Gen . William Rosecrans , maneuvered the Confederate Army of Tennessee out of its entrenchments around Shelbyville , Tennessee , on June 27 , 1863 , a section of the battery commanded by Captain Jannedens H . Wiggins was cut off from the main force . The section was overtaken , resulting in the capture of three artillery pieces and thirty soldiers . Twenty nine of those would remain prisoners of war until well into the summer of 1865 , after the war ' s end , before being released in a general parole . However , Captain Wiggins was sent to an officers ' prison , and was released during a prisoner exchange in the early summer of 1865 , before the war ended . Thus , he was able to return to duty for the unit ' s last action . When Captain Wiggins was captured , command of the battery fell to 1st Lieutenant J . P . Bryant . During the Chickamauga Campaign , the battery as assigned to Colonel Alfred A . Russell ' s 2nd Brigade of Brigadier General William T . Martin ' s division of Major General Joseph Wheeler ' s Cavalry Corps . Wheeler and his troopers guarded the army ' s left flank at Chickamauga in September 1863 , and after the routed Union Army collected in Chattanooga , Gen . Bragg sent Wheeler ' s men into central Tennessee to destroy railroads and Federal supply lines in a major raid . On October 2 his raid at Anderson ' s Cross Roads ( also known as Powell ' s Crossroads ) destroyed more than 700 Union supply wagons , tightening the Confederates siege on Chattanooga . Pursued by his Union counterparts , Wheeler advanced to McMinnville and captured its 600 - man garrison . There were more actions at Murfreesboro and Farmington , but by October 9 Wheeler had safely crossed the Tennessee River at Muscle Shoals , Alabama . During this raid two of Wiggin ' s guns had to be abandoned due to their poor condition . The extensive raid caused the mounted arm of the army to miss the battles for Chattanooga ( November 23 – 25 ) . Wheeler returned from his raid in time to cover Bragg ' s retreat from Chattanooga following the Union breakthrough at Missionary Ridge on November 25 . Wheeler ' s cavalry and Maj . Gen . Patrick Cleburne ' s infantry fought at the Battle of Ringgold Gap on November 27 . Wheeler and his men also supported Lt . Gen . James Longstreet ' s ultimately unsuccessful efforts during the Knoxville Campaign from November 4 to December 23 , 1863 . During the Knoxville Campaign , the battery was assigned to Brigadier General John T . Morgan ' s Division of Major General William T . Martin ' s Cavalry Corps . The battery was mentioned for it ' s part in the Battle of Bean ' s Station , December 14 , 1863 , in Grainger County , Tennessee . On April 1 , 1864 , Captain W . L . Scott , Chief of Artillery filed a report of light batteries in Wheeler ' s Cavalry Corps . Wiggins Battery is listed as belonging to Brigadier General Martin ' s division of Major General Wheeler ' s Cavalry Corps . Scott was apparently only able to report the status of one section of the battery which was stationed at Oxford Alabama and contained 44 effectives with eight absent . The section had six serviceable horses and three unserviceable animals . On April 1 , 1864 , as Confederate Forces were re - organized for the Atlanta Campaign , General Order No . 29 assigned Brigadier General Francis A . Shoup to command the artillery of the Army of Tennessee and Wiggin ' s Battery was assigned to support Wheeler ' s Cavalry Corps . Brigadier General Shoup divided the artillery into battalions assigned to each corps . On April 30 , 1864 , Wiggins Battery , now under the command of 1st Lieutenant J . P . Bryant , was assigned to Lieutenant Colonel Feliex H . Robertson ' s Artillery Battalion in Wheeler ' s Cavalry Corps . On June 30 , 1864 , the battery is again listed as assigned to Lieutenant Colonel Feliex H . Robertson ' s Artillery Battalion in Wheeler ' s Cavalry Corps . During the Atlanta Campaign Wheeler ' s cavalry corps screened the flanks of the Army of Tennessee as Gen . Joseph E . Johnston drew back from several positions toward Atlanta . In July , Sherman sent two large cavalry columns to destroy the railroads supplying the defenders of Atlanta . With fewer than 5 , 000 cavalrymen , Wheeler defeated the enemy raids , resulting in the capture of one of the two commanding generals , Maj . Gen . George Stoneman . In August , Wheeler ' s corps crossed the Chattahoochee River in an attempt to destroy the railroad Sherman was using to supply his force from Chattanooga . Wheeler ' s men captured the town of Dalton , but he was unable to defeat the Union garrison protected in a nearby fort . Wheeler then took his men into East Tennessee , crossing the Tennessee River above Knoxville . His raid continued to the west , causing minor interruptions in the Nashville and Chattanooga Railroad and then continued south through Franklin until he re - crossed the Tennessee at Tuscumbia . Wheeler ' s raid was described by historian Ed Bearss as a " Confederate disaster " because it caused minimum damage to the Union while denying Gen . John Bell Hood , now in command of the Army of Tennessee , the direct support of his cavalry arm . Without accurate intelligence of Sherman ' s dispositions , Hood was beaten at Jonesborough and forced to evacuate Atlanta . Wheeler rendezvoused with Hood ' s army in early October after destroying the railroad bridge at Resaca . In On July 1864 , Colonel Feliex H . Robertson demanded the discharge of 1st Lieutenant J . P . Bryant for inefficiency and incompetence . Bryant tendered his resignation on November 27 , 1864 and was discharged in accordance with A . & . I . G . O . Special Order No . 291 / 35 , dated December 8 , 1864 . Lieutenant Thomas M . Ellis assumed command of the battery following Bryant ' s discharge . In late 1864 , Wheeler ' s cavalry did not accompany Hood on his Franklin - Nashville Campaign back into Tennessee and was virtually the only effective Confederate force to oppose Sherman ' s March to the Sea to Savannah . On January 15 , 1865 , Colonel G . G . Dibrell , commanding the Cavalry Division , reported that he had with him Sergeant McDaniel and two guns of Wiggins Battery . When Lieutenant General William J . Hardee provided a return of his command , The Department of South Carolina , Georgia , and Florida , Wiggins ' Battery , now under the command of Lieutenant Thomas M . Ellis , is listed as belonging to an artillery battalion , commanded by Major James Hamilton , in Iverson ' s Division of Major General Wheeler ' s Cavalry Corps . Wheeler and his men continued to attempt to stop Sherman in the spring 1865 Carolinas Campaign . He defeated a Union cavalry force under Brig . Gen . Judson Kilpatrick at Aiken , South Carolina , February 11 . He was replaced as cavalry chief by Lt . Gen . Wade Hampton and fought under him at the Battle of Bentonville on March 19 – 20 , 1865 . In April 1865 , Captain Wiggins , recently released from his prisoner of war status , reunited with his battery , which was by this time was located in North Carolina . Surrender . On April 18 , 1865 , three days after the death of President Abraham Lincoln , General Joseph E . Johnston signed an armistice with General Sherman at Bennett Place , a farmhouse near Durham Station . On April 19 , 1865 , The 10th Michigan Cavalry was at Newton , North Carolina , paroling prisoners . 11 men , including Captain Wiggins were paroled at Newton , North Carolina on April 19 , 1865 . Of the just over 160 men that had served in the battery from the beginning of the war , only 11 remained at the time of their surrender . Sherman got himself into political hot water by offering terms of surrender to Johnston that encompassed political issues as well as military , without authorization from General Grant or the United States government . The confusion on this issue lasted until April 26 , when Johnston agreed to purely military terms and formally surrendered his army and all Confederate forces in the Carolinas , Georgia , and Florida .