Chalk Bluff in the Civil War

Skirmish of May 15, 1862

Chalk Bluff occupied a strategic position during the Civil War. Its cliffs commanded a vital river crossing on the only major road from Missouri into the Crowley's Ridge country. Provisions were collected here and shipped downstream to Confederate forces.

At daybreak on May 15, 1862 Union troops seized the ferry, crossed the river under fire, captured the town and drove the Confederates into the woods.