Port Hudson - Port Hudson, LA
N 30° 41.550 W 091° 16.153
15R E 665770 N 3396802
Port Hudson Site, location of the important American Civil War battle of the Siege of Port Hudson, fought in the earlt summer of 1863. Site is a State park area. Coordinates taken from front main entrance gate.
Waymark Code: WM66HV
Location: Louisiana, United States
Date Posted: 04/12/2009
Views: 1
Site features a full museum, walking/hiking trails lookout towers and plenty of history. Here is a brief history, taken from the Register application, located hereAlong the northern part of the Confederate defense perimeter at Port Hudson is
approximately a mile of meandering earthworks constructed on the natural defensive edge of the
terrace as it falls sixty-five to eighty feet off into the Sandy Creek and Foster Creek bottoms. The
earthworks include a Union fortification, Fort Babcock. The terrain is extremely rugged and is in its
natural setting, almost impenetrable in many areas. This accounts for its remarkable state of
preservation since the surrender of 9 July 1863.
The creeks wander along sandy bottoms through magnolia, oak, and sweetgum forests.
The hike up the steep slope to the terrace above is as difficult today as it was when the Union troops
were there more than 109 years ago. The defense lines are clearly in evidence and the hiker
continuing westward beyond the state owned lands shortly comes upon the hills and ridges
overlooking the Mississippi River bottom, some seventy-five feet below, and the Batture area, which
once formed the bed of the great river. From these heights one has an excellent view of the terrain
across which black soldiers for the first time in American history fought as members of the United
States Army in large numbers. The tract is immediately contiguous to land acquired by the state of
Louisiana. Casualties among black troops are buried in a common grave lost and forgotten in the
thickets of cottonwood and briar patches, flooded each spring by the high waters of the Mississippi.
A fresh deposit of silt has hidden from view the footprints and gravesite of these soldiers. Sandy
Creek beyond was crossed by two regiments of the Louisiana Native Guards of Free Colored on a
pontoon bridge.
The high bluff along the entire two miles of the Confederate river batteries brought, their
cannons to bear on the battle below. The resulting bombardment and the near impossibility of
climbing the steep incline below the cannons, along with the precipitous cliff, doomed the assault.
The charge of the black regiment was pictured in Harper's Weekly several months after the battle.
The natural wilderness of this and the adjacent state owned area may not remain
undisturbed for too much longer. Trespassers with metal detection equipment in search of cannon
shells, belt buckles, and other portions of the uniforms from the fallen soldiers, have begun to invade
the property with increasing frequency. The site is still very beautiful however, and is one of
America's little touched battlefields. Site opened these times Hours of Operation: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., daily. Closed on Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day. Guided tours are offered daily.
Entrance Fees: $2 per person; free for seniors (62 and over) and for children age 12 and under. Groups are asked to call in advance.
Street address: Port Hudson and environs along US 61 Port Hudson, LA USA
County / Borough / Parish: East Feliciana
Year listed: 1974
Historic (Areas of) Significance: Event (Military)
Periods of significance: 1850-1874
Historic function: Defense, Domestic. Sub - Battle Site, Secondary Structure, Single Dwelling
Current function: Defense, Domestic. Sub - Battle Site, Secondary Structure, Single Dwelling
Primary Web Site: [Web Link]
Secondary Website 1: [Web Link]
Privately owned?: Not Listed
Season start / Season finish: Not listed
Hours of operation: Not listed
Secondary Website 2: Not listed
National Historic Landmark Link: Not listed
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Visit Instructions: Please give the date and brief account of your visit. Include any additional observations or information that you may have, particularly about the current condition of the site. Additional photos are highly encouraged, but not mandatory.
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