Island No. 10 Battlefield Sites

Follow the signs in downtown Tiptonville to find this Civil War site, about a mile outside of town. Island No. 10, now underwater, was once located on the New Madrid Bend of the river and provided a strong Confederate defensive position. In 1862, Union gunboats attacked the island and started a weeks-long struggle, eventually gaining access to the South. Over 6,000 Confederate prisoners were taken at surrender, and the Union swiftly moved south to take Fort Pillow and Memphis. Federal troops retained control of this valuable Southern gateway for the rest of the war. Markers at the site tell the story of the island and the fallen Confederate soldiers once buried there.