Mansfield State Historic Site

Mansfield State Historic Site is a Louisiana state historic site which preserves the site of the 1864 Battle of Mansfield in the American Civil War. It is located four miles south of Mansfield, the seat of DeSoto Parish in northwestern Louisiana. The battle is considered significant because Confederate troops succeeded in the overall Red River Campaign in turning back large Union forces, preventing the progression of the war into Texas, and perhaps delaying the final southern surrender on April 9, 1865.

The Union expected the Red River Campaign to lead to the seizure of cotton for New England mills, to prevent a French-Mexican force from joining the Confederates, and provide protection for Union loyalists in Texas and bring the state back into the Union. The capture of Shreveport, then the Louisiana capital as well as headquarters of Trans-Mississippi Confederate operations, was another Union goal. The Union army and navy progressed through Alexandria and reached by early April 1864. The army separated from the navy at Natchitoches and veered toward Mansfield, a situation which left ground troops without naval backup.

Confederate General Richard Taylor, son of U.S. President and General Zachary Taylor, decided to challenge the Union at Mansfield, rather than waiting until Union commander Nathaniel P. Banks reached Shreveport. This tactic allowed Taylor to face the enemy on more equal terms because the Confederate troops were heavily outnumbered. At noon on April 8, 1864, some 6,400 Union troops faced 10,500 Confederates. The Union formed a line of battle along a rail fence and ridge called "Honeycutt Hill". On orders from Taylor, General Alfred Mouton and his division charged the rail fence. Mouton was killed in the attack, but General Camille Armand de Polignac, a native of France, continued the advance and overwhelmed Union troops. In a plaque in the museum Taylor is quoted as having said: "The death of the gallant Mouton affected me. He joined me soon after I reached Western Louisiana and had ever proven faithful to duty. Modest, unselfish, and patriotic, he showed best in action, always leading his men." In addition to the monument in his honor, Mouton is honored with an interpretative nature trail in the park.

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