Cane Hill AR004

supportedunresolved Britton says Blunt's spies located Marmaduke's picket, that the Confederate officers had heard of his approach the evening before, and that Blunt made a detour by an obscure road and came within half a mile of the Confederate camp unopposed. Shelby says he had eighteen hours' notice from his commander that the enemy were advancing but was struck sooner than he wished, having expected the enemy on either the Cincinnati or Fayetteville road.

Attributed knowledge from a history and an interested report; no scouting reports inspected.

supportedunresolved Britton says Blunt's troops carried four days' rations in their haversacks, that by night the infantry could bring into line scarcely half their morning numbers from exhaustion, and that the infantry had left their knapsacks and blankets at Cane Hill. Shelby says his guns exhausted all their artillery ammunition in the mountain fight. NPS says Shelby's delaying action protected the Confederate supply trains.

Retrospective march and fatigue descriptions and an interested report; no supply or ammunition return inspected.

supportedunresolved NPS says Hindman sent Marmaduke to occupy the Cane Hill area and Blunt advanced to destroy his command if possible. Britton says Blunt meant to strike Marmaduke before reinforcements arrived. Shelby says that a Union passage down the main road would cut his brigade off from the Cove Creek road over the mountain, the route the Confederate train had taken.

Stated aims from a summary, a history and an interested report.

disputedpost_outcome The frozen result reads Confederate tactical victory and the live result Confederate Victory (tactical). Britton describes successive Confederate withdrawals ending in a truce, after which Marmaduke retreated toward Van Buren and Blunt returned to Cane Hill. Shelby says the last Union charge was sent back in confusion, ending the day. NPS says the Federals withdrew to Cane Hill while the Confederates returned to Van Buren.

Retain the original result and engagement interval; later movements and campaign contribution are different measures. No new probabilities or individual causal credit. The labels differ in emphasis from Britton's account of repeated Confederate retreats.

disputedpost_outcome The frozen casualty text reads 475 total (US 40; CS 435); the live field reads 85 (US 40; CS 45). Britton relays Blunt's report of four killed and thirty-six wounded, and of seventy-five Confederates killed and mortally wounded left on the ground, adding that the Confederate wounded carried off are not known. Shelby does not state his brigade's losses, saying they were already reported.

Original casualty returns were not inspected; preserve totals, categories, cutoffs and differences. No canonical reconciliation or casualty-based opening count; related actions must not be added without resolving population overlap. The frozen CS 435 and live CS 45 have no inspected basis.

supportedunresolved Britton says Blunt reconnoitred Marmaduke's position, directed the batteries and flanking columns, and at the defile called for volunteers, Jewell leading the charge in which he was mortally wounded; Marmaduke's flag of truce, carried by MacDonald, ended the day. Shelby says Marmaduke ordered him to fall back after he reported infantry turning his left, and that the general was everywhere on the field. NPS names Shelby's brigade as the one that fought the delaying action. The frozen commanders are Brigadier Generals John S. Marmaduke and James G. Blunt; the live page lists Marmaduke without a rank.

Command roles from a history and an interested report; the listed commanders do not receive automatic sole credit.

unknownunresolved

No inspected return establishes matched personnel at a common opening boundary. The frozen side-specific numerical strength bounds are blank (missing_numeric_strength). No figure in this pass is adopted as a simultaneous opening force.

disputedunresolved The frozen force field reads Department of Missouri [US] and two cavalry brigades [CS], with no numerical bounds; the live field reads zero. Britton says Blunt learned on the 24th that Marmaduke had seven thousand cavalry and some artillery, and that Blunt marched on the 27th at the head of five thousand men and thirty pieces of artillery; he names Marmaduke's division as Shelby's, MacDonald's and Carroll's brigades, Bledsoe's six-gun battery and a company of Quantrill's men. Shelby lists his brigade as three regiments, Elliott's scouts and Quantrill's company, with two iron 6-pounders under Bledsoe, and says the Federals had at least twelve guns on his position and vastly superior numbers.

An intelligence estimate, a march strength, unit lists and an interested impression of relative numbers. Britton's three brigades differ from the frozen two. None is adopted as a matched opening strength. The live zero is not measured absence.

supportedunresolved Britton describes a Confederate line on high ground with timber behind it, a later line behind a low ridge with a deep ravine in front, a mountain too steep for field batteries except along the road, and the narrow Cove Creek valley between mountains rising perhaps a thousand feet, where the fight ended at a defile; he says the ground was too rough for cavalry. Shelby says his gun on the Fayetteville road stood on an elevated position and that the ground on the mountain did not allow forming by regiments or squadrons. NPS places the final stand on Cove Creek.

Ground described by a history and an interested report; no map inspected. The positions were chosen during the running fight.