Devil's Backbone AR009

supportedunresolved Cabell says he kept heavy scouts on both sides of the river and 25 miles beyond Scullyville, and claims to have known positively that the enemy had at least 2,300 effective men. Britton says Blunt, with no information of Cabell's movements in the night, advanced at daylight to find the position abandoned.

Attributed knowledge from an interested report and a history; no original messages inspected.

supportedunresolved Cabell says he sent the baggage trains ahead to Jenny Lind and the ordnance train to Waldron, and that, apart from a few commissary stores, all public property was saved. Britton says Cabell loaded the public property at Fort Smith into a train sent to the rear, and that Cloud's brigade had marched upwards of a hundred miles in four days from Perryville.

An interested report and a history; no quartermaster return inspected.

supportedunresolved Cabell says he fell back to reach the mountains and get his trains and public property across, and contented himself with repulsing the enemy and protecting the property. Britton says Blunt determined to march against Cabell near Fort Smith before he could be reinforced, and detached Cloud to pursue. NPS says Blunt ordered Cloud to continue the pursuit.

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

disputedpost_outcome The frozen result reads Union victory and the live result Union Victory. Cabell says the enemy was repulsed and he withdrew in good order to Waldron after posting a picket on the field. Britton says a battalion and three of Cabell's regiments broke and ran, and Cloud occupied the field; NPS says the Confederates retired in disorder to Waldron.

Retain the original result and engagement interval; later movements and campaign contribution are different measures. No new probabilities or individual causal credit. Cabell's account of a repulse conflicts with the others.

disputedpost_outcome The frozen casualty text reads 81 total (US 16; CS 65); the live field reads 31 (US 14; CS 17). Cabell gives his loss as 5 killed and 12 wounded with missing unknown, 6 killed and 14 wounded over two days, and claims the enemy lost about 30 killed and 100 to 150 wounded; he says a fleeing regiment carried off 80 prisoners under sentence from his provost guard. Britton repeats Cabell's 5 and 12 and gives Cloud's report of two killed, including Captain Lines, twelve wounded and thirty prisoners taken.

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. Cabell's Union figures are an interested claim; the released provost prisoners are not battle casualties.

supportedunresolved Britton says Blunt detached Cloud to pursue while he occupied Fort Smith, and that Cloud dismounted part of his cavalry and drove Monroe's regiment up the mountain. Cabell says he placed Monroe's regiment in ambush and that several regiments and a battalion ran from the field. The frozen commanders are Brigadier General W. L. Cabell and Colonel William F. Cloud.

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 2nd Kansas Cavalry, 6th Missouri Cavalry, and two sections of Rabb's 2nd Indiana Battery [US] and Cabell's Brigade [CS], with no numerical bounds; the live field reads zero. Cabell says his brigade's aggregate was over 3,000 but he never had more than 1,600 in the field or 1,200 for duty, that desertion had reduced it to about 1,250 by August 31, that the enemy had at least 2,300 effective men and eight guns, and that Cloud pursued with 1,500 cavalry, six guns and 40 wagons of infantry; after the action he could raise no more than 900. Britton names Cloud's units as the Second Kansas and Sixth Missouri State Militia Cavalry and two sections of Rabb's battery, and Cabell's as three regiments and three battalions of cavalry, a regiment of infantry and a battery.

An interested commander's aggregate, field and duty figures at different dates and his estimates of the enemy. Britton's 'State Militia' differs from the frozen unit name. None is adopted as a matched opening strength. The live zero is not measured absence.

supportedunresolved Britton says the country was rough and mountainous, with timber and brush at the foot of the mountain where a large force could lie near the road unseen. Cabell says he formed at the foot of Backbone Mountain about 16 miles from Fort Smith, with Monroe's regiment in ambush and the other regiments in echelon on the mountainside and the battery commanding the field.

Ground from a history and an interested report; no map inspected. The ambush position was chosen by Cabell during the retreat.