Cape Girardeau MO020

supportedunresolved Marmaduke says he learned on the 25th from Carter that McNeil had been pursued to within four miles of Cape Girardeau, that Carter's dispatch bearers were captured, and that he decided not to storm the place on learning the Federals were in the fortifications. McNeil expected to be stormed the next day.

Attributed knowledge from interested reports; no original messages inspected.

supportedunresolved Marmaduke says the country for at least 100 miles was without forage or subsistence and his horses were worn by forced marches, and that McNeil was heavily reinforced by water. McNeil asked for two infantry regiments, a battery and ammunition, and reported that two steamers with reinforcements had arrived. Kirby Smith's indorsement says the expedition was made chiefly because of the scarcity of forage in Arkansas.

Interested reports and an indorsement; no supply return inspected.

supportedunresolved Marmaduke says he aimed to capture the Patterson outpost and strike McNeil, hoping to arm and mount his command from the captured force, and at Cape Girardeau ordered only a demonstration, which amounted almost to an attack. NPS says the expedition was meant to relieve pressure on other Confederate troops and disrupt Union operations.

Stated aims from an interested report and a summary.

disputedpost_outcome The frozen result reads Union victory and the live result Union Victory. McNeil reported that he had repulsed the attack. Marmaduke calls the action a demonstration and says he withdrew his columns toward Jackson. NPS says Marmaduke was repulsed.

Retain the original result and engagement interval; later movements and campaign contribution are different measures. No new probabilities or individual causal credit. The sides characterize the action differently.

disputedpost_outcome The frozen casualty text reads 337 total (US 12; CS 325), as does the live field. No inspected report gives a loss for April 26: McNeil's dispatches give none, and Marmaduke's figure of some 30 killed, 60 wounded and 120 missing (read 'GO') covers the whole expedition, with the compiled addenda return garbled in OCR.

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 325 has no inspected basis; the expedition total is not assigned to this record.

supportedunresolved Marmaduke says he ordered Shelby's demonstration and brought up Carter's column in support; McNeil reported and signed as commanding at Cape Girardeau. NPS names Shelby's brigade as making the demonstration (calling him John S. Shelby). The frozen commanders are Brigadier Generals John S. Marmaduke and John McNeil; the live page lists Marmaduke without a rank.

Command roles from interested reports and a summary; 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 Garrison plus some reinforcements [US] and cavalry division [CS], with no numerical bounds; the live field reads 2000 (US 2000; CS 0). McNeil telegraphed that he was attacked by 8,000 men. Marmaduke says his whole strength was about 5,000 men with ten guns, of whom about 1,200 were unarmed and 900 dismounted, that he estimated McNeil's force at Bloomfield at about 2,000, and that Cape Girardeau was held by about 3,000 infantry and cavalry with four large forts. NPS appears to give McNeil's combined force as about 2,000; its 'his combined force' does not name the antecedent, and the live Forces field gives US 2000.

An interested enemy estimate, an interested own-strength figure with its armed/mounted qualification and a garrison estimate after reinforcement by water. None is adopted as a matched opening strength. The live CS zero is not measured absence.

supportedunresolved Marmaduke says the Federals were admirably posted with great natural advantages, supported by four large forts with heavy guns; NPS says the Federals had placed themselves in the fortifications. McNeil says he held gunboats in readiness.

An interested report and a summary; no map or engineer record inspected.