| Battle of Bayou Fourche | |||||||
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| Part of the American Civil War | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
 United States (Union) |
 Confederate States | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Units involved | |||||||
| Army of Arkansas | District of Arkansas | ||||||
  Bayou Fourche Location in Arkansas | |||||||
The Battle of Bayou Fourche, also known as the Engagement at Bayou Fourche, was fought on September 10, 1863, near Little Rock, Arkansas, and was the final battle of the Little Rock campaign during the American Civil War. A Union force commanded by Major General Frederick Steele had begun an advance from Helena, Arkansas, west towards Little Rock in August. The Union campaign met light resistance aside from the Battle of Bayou Meto, while Confederate troops under Major General Sterling Price built fortifications on the other side of the Arkansas River from Little Rock.
To avoid a direct assault on Price's fortifications, Steele split his troops into two wings. Steele and the infantry advanced along the north bank of the Arkansas River, while Brigadier General John W. Davidson and the Union cavalry crossed the Arkansas River to outflank the Confederates from their fortifications. On the morning of September 10, Davidson's cavalry crossed the river and drove back a Confederate cavalry force commanded by Colonel Archibald Dobbins. Dobbins's men fell back to a body of water named Bayou Fourche, where Brigadier General John S. Marmaduke took command of the Confederate forces. The bayou separated the battlefield into two spheres of action, and Davidson advanced with troops on both sides of Bayou Fourche. After some fighting, the Confederates on the northern portion of the field were driven back and those south of the bayou retreated as well. Price had earlier decided to abandon Little Rock, and the city fell to the Union forces. The state government relocated to Washington, Arkansas, and Price withdrew his command to Arkadelphia.