Memphis was a major city served by both river and railroad transportation, and as such came under fire early in the Civil War.  The city fell under Federal occupation in June 1862.  Memphis remained an important city, even after strategic attention shifted to Middle Tennessee and the Atlanta campaign.
 
 

As shown in the above map extracted from the Official Records Atlas, Memphis was served by three major railroads that ran over Tennessee trackage:  the Memphis & Charleston, the Memphis & Ohio, and the Mississippi & Tennessee.  However, the three railroads did not physically connect, so that exchange of passengers and freight from one to the other involved awkward transfers by foot, horse, carriage or wagon.  This inconvenient and wasteful arrangement was not unique to Memphis (though it was uncommon in other major Tennessee railroad cities), and expressed a serious lack of coordination among competing rail companies.  Transfer of goods and passengers between river vehicles and railroads required a similar arrangement.

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Last update:  May 9, 2000