Opposite
Cairo, was fortified early in 1861 by the
National troops.
It was on the west.
side of the
Mississippi River, a few feet higher than
Cairo, so that a battery upon it would completely command that place.
The Confederates were anxious to secure this point, and to that end
General Pillow, who was collecting Confederate troops in
western Tennessee.
worked with great energy.
When
Governor Jackson, of
Missouri.
raised the standard of revolt at
Jefferson City, with
Sterling Price as military commander,
General Lyon, in command of the department, moved more vigorously in the work already begun in the fortification of
Bird's Point.
His attention had been called to the importance of the spot by
Captain Benham, of the engineers, who constructed the works.
They were made so strong that they could defy any force the
Confederates might bring against them.
With these opposite points so fortified, the Nationals controlled a great portion of the navigation of the
Mississippi River.
See
Missouri.
