General Joseph E. Johnston, Narrative of Military Operations During the Civil War

[169] readiness to land and storm them as soon as their guns should be silenced. As that object had not been accomplished at six o'clock in the afternoon, General Grant abandoned the attempt, and determined to land at Bruinsburg. For this purpose the troops debarked at Hard Times, and marched to the plain below Grand Gulf; and the gunboats and transports,passing that place in the night, as they had done at Vicksburg, were in readiness at daybreak next morning to ferry the troops to Bruinsburg, six miles. The number of vessels was sufficient to transport a division at a time.

General Pemberton reported to me, by telegraph, that day: “The enemy is at Hard Times in large force, with barges and transports, indicating a purpose to attack Grand Gulf, with a view to Vicksburg. Very heavy firing at Grand Gulf; enemy shelling our batteries from above and below.”

At that time, according to General Pemberton's reports to me, more than twenty vessels, most of them gunboats, had passed the Confederate batteries, and were ready to aid the Federal army in its passage of the river.

Brigadier-General Bowen, who commanded at Grand Gulf, observing the movement of the Federal forces down the river, and their landing at Bruinsburg, placed Green's and Tracy's brigades on the route from that point into the interior, four miles in advance of Port Gibson. Here they were encountered and attacked early in the morning of the 1st of May, by the four divisions of McClernand's corps, which had crossed the river in the day and night of the 30th of April, and at once moved forward.