The information available on the Battle of Mansura is scattered through regimental histories and letters, etc. all over the place. No one real good source of info exists anywhere. The battle has generally been described, by a lot of the participants, as one of the most glorious battles of the entire war, in that the whole battle line, several miles long, was viewable by everyone there, and there were lots of flags and gleaming bayonets and cannons shooting and horses snorting . . . and almost no one got hurt. More animal casualties than human. There were a few killed and wounded, but as Civil War battles went, very few. The battle was very fluid, and the lines moved constantly - picture the Yankees coming down from Marksville, stretched from Old Hwy 1 about two miles toward Hessmer, moving toward Mansura. The Confederates held Mansura at the start of the battle, and gradually fell back, eventually side-stepping out of the Union's way toward Hessmer, and letting the Yankees move on to Moreauville and eventually, Simmesport. I've only found two dead Yankees by name, with 40-50 wounded, mostly minor wounds. The Confeds had a few more dead, but not many. After the battle, the Yankees moved toward the Atchafalaya, with the rear guard sleeping in Moreauville that night. The Confederates came in behind them after they passed.

Lawrence Van Alstyne has a good US account of the battle, and George Putnam, too. Good luck finding either one. Alwynn Barr wrote a brief history of some of the CS troops involved. And there's a fantastic first-hand CS account in the NSU library, but it's mis-dated so no one knows where to find it. It will be out in a book edited by Gary Joiner in a year or so. (The Harris letter is my contribution.)

People still occasionally find cannonballs on the battlefield, scattered from the Marksville airport to halfway to Hessmer. The locals took refuge at Lake Pearl or in the Old River bottoms during the battle. The Yankees tore up the town pretty bad after the battle. Took their army 8 hours to move through the town after it was over. General Banks' guide was a local Jayhawker named David Seiss, who served as the Mayor of Mansura for many years after the War. Go figure.