The weather was nice today. The Confederates continued to skirmish with the Union troops. Confederate General Taylor moved his 6,000 troops around Alexandria, and was intent on causing as much trouble for the Union forces as possible.
The Union forces were stalled in Alexandria for a good reason: the Union navy was trapped above the falls. The water level of the Red River had fallen so low that many of the Admiral Porter’s ships could not continue.
The situation seemed desperate. One option was to leave a large number of troops with the ships until the water level rose. But that might not happen until next Spring. Another option was to destroy all of the ships and move on. Neither of these options were desirable.
Lt. Colonel Bailey, the Chief Engineer of the 19th Army Corp, suggested they build a dam to raise the level of the river so that the ships could pass. His idea was accepted and orders were soon given to begin construction of the dam.
