Journeys of Discovery: Shiloh National Military Park visit with ranger/historian Christopher Mekow

Shiloh National Military Park ranger and historian Christopher Mekow takes us on a walking tour of the historic battlefield and offers fascinating insights about the two-day battle, April 6-7, 1862. Nearly 110,000 American troops fought in the battle that resulted in 23,746 casualties--more than in all of America's previous wars combined. The two days of fighting did not end in a decisive tactical victory for either side—the Union held the battlefield but failed to pursue the withdrawing Confederate forces—but the battle was a decisive strategic Confederate defeat. After the Battle of Shiloh , Union forces proceeded to capture Corinth, Mississippi and its critical railroad junction--the intersection of the North/South Mobile & Ohio RR and the East/West Memphis & Charleston RR. The battlefield is named after Shiloh Methodist Church , a small log church near Pittsburg Landing, Tennessee. Pittsburg Landing is the point on the Tennessee River where the Union forces landed for the