Operations in the Southwest

In February 1862, a band of 120 Arizona Rangers under Captain Sherod Hunter entered Tucson and raised the Confederate flag. Hunter hoped to secure the Arizona Territory and expand the border of the Confederacy westward. Unionists there were jailed and their property confiscated. Union forces in California learned of the threat and quickly mobilized. In early April, Union Colonel James H. Carleton led a “Column from California” of 2,350 men toward Tucson. On April 15, Union cavalry skirmished with the Confederate Rangers near Picacho Peak. After a sharp fight, both sides withdrew.

Although the Rangers delayed the Union force and foiled a surprise attack against the town, Hunter evacuated Tucson in May when no additional Confederate forces were sent to the area. Carleton's Californians recaptured Tucson without firing a shot. Although it was a small skirmish, the engagement at Picacho Peak was the westernmost battle of the American Civil War and ended Confederate hopes of establishing a presence in Arizona.