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Between April and December 1862, a Confederate prison holding 700 prisoners—most of whom were captured at the Battle of Shiloh—was located near this historical marker, in between the Alabama River and Tallapoosa Street. The building was a cotton depot and only 40 feet wide and 200 feet long. Living conditions were very poor; the men did not have blankets and only the ground or wooden planks to sleep on. Rodents and disease compounded these problems. As a result, almost 200 men died before the prisoners were moved to Tuscaloosa.

The historical marker describing the prison is located outside a historic 1888 railroad building, which is now part of the Montgomery Biscuits Baseball stadium.

The historical marker describing the prison is located outside a historic 1888 railroad building, which is now part of the Montgomery Biscuits Baseball stadium.
Prisons during the Civil War were terrible on both sides. There were roughly 674,000 prisoners during the war; 56,000 of them would die of disease, lack of food, and poor living conditions. 
"Confederate Military Prison/Civil War Military Prisons." The Historical Marker Database. Accessed September 30, 2017. https://www.hmdb.org/marker.asp?marker=71369.

Photos: Mark Hilton, via The Historical Marker Database