The Battles of Tilton were two one-day skirmishes in the American Civil War.

The Second Battle of Tilton occurred on October 13, 1864, when soldiers of Maj. Gen. Samuel G. French's Division of Lt. Gen. Stewart's Corps of the Confederate Army of Tennessee besieged a military garrison of 300 soldiers of the 17th Iowa Infantry Regiment commanded by Lt. Col. Simpson M.

[7][8] The blockhouse had been constructed a few months prior to the battle, to guard the Western and Atlantic Railroad.

[9] Commanded by Archer, the 17th Iowa Regiment barricaded themselves in the blockhouse and surrendered upon exhausting their ammunition supply.

A future member of the Iowa General Assembly, Pvt.