Columbus was cut off from rest of the Confederate Army, and faced capture by Union troops advancing overland from the Tennessee River to the Mississippi.

[10] As early as March 17, Pope was asking that two or three gunboats run past the Confederate batteries, to enable him to cross the river and trap the entire garrison.

[11] For the next two weeks, fighting consisted of bombardment of the island at rather long range, mostly conducted by the mortars, and occasionally replied to by the Confederate batteries.

[13] On April 7, Pope made his move, and transports carried his troops across, landing on the Tennessee side of the river, thus threatening the Confederate positions from the rear.

[15] Dismuke's battery evacuated its positions at Madrid Bend on April 7, 1862, along with other artillery units under Captain Andrew Jackson, Jr.

The battery officers at the time of the formation of 1st Tennessee Heavy Artillery were:[9] General Villepigue began the evacuation of Fort Pillow on the Mississippi River at the end of May 1862.

Upon arrival at Vicksburg, the 1st Tennessee Heavy Artillery was consolidated by order of Brigadier General M. L. Smith on June 18, 1862 due to depleted numbers, there were only about 330 men at the time.

[20][21] Colonel Jackson reported on the passage of the batteries by enemy boats on the night of April 2, 1863, in which 391 shots were fired by the regiment.

[16] The battery, along with the rest of the 1st Tennessee Heavy Artillery regiment was surrendered and paroled as part of Brigadier General John C. Moore's Brigade on July 4, 1863.

The able bodied Confederate soldiers who were released on parole walked out of Vicksburg (they were not allowed to proceed in any military formations) on July 11, 1863.

Most of the Arkansas units appeared to have bypassed the established parole camps, and possibly with the support, or at least by the compliancy, of their Union captors, simply crossed the river and returned home.

Because so many of the Vicksburg parolees, especially from Arkansas, simply went home, Major General Pemberton requested Confederate President Davis grant the men a thirty to sixty-day furlough.

[24] The furloughs were not strictly adhered to so long as the soldier eventually showed up at a parole camp to be declared exchanged and returned to duty.

A final consolidation of the 1st Tennessee Heavy Artillery Regiment was ordered by Maj. Gen. Dabney H. Maury on February 4, 1864, due to the fact that the men were scattered all over the place after being paroled at Vicksburg.

"A number of the men, after being furloughed when paroled, joined the cavalry in North Mississippi and West Tennessee, and are now on duty with General Forrest's Command.

[16] On February 4, by order of Major General D. H. Maury, commanding the District of the Gulf, the regiment was consolidated into two companies A and B, (third organization).

[16] At least three original members of Dismukes' Battery, including First Lieutenant Robert A. Howell were still assigned to the unit when it was surrendered with the garrison of Fort Morgan, Alabama on August 23, 1864.

It appears that other members of the battery, including Captain Dismukes, probably chose to cross back across the Mississippi River after the fall of Vicksburg, rather than report to the parole camps and be exchanged.

Paul T. Dismukes' 1st Tennessee Heavy Artillery, is not listed in the final accounting of Confederate Government property in the Department of the Trans-Mississippi.