As a Confederate agent, Louden was involved in the sabotage and sinking of several Union steamboats near St. Louis, Missouri and, on his deathbed, claimed to have been responsible for the destruction of the steamboat Sultana, which exploded on April 27, 1865 just north of Memphis, Tennessee, killing an estimated 1,300 to 1,900 paroled Union prisoners and civilians returning home after the war, the deadliest maritime disaster in United States history.
Louden was a Confederate agent who participated in sabotage against Union steamboats near St. Louis, Missouri. He later confessed to being responsible for the sinking of the Sultana steamboat, which exploded on April 27, 1865, killing an estimated 1,300 to 1,900 people.