Toward the end of the war, Madison Parish faced problems with jayhawkers, men sympathetic to the Union. According to historian Winters, they "were holed up in the impenetrable cane and cypress swamps in the area. This band, made up of draft dodgers, deserters, and runaway Negroes, often left the swamps to rob, kill, or capture anyone who passed by on the road." The Confederates dressed in Federal uniforms to trick the jayhawkers. Winters continues: "The leader of the desperadoes, a huge black, welcomed the supposed Federal troops. Suddenly the disguised men fell upon the surprised gang and began to slaughter them. [In a quick but bloody struggle Confederates killed 130 of the group. The few who escaped never again returned to ravage the area."