Zollicoffer moved west and established an encampment at Mill Springs, Kentucky, (near present-day Nancy, Kentucky) on the south bank of the Cumberland River. By December 6, he had moved his force to the north bank of the river, where he thought he could better support the supply of his men, build fortifications and keep watch on Thomas's force. This was a risky tactic because Zollicoffer's men were poorly equipped, ill-trained and ill-disciplined. They were not properly prepared to meet the growing Union threat and Zollicoffer's expectation that he would solve this problem by receiving supplies and reinforcements at Beech Grove, opposite Mill Springs, was too optimistic. Many of the men in Confederate service in Tennessee who could have reinforced Zollicoffer remained unarmed. Zollicoffer's own reserve force at Knoxville was mostly unarmed.